IPFS Desktop

IPFS Desktop gives you all the power of IPFS in a convenient desktop app: a complete IPFS node, plus handy OS menubar/taskbar shortcuts and an all-in-one file manager, peer map, and content explorer.

Use IPFS Desktop to get acquainted with IPFS without needing to touch the terminal — or, if you're already experienced, use the powerful menubar/taskbar shortcuts alongside the command line to make your IPFS workflow faster.

Files screen	Explore screen	Peers screen	Settings screen	Menubar/taskbar

Quick-install shortcuts

When in doubt, pick one of package formats with built-in automatic update mechanism:

• Windows: ipfs-desktop-setup-0.49.1-win-x64.exe
• Mac: ipfs-desktop-0.49.1-mac.dmg
• Linux: ipfs-desktop-0.49.1-linux-x86_64.AppImage
• If you prefer to manage updates on your own, see other package formats below.

Table of Contents

• Features
• Start your node at system startup and control it from your OS
• Quickly import files, folders, and screenshots to IPFS
• Easily manage the contents of your node
• Visualize your IPFS peers worldwide
• Explore the "Merkle Forest" of IPFS files
• Enjoy OS-wide support for IPFS files and links
• Learn IPFS commands as you go
• Install
• Windows
• Mac
• Linux/FreeBSD
• Install from source
• Contribute
• Translations
• Developer notes
• FAQ & Troubleshooting
• Why am I missing the system tray menu on Linux?
• Why can't I install IPFS Desktop under Debian 11?
• Why can't I start IPFS Desktop under Debian 10?
• Why does the AppImage fail with a FUSE error?
• GTK 2/3 symbols detected. Using GTK 2/3 and GTK 4 in the same process is not supported
• Where are my configuration and log files?
  • IPFS Desktop configuration
  • Kubo repository and configuration
  • How does IPFS Desktop select the IPFS repo location?
• Which version of IPFS does IPFS Desktop use?
• Which flags does IPFS Desktop boot with?
• I got a repo.lock error. How do I resolve this?
• I got a network error (e.g. Error fetching). What should I do?
• Error: Initializing daemon...
  • Error: Your programs version (N) is lower than your repos (N+x).
  • Found outdated fs-repo, migrations need to be run. - Error fetching: context deadline exceeded
• I need more help!
• License

Features

IPFS Desktop combines a complete IPFS node (running kubo) and the IPFS Web UI into a single, convenient desktop app — plus adds a menu to your OS menubar/system tray for easy access to a variety of common IPFS tasks.

If you already have an IPFS node on your computer, IPFS Desktop will act as a control panel and file browser for that node. If you don't have a node, it'll install one for you. And either way, IPFS Desktop will automatically check for updates.

Start your node at system startup and control it from your OS

IPFS Desktop enables you to stop or restart your node straight from the IPFS logo menu in your OS menubar/system tray. For Mac and Windows users, IPFS Desktop can also be set to launch at system startup, ensuring that your node is running whenever your computer is on.

Quickly import files, folders, and screenshots to IPFS

Import files and folders to your IPFS node in a variety of convenient ways: - Drag and drop items onto IPFS Desktop's Files screen - Click the Import button on the Files screen to add items from your computer or an IPFS content ID (CID) - (Windows) Right-click a file/folder's icon to add it to IPFS from the pop-up menu - (Mac) Drag and drop a file/folder onto the IPFS logo in your menubar

Plus, you can use the Take Screenshot command under the IPFS logo menu to take a screenshot, import it to your node, and copy a shareable link to your clipboard with one click.

Easily manage the contents of your node

IPFS Desktop's Files screen gives you an easy, familiar interface for working with the contents of your node: - Easily rename, move, or remove files and folders - Preview many common file formats directly in IPFS Desktop - Copy a file/folder's IPFS content ID (CID) or a shareable link to your clipboard - "Pin" files to your IPFS node or to a third-party pinning service

Visualize your IPFS peers worldwide

Visit the Peers screen to see what nodes you're connected to, where they are, the connections they're using, and more.

Explore the "Merkle Forest" of IPFS files

Use the Explore screen to explore some example datasets — or your own files — and see firsthand how items stored on IPFS are broken down into content-addressed pieces.

Enjoy OS-wide support for IPFS files and links

IPFS Desktop enables most operating systems (Mac, Windows and some Linux flavors) to support protocols including ipfs:// and ipns://. This means that if an app on your computer tries to open a link starting with one of those protocol identifiers (for example, if your web browser encounters a link to ipns://en.wikipedia-on-ipfs.org), it'll automatically open in IPFS Desktop.

For an even better experience with ipfs://, and ipns:// addresses, we also recommend installing IPFS Companion to add support in your favorite browser!

Learn IPFS commands as you go

If you're interested in learning how to use IPFS from the command line, IPFS Desktop's CLI Tutor Mode can show you common IPFS commands as you go. Just check the CLI Tutor Mode box on the Settings screen to switch on this feature.

Install

Release notes and older versions of IPFS Desktop can be found on the releases page.

Don't see your favorite package manager? Visit our package managers page and help us add support for it!

Windows

• Installer: ipfs-desktop-setup-0.49.1-win-x64.exe\
• Chocolatey (community-maintained): choco install ipfs-desktop
• Scoop (community-maintained): scoop bucket add extras; scoop install extras/ipfs-desktop
• WinGet (community-maintained): winget install IPFS.IPFS-Desktop
• ℹ️ update checks from existing users:

Mac

• Installer: ipfs-desktop-0.49.1-mac.dmg\ [

](https://github.com/ipfs/ipfs-desktop/releases/download/v0.49.1/ipfs-desktop-0.49.1-mac.dmg) - Homebrew (community-maintained): brew install --cask ipfs - ℹ️ update checks from existing users:

Linux/FreeBSD

• AppImage: ipfs-desktop-0.49.1-linux-x86_64.AppImage\
• Tarball (tar.gz) (use this for building packages for distros): ipfs-desktop-0.49.1-linux-x64.tar.xz\
• Debian (DEB) (experimental): ipfs-desktop-0.49.1-linux-amd64.deb\
• Red Hat (RPM) (experimental): ipfs-desktop-0.49.1-linux-x86_64.rpm\
• FreeBSD (experimental): ipfs-desktop-0.49.1-linux-x64.freebsd (requires Linux Binary Compatibility to be enabled)\
• Snapcraft support is deprecated and discouraged due to confinement issues, use .AppImage instead
• ℹ️ update checks from existing users:

Additional third-party packages exist, but have the built-in auto-update mechanism disabled. Instead, update cycle is maintained by respective communities:

Install from source

To install and run IPFS Desktop from source, you'll also need: - Node.js – pick the current LTS - Any platform-specific dependencies required by [node-gyp](https://github.com/node