> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.tryhoard.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# "Hoard Desktop can't be opened" on Mac

> How to get past macOS's Gatekeeper warning and open Hoard Desktop on a Mac.

If macOS blocks Hoard Desktop the first time you try to open it, that's Gatekeeper reacting to an unsigned app, not a sign anything is wrong. Hoard Desktop isn't code-signed by Apple yet, so macOS blocks it by default on first launch. There are two ways past it.

## Option A: right-click to open (recommended)

1. Find Hoard Desktop in your Applications folder.
2. Right-click (or Control-click) the app icon and choose **Open**.
3. A dialog appears warning that the app is from an unidentified developer. Click **Open** again to confirm.

This only needs to happen once — after the first successful open, macOS remembers your choice and the app launches normally going forward, including double-click.

## Option B: remove the quarantine flag from Terminal

If you'd rather not click through a warning dialog, open Terminal and run:

```bash theme={null}
xattr -d com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Hoard\ Desktop.app
```

This strips the quarantine attribute macOS attaches to downloaded apps. Afterward, Hoard Desktop opens normally, including with a regular double-click.

## Why this happens

Apple requires a paid developer certificate to sign and notarize an app so Gatekeeper trusts it automatically. Hoard Desktop doesn't have that yet, so macOS treats every fresh download as untrusted until you explicitly tell it otherwise using one of the two options above.

## If the dialog wording looks different from what's described here

Apple has changed the exact wording of this warning across macOS versions — you might see "can't be opened because Apple cannot check it for malicious software" or a similar variant depending on your OS version. Whatever the exact phrasing, it's the same unsigned-app block, and both fixes above apply the same way.

## What the setup wizard also does for you

Hoard Desktop's setup wizard includes a quarantine-detection step that recognizes this situation and walks you through the same fix in-app, so you don't strictly need to remember the right-click or Terminal steps yourself if the wizard catches it first.

## After you're past the warning

Open Hoard Desktop and follow the setup wizard: click **Log in with Hoard**, authorize in your browser, and the agent downloads and starts automatically. See the [full install walkthrough](/tutorials/install-and-use-hoard-desktop-agent) for everything after that, including your first TCGplayer login and sync.

## Related

* [Full install walkthrough](/tutorials/install-and-use-hoard-desktop-agent)