Docker Desktop App not opening MacOS quick fix

Photo by Rubaitul Azad on Unsplash

This quick guide explains how to troubleshoot the Docker Desktop app when it frequently crashes after macOS updates.

You might wonder why I didn’t just post this on Stack Overflow. Well, there are 22 pages of suggested solutions, none of which worked for me. After going through them, I realized that most were just workarounds rather than a proper fix that applies to a wide range of cases.

So, what’s the solution?

Docker often breaks on macOS after a major system update, refusing to start — even when launching it directly from the binaries.

Uninstalling doesn’t help either, as Docker leaves behind numerous undeleted files that cause issues. I came across a YouTube video demonstrating how to remove these files manually, but that method didn’t work in my case. Here’s the video:

https://youtu.be/maQJSnRdy10

My approach is similar but more streamlined, using Homebrew. If you’re unfamiliar with Homebrew, I recommend installing it first.

Step 1: Uninstall Docker Desktop

If you have Docker Desktop installed, first uninstall it properly:

1. Open Docker Desktop.
2. Go to Settings > Troubleshoot.
3. Click Uninstall.
4. Quit Docker after uninstalling.

Step 2: Remove Docker Binaries

Run the following command to delete Docker-related binaries:

sudo rm -rf /usr/local/bin/docker
sudo rm -rf /usr/local/bin/docker-credential-desktop
sudo rm -rf /usr/local/bin/docker-credential-osxkeychain
sudo rm -rf /usr/local/bin/hub-tool
sudo rm -rf /usr/local/bin/kubectl.docker
sudo rm -rf /opt/homebrew/etc/bash_completion.d/docker
sudo rm -rf /opt/homebrew/share/zsh/site-functions/_docker
sudo rm -rf /opt/homebrew/share/fish/vendor_completions.d/docker.fish
sudo rm -rf /usr/local/bin/kubectl.docker /usr/local/bin/docker-index /usr/local/bin/docker-compose
sudo rm -rf /opt/homebrew/bin/docker /opt/homebrew/var/homebrew/linked/docker /opt/homebrew/opt/docker
sudo rm -rf /System/Volumes/Data/usr/local/bin/kubectl.docker /System/Volumes/Data/usr/local/bin/docker-index /System/Volumes/Data/usr/local/bin/docker-compose

Step 3: Remove Docker Configuration & Logs

sudo rm -rf /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.docker.*
sudo rm -rf ~/Library/Containers/com.docker.*
sudo rm -rf ~/Library/Application\ Scripts/group.com.docker
sudo rm -rf ~/Library/Group\ Containers/group.com.docker
sudo rm -rf ~/Library/Caches/com.docker.*
sudo rm -rf ~/Library/Preferences/com.docker.*
sudo rm -rf /private/var/run/com.docker.*

Step 4: Remove Docker from Homebrew

If you installed Docker via Homebrew, run:

brew uninstall - cask docker
brew uninstall docker
brew cleanup

Step 5: Remove VS Code Docker Extensions (If Installed)

rm -rf ~/.vscode/extensions/ms-azuretools.vscode-docker-*

Step 6: Remove Docker from Node.js Projects (Optional)

If you have Docker-related dependencies in your projects, remove them manually using:

rm -rf node_modules
npm install

Step 7: Restart Your Mac

After completing the steps, restart your Mac to ensure all services are stopped.

After rebooting, run:

brew install docker
which docker
docker - version

Docker has been installed successfully. Happy Coding 🚀