Why does drag-and-drop fix it but cp does not?

Finder drag-and-drop automatically removes the quarantine extended attribute. Terminal cp preserves extended attributes.

Is App Translocation harmful?

No, it is a security measure. But it can cause apps to malfunction because they cannot write to their own directory.

Mac App Translocation — App Runs From Read-Only Location

Warningapp errors

Overview

macOS App Translocation runs applications from a randomized read-only path when Gatekeeper detects the app was not properly moved from a DMG or download.

Key Details

App Translocation is a security feature introduced in macOS Sierra
Apps opened directly from a DMG or download location trigger translocation
The app runs from a random /private/var/folders/ path
The app cannot save preferences or access resources relative to its path
Drag-and-drop to /Applications removes the quarantine flag

Common Causes

App opened directly from mounted DMG without copying to Applications
App copied using Terminal cp instead of Finder drag-and-drop
Quarantine extended attribute not removed after moving the app
Download managers placing apps in unexpected locations
App opened from within a ZIP file without extracting first

Steps

1Quit the application completely
2Move the app to /Applications using Finder drag-and-drop (not Terminal)
3If already in Applications, remove quarantine: xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/AppName.app
4Relaunch the app from /Applications
5Verify it is running from the correct path: check Activity Monitor > app > Open Files and Ports

More in App Errors

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Error

Frequently Asked Questions

A macOS security feature that runs apps from a read-only randomized path if they still have a quarantine flag, preventing malicious code from knowing its location.