Why does Texmaker fail to compile in Desktop tree with 'logfile not found' error on macOS?

It seems that some tex file does not compile when stored somewhere under ~/Desktop.

Do you have your Documents and Desktop in iCloud? I wonder if that is playing a role.

Try this: create a new folder inside your home drive, and put the file there. Does it compile?

To further troubleshoot this, it might help if we can see a minimal example of a file that fails to compile; or at least a copy of the log file, so we can see exactly the error.

If you are willing to share the log file, use the "additional text" button below the message area:

and copy and paste the whole log there.

The last version of TEXMAKER (e.g. 6.0.1) was released in April 2025 as an ARM Apple Silicon binary. If you are using an older Intel version (e.g 5.1.4) or have attempted to build it from source code, you are in the weeds and need to download and install the current binary version above. Texmaker is not part of the official MacTeX 2025 package and it is written in C++/Qt6.

I am puzzled.

I was able to reproduce the 2 "log file not found" errors, but that was because the machine in question did not have TeX installed. Once I installed it, files do compile, regardless of location.

The errors you are getting suggest TeXMaker is not being able to find the required tool (pdflatex). But it's weird that this only happens when the file to typeset is saved in some locations and not others!

Sorry, at the moment I don't know what to suggest, other than perhaps using a different program, like TeXShop, or TeXWorks, instead of TeXMaker. The other options are very much more integrated into the Mac; TeXMaker's appeal is perhaps it being cross platform. At times I had suggested this to students because they were using different OS; but nowadays I'd point them to online tools like overleaf.com or scienhub.com instead.

One can install MacTeX using Homebrew package manager and on an Apple Silicon Mac, that would likely cause the distribution to be installed in the /opt/homebrew tree rather than the normal /usr/local tree when installed as a direct download from the MacTeX site. TEXMAKER may misbehave if MacTeX 2025 was installed by Homebrew, another package manager, or by not directly using the MacTeX installer download.

VikingOSX wrote:

One can install MacTeX using Homebrew package manager and on an Apple Silicon Mac, that would likely cause the distribution to be installed in the /opt/homebrew tree rather than the normal /usr/local tree when installed as a direct download from the MacTeX site. TEXMAKER may misbehave if MacTeX 2025 was installed by Homebrew, another package manager, or by not directly using the MacTeX installer download.

You may have a point there. I don't know about the OP; I stay clear of homebrew as much as possible, and in the case of TeX, I cannot see why one would use anything other than mactex to install. It is straightforward, installs the current TeXLive distribution, uses a standard mac installer, knows to set all the paths correctly. It also includes TeXShop, BibDesk, and LaTeXiT (not that it would be hard to install them separately, but saves some time).

I don't have TeXMaker installed on my mac, as I use TeXShop almost exclusively.

I am not going to install on my main machine, but I installed on a second mac to test.

I will try this later today, and will report what I find.

Can you post screenshots from TeXMaker->Preferences, namely to see what is the option selected for Quick Build, and the exact commands used for latex and pdflatex?

VikingOSX:

Perhaps it was my misunderstanding, but I think the issue is not with TeXMaker per se, but rather with typesetting actual LaTeX documents (as we sometimes use the word compile as a synonym for typeset in the context of producing the final pdf output from tex files).

Hopefully the OP will clarify.

The correct and current MacTeX 2025 pdflatex syntax is:

pdflatex -synctex=1 -interaction=nonstopmode foo.tex

Depending on the \usepackage involved, TeX source (e.g. .tex) may work better being typeset with LuaLaTeX or XeLaTeX than pdflatex. Often, the package developer will state this in their package documentation.

This is among the reasons I use TeXShop which gives me menu access to various typesetters.

Agreed.

I always use the MacTeX native installer package and also keep the packages current in the TeX Live Utility.