The “you do not have permission to open the application” error is common in the macOS Big Sur. The error hinders you from opening third-party applications, while pre-installed applications work just fine.
This error can occur due to several reasons other than insufficient permission. Gatekeeper quarantining the app or a broken sign can also cause this particular error.
In this article, we will show you all the possible methods you can use to solve this error caused by a range of reasons.
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How to Fix “You Do Not Have Permission to Open the Application” Error?
There are various methods you can use to fix this particular error. So, go through all the fixes on this list to see which one works for you.
Allow Read/Write Permission
While read/write access is enabled for most files by default, some application files may have this permission restricted for various reasons. In such cases, you will face this particular error. It commonly occurs in third-party application files.
Here’s how you can grant them this permission:
- Select Applications from your dock.
- Go to Utilities and choose Terminal.
- Now, enter the following command in the Terminal:
sudo chmod -R 755 <application file path>(In <application file path> enter the full file path of that application.)
- If you don’t know how to do this, you can simply drag and drop the application to the Terminal. This will enter its full file path.
- Exit Terminal and launch the application with the error.
Codesign the App
In mac OS, every application carries a signature by either Apple itself or the app developers using an Apple-issued Developer ID. It is used for verifying the integrity of the data provided by the application.
Codesigning the app will read the app’s signature and determine its authenticity. However, if your application signature is faulty or broken, your system will not be able to read the signature.
In this case, you can forcibly codesign the app through commands to fix this issue.
- Launch Terminal from the dock.
- In Terminal, enter the command:
sudo codesign --force --deep --sign - <application file path>
- You can drag and drop the application in Terminal to get its full file path.
- Open the problematic app.
If the codesign command doesn’t work, the xtools may not be pre-installed in your device. To install it, you can run this command: xcode-select --install
Remove Quarantine Flag
Sometimes, Gatekeeper will quarantine third-party applications downloaded from unknown sources to safeguard your computer. This will hinder your access to the application, and it can show this particular error message.
Follow the steps below to remove the quarantine flag from your application:
- Open Terminal using the above methods.
- Type in the following command:
sudo xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine <application file path>
- Drag and drop the application to Terminal.
- Press Enter.
- Launch the malfunction application.
Update Software
The “you do not have permission to open the application” error used to be a common bug in the macOS Big Sur. If it is also the cause of your issue, you can try updating your mac software to fix this issue.
Furthermore, software updates cover a wide variety of bug fixes and other optimization features for your mac OS. If your system had some other problems leading to this error, a software update will also help.
- Tap on the Apple menu and select System Preferences.
- Tap on Software Update and check for updates.
- If there are updates available, click on Upgrade Now.
Open in Rosetta
Mac computers have transitioned through different hardware like Intel to Apple silicon. However, applications made for Intel-based mac may not work on Apple Silicon mac. To fix this compatibility issue, Apple developed Rosetta, a binary translator that helps specific mac based applications run in newer macs.
However, if for some reason, these kinds of applications can’t access Rosetta, you can get this particular error.
You can try manually enabling Rosetta to see if it fixes the issue:
- Right-click the problematic application in Finder.
- Select Get Info.
- In the General tab, select the Open using Rosetta option.
- Double-click the application to open it.
If Rosetta doesn’t come pre-installed in your version of mac, you can run this command in Terminal to install it: /usr/sbin/softwareupdate --install-rosetta --agree-to-license
Unpack with UPX
If your application has binary files compressed using UPX, your Mac computer may not be able to open the application properly. In this case, you will need to unpack the compressed binaries using UPX.
To do so, you can install UPX from Homebrew, open-source software that helps install other software on Mac.
Follow the steps below to do so:
- Open Terminal using the above method.
- Enter the following command to install Homebrew:
/bin/bash -c "$(curl -fsSL https://raw.githubusercontent.com/Homebrew/install/HEAD/install.sh)"
- Enter the following command to install UPX:
brew install upx
- Right-click the problematic app and select Show Package Contents.
- Go to Contents > Mac OS.
- Type the command
sudo upx -d, then drag and drop the application UNIX exe to Terminal. - Press Enter.
Reinstall the App
If the above methods don’t work, you can try reinstalling the application. It will clear all application files, including corrupted or problematic ones, and install a new working copy.
Here’s how you can do it:
- Launch Finder from dock.
- Go to the Applications folder.
- Drag and drop your problematic app to the Trash icon in dock.
- In Finder, click on the Empty button in upper-right corner.
- Install the application again.
