GitKraken Desktop – Common Issues and Fixes

Last updated: August 2025

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Account, License, and Entitlement Issues

My account shows Trial/Free/Community despite being a paid customer

In GitKraken Desktop, verify you’re logged in with the correct account:

The account is correct but it says I don’t have AI tokens

Make sure the correct organization is selected:

GitKraken.dev shows my account as TRIAL / COMMUNITY

Select the correct organization:

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GitKraken Desktop Issues

Clone repo always uses HTTPS instead of SSH

GitKraken Desktop defaults to HTTPS. To use SSH:

1. Go to Preferences > Integrations > [INTEGRATION]
2. Add or generate an SSH key
3. Restart GitKraken Desktop

Issue tracker error appears on repo startup or tab switch

This happens if a disconnected issue tracker is set as default.

• Go to Preferences > Issue Tracker
• Select None
• Check Use this as the default for all repositories

Commit details panel is missing

To re-enable it: View > Show Commit Details panel

Can’t minimize/maximize or exit full-screen mode

Toggle full-screen mode with Ctrl + Shift + F

Diff shows entire file instead of changes

This can occur due to differences in line endings or encoding.

• Enable “Ignore trailing whitespace”
• If the message changes to “File contents are unchanged,” the files are identical
  

  

Private organization repositories not visible (GitHub)

Ensure GitKraken Desktop has organization access:

GitHub Application Access Settings

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WSL Issues

GitKraken window is too small

GitKraken Desktop may not respect Windows DPI scaling when running in WSL.

• Use this workaround: gitkraken --force-device-scale-factor=1.5

GitKraken doesn’t launch from the console

Avoid running GitKraken as root. Switch to a regular user.

GitKraken closes suddenly and won’t reopen

This is a known WSL issue triggered by network changes.

• Terminate GitKraken: pkill -f gitkraken
• Launch another GUI app (e.g., gedit) to restore GUI functionality

GitKraken GUI does not launch or scales incorrectly under WSL2 with XServer

• XServer is not required. Use native WSL2 GUI support instead.

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Linux (Ubuntu)

File explorer does not open

GitKraken’s Electron window may be hidden behind the app.

• Minimize GitKraken or use Alt + Tab

GitKraken does not load my environment variables

• GitKraken sources .bashrc or .zshrc for environment variables

File watching failed to start

Increase file watchers in /etc/sysctl.conf:

fs.inotify.max_user_instances=8192
fs.inotify.max_user_watches=524288

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Windows

Use GitKraken Desktop with PuTTY/Plink

• Set GIT_SSH or GIT_SSH_COMMAND to point to Plink
• Or configure core.sshCommand in .gitconfig
• Also update Git Executable under Preferences > Experimental > Git Executable

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macOS

Git hooks fail with command not found

GUI apps on macOS do not inherit shell environment variables.

• Try launching GitKraken from terminal
• Use launchctl setenv YOURVAR value to set GUI-accessible environment variables

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General Troubleshooting for GitKraken Desktop 9.4.0+

The Git Executable option may affect Git behavior.

Steps to modify:

• Go to Preferences > Experimental
• Choose system Git version instead of the bundled one
• Download Git if needed

Disable the executable if problems continue:

Report persistent issues via GitKraken Support.

Blog post on migrating to Git Executable

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Integration – 1000 Series Errors

Error codes include:

• 1002
• 1003
• 1005
• 1007

Solution:

• Check credentials
• Sign out from your browser, then try again in GitKraken
• Clear browser cache
• Try a different default browser

Still stuck? Contact Support

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Push Failed: Cannot read property 'fullName' of undefined

Solution:
Rename the local branch to match the remote branch exactly. Use an intermediate name if necessary:

git branch -m Test-branch temp-branch
git branch -m temp-branch test-branch

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Branches or Files Missing – Capitalization Issues

On case-insensitive file systems like Windows, branches or files differing only by case may not appear correctly.

End of document.