macOS Installation

Start with the quick start to choose the desktop app or command-line launcher. This page covers macOS setup.

Docker Desktop

Install Docker Desktop for Mac for your Mac’s architecture, start it, and wait for the engine to be ready. No XQuartz or separate X11 server is required.

The Bash launcher needs no Python; Docker Desktop includes Compose. The Python launcher needs Python 3.11+. Use an absolute project path such as /Users/you/datasets/project-copy in the installation commands or the desktop Overview project field.

Apple Silicon and Intel

The image is linux/amd64. Intel Macs run that architecture directly; Apple Silicon Macs use Docker’s amd64 emulation, roughly 3× slower than native; the app’s time estimates account for it. Select the desktop build for your Mac’s host architecture independently of the container architecture.

Apple Silicon limits:

• QSIPrep, the first DTI step, is refused on Apple Silicon. Run it on an x86-64 machine and copy derivatives/qsiprep/sub-<id>/ into your project; see the diffusion guide.
• FastSurfer can optionally use the native Apple GPU; see Enable Apple GPU.

Packaged app

A DMG contains the desktop application; drag it to Applications and launch it with Docker running. Choose the Apple Silicon or Intel DMG in desktop downloads. If macOS blocks an installer, report its filename, checksum, and exact message to the maintainer.