The application “SomeApp.app” can’t be opened

Problem: after downloading an application in OS X Yosemite (10.10.x) trying to open the application (either from the command-line or by double-clicking the application) produces a dialog saying "The application “SomeApp.app” can’t be opened."

Note that this differs from the "SomeApp can't be opened because it was not downloaded from the Mac App Store" or "SomeApp can’t be opened because it is from an unidentified developer” message that is the result of Gatekeeper settings.

Steve Richey

Posted 2015-04-05T18:25:50.503

Reputation: 1 159

Answers

After extensive trial-and-error, and a lot of fruitless Googling, I found the solution required modifying the executable status of the "inner" application file. This line: chmod +x SomeApp.app/Contents/MacOS/*

Fixed the problem in all cases that I observed. The +x flags a file as executable, and the only file in the /Contents/MacOS/ directory is a binary representing the actual file that should be executed when you double-click the application (a .app file is really just a folder).

Hope this helps someone else!

Steve Richey

Posted 2015-04-05T18:25:50.503

Reputation: 1 159

You should NOT edit ANYTHING inside an app's bundle, especially if it comes from the "Mac App Store"... unless you really know what you are doing. If you do, the bundle's checksum will likely fail, causing any number of problems, starting with an inability to launch it. – mralexgray – 2015-12-09T04:36:40.440

10You should definitely edit the executable flag of binaries in app bundles if they are not set. – Anthony Michael Cook – 2015-12-26T19:12:40.830

1I'd add that I've specifically used this to fix applications created for OSX with Unity. My guess would be that these app bundles have been packaged up on another platform (like Windows) that doesn't get OSX permissions right. – Henry Cooke – 2016-08-20T20:38:50.650

1I had to CHMOD 777 the file before it actually worked. Thanks. – Frank Barcenas – 2016-09-30T05:57:27.127

1This happened to me when I downloaded an .app bundle from Dropbox via the web UI. – Dmitri Shuralyov – 2016-11-24T15:43:37.387

I needed to use the "all" flag, but worked like a charm: chmod a+x ... – Ryan Wheale – 2016-12-19T19:05:39.830

3This can happen if you extract the app from a zip file using an unzip program other than the default Archive Utility.app. Sometimes unzipping with Archive Utility instead will preserve permissions and avoid the need for the solution here. – Jason – 2017-02-11T07:45:49.807

@Jason This was the cause of my problem just now with both Postman and Sourcetree. I had unzipped them using stuffit expander. Using the default unarchiver worked. PS Thanks! PPS You could add this as an answer and I'll vote for it – davidfrancis – 2018-01-11T14:18:34.937

3Not working on osX Catalina – Mojtaba Hosseini – 2019-06-13T21:29:54.637

For Catalina I ended up installing via brew, since it appears the default archive utility has this issue. – Diesel – 2019-06-21T01:24:12.517

This came up for me on Mojave after a message flashed before my eyes warning me of the grave dangers of running an app not developed by Apple on my Mac. I was just trying to get to the app, did not read the message, and hit "Yes". Apparently the OS changed the file to be nonexecutable for my protection. This post helped me realize what had happened. This was my own app, so I knew it was safe to run. – froggythefrog – 2019-08-06T00:54:16.537

1Did not work for me on MacOS 10.14.6 – Mike Eng – 2019-08-21T14:40:55.907

in the Finder, locate the app (in the Applications folder, most likely)
Press the Control-key and click the app icon
Choose Open from the contextual menu

As in App Cannot Be Opened (even though that describes a workaround for the Gatekeeper app, it works for the scenario in the question as well)

Mike Eng

Posted 2015-04-05T18:25:50.503

Reputation: 318

-1

When I get The application SomeApp.app can’t be opened, I

Open a terminal (/Applications/Utilities/Terminal.app),
And type: sudo killall launchservicesd
If the Dock is also misbvehaving, I'll also type killall Dock.
Then, I am able to open SomeApp (or any app).

Is that ok with everyone?

mralexgray

Posted 2015-04-05T18:25:50.503

Reputation: 668

2Can you explain what this has to do with the question? – G-Man Says 'Reinstate Monica' – 2015-12-07T05:41:59.533

When I get The application “SomeApp.app” can’t be opened', I kill launchservicesd, and sometimes Dock, and then I am able to open SomeApp. What is so bewildering about that? – mralexgray – 2015-12-07T05:46:40.207

3@mralexgray: please expand your answer to include your comment and clarify your answer. Otherwise, this isn't much help, as-is. – studiohack – 2015-12-08T16:29:10.217

It's SO simple and SO clear. Run the command... and the problem is fixed. 'Nuff said. – mralexgray – 2015-12-08T17:00:35.907

2Ran the commands. The problem wasn't fixed. Maybe if you put more information about what is actually happening when these commands are run it would help with fixing problem where this doesn't quite work as expected. It's simple, and clear enough, I suppose, but not complete. Notice there was no request to simplify or clarify this, but to expand it. The fact that it doesn't work for me right now makes me also wish it were expanded with more detail. – Todd Wilcox – 2016-04-17T22:13:53.400

Don't blame me.. All apple says in launchservicesd's man page is.. "used internally by Mac OSx to track and coordinate information about the running applications on the system". This answer is total hocus-pocus, never claimed it was anything but. ;-) – mralexgray – 2016-04-18T00:22:07.983

We appreciate the effort, mralexgray! The only problem is... It doesn't work for anyone else. :( – rinogo – 2018-05-22T18:56:45.083

Depending on the version of Mac OS (x) and what the problem is, some applications controlled by launchservices daemon can restart properly after forcing launchservicesd to restart. I believe most users running Mac OS 10.11 and newer are facing the permission issues mentioned by Steve Richey however. To the credit of MrAlexGray, this was likely a viable solution for older OS X machines and may still apply to some Mac OS applications experiencing launch issues today. – Tmanok – 2019-01-06T23:24:40.120