Documentation
Desktop
Mac

Mac Installation

Jan has been developed as a Mac Universal application, allowing it to run natively on both Apple Silicon and Intel-based Macs.

Compatibility

Ensure that your system meets the following requirements to use Jan effectively:

  • MacOSX 13.6 or higher.

Installing Jan

To install Jan, follow the steps below:

Step 1: Download the Jan Application

Jan provides two types of releases:

Stable Releases

Please download Jan from official distributions, or build it from source.

Make sure to verify the URL to ensure that it's the official Jan website and GitHub repository.

Step 2: Install the Jan Application

  1. Once you have downloaded the Jan app .dmg file, open the file.
  2. Drag the application icon to the Applications folder shortcut.
  3. Wait for the installation process.
  4. Once installed, you can access Jan on your machine.

Install Jan with Homebrew

You can also install Jan using the following Homebrew command:


brew install --cask jan

⚠️
  • Ensure that you have installed Homebrew and its dependencies.
  • Homebrew package installation is currently limited to Apple Silicon Macs, with upcoming support for Windows and Linux.

Data Folder

By default, Jan is installed in the following directory:


# Default installation directory
~/jan

  • You can move the Jan data folder to a specific folder by following the steps here.
  • Please see the Jan Data Folder for more details about the data folder structure.

Metal Acceleration

Jan is specially designed to work well on Mac Silicon, using llama.cpp as its main engine for processing AI tasks efficiently. It automatically uses Metal (opens in a new tab), Apple's latest technology that can be used for GPU acceleration, so you don’t need to turn on this feature manually.

💡 Metal, used for GPU acceleration, is not supported on Intel-based Mac devices.

Uninstalling Jan

To uninstall Jan, follow the steps below:

  1. If the app is currently open, exit the app before continuing.
  2. Open the Finder menu.
  3. Click the Applications option from the sidebar.
  4. Find the Jan app or type in the search bar.
  5. Use any of these ways to move the Jan app to the Trash:
  • Drag the app to the Trash.
  • Select the app and choose the Move to Trash option.
  • Select the app and press Command-Delete on your keyboard.

The deleted Data Folder cannot be restored.

FAQs

What are Nightly Releases, and how can I access them?

Nightly Releases allow you to test new features and previews of upcoming stable releases. You can download them from Jan's GitHub repository. However, remember that these builds might contain bugs and crash frequently.

Can I move the Jan data folder to a different location?

Yes, you can move the Jan data folder.

How do I enable GPU acceleration for better performance

Depending on your Mac type (Apple Silicon or Intel), you won't be able to utilize the GPU acceleration feature if you have a Mac with an Intel processor.

Can I recover the deleted Jan data folder after uninstallation?

No, it cannot be restored once you delete the Jan data folder during uninstallation.

💡 Warning: If you have any trouble during installation, please see our Troubleshooting guide to resolve your problem.

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