Skip to main content

X11 for Mac

MacOS 10.9 and later (11.2 “Big Sur” Working as of 4 March 2021):
  1. Upgrade OS to latest available (not always necessary, but usually avoids bugs)
  2. Upgrade to (or install) XQuartz-2.8.5
  3. Log out/Log in to your Mac (may not be needed for upgrades from earlier 2.8.0 releases)
  4. starting Mac terminal (or x2go, if installed) should trigger xquartz.
  5. For OpenGL graphics to work, you may need to turn on indirect GLX by typing the following into your terminal:
    defaults write org.xquartz.X11 enable_iglx -bool true
Troubleshooting:
  • If glxgears gives the error: “couldn’t get an RGB, Double-buffered visual”, add the following to your GreenPlanet .bash_profile or equivalent:
    export __GLX_VENDOR_LIBRARY_NAME=mesa
  • If Matlab windows keep blanking out, create a file "java.opts"  in your GreenPlanet home folder with the following content:
    -Dsun.java2d.xrender=false
    -Dsun.java2d.pmoffscreen=false

    (If you start Matlab from a different folder, the java.opts may need to be put there instead.)

Before 10.9, use XQuartz 2.7.11
    • Warning: Some ancient apps may require an even older version (2.7.8) of XQuartz due to incompatibilities with “El Capitan” and “Mojave”