Tdesktop: Multiple instances

[Innomen]

It's cumbersome to have a conversation with two or more people at once since I can't have multiple windows.

I assume this isn't possible, I've tried and tried, and I can't find any other matching requests either.

Sorry if I missed something.

[ChaosMarc]

if you use the portable version from https://desktop.telegram.org/ you can easily launch multiple instances.

[Innomen]

Ahh! Good to know. I'll try that right away :)

Update: Trying to run a second instance just brings the first into focus. I can however make multiple folders and run multiple copies that way. Which while workable is pretty clunky. Still, thanks, it'll do for now :)

[phplego]

:+1:

you can easily launch multiple instances.

It does not work on Ubuntu. Trying to run a second instance just brings the first into focus.

[Innomen]

Every chat window should have a "pop out" button. I'm confident that it will as the desktop app begins to compete with pidgin and the like more :)

[cobalto]

Multiple accounts would be nice too, but sure multiple instances looks easier to implement and do the same enough

[mautematico]

Are there any news about this multiple instances thing? :)

[Innomen]

I guess it's low priority. /shrugs

[DiThi]

This has an easy workaround (using several copies of the portable version). There's no workaround for using several instances in mobile, though (other than using several android accounts, but you don't get notifications of the other accounts that way).

[mautematico]

When using, let say, Mozilla Firefox, you can pass -P and --no-remote parameters to get multiple instances running at the same time:

firefox -P 'profile one'
firefox -P 'profile two' --no-remote

May be tdesktop can use some parameter like those, and give the user choice to select profile/data dir

(using several copies of the portable version)
I think portable version is not available for GNU/Linux, is it?

Thank you all for the great work!

[humiaozuzu]

Any update?

[auchri]

You can start multiple instances with the following command:

1. Telegram -many -workdir "C:\Users\asd\Desktop\instance1\data"
2. Telegram -many -workdir "C:\Users\asd\Desktop\instance2\data"

I think it should be the same for linux.

[ggeldenhuis]

Starting multiple instances is not a solution and closing the ticket is certainly not the way to make this go away.

[auchri]

This issue was about multiple instances and it's fixed.

[mbnoimi]

@auchri

Telegram -many -workdir "C:\Users\asd\Desktop\instance1data"

I think it should be the same for linux..

It doesn't work under Linux as I expected. I created this launcher but unfortunately it fails:

telegram-sim2.desktop

[Desktop Entry]
Version=1.0
Type=Application
Name=Telegram Desktop SIM2
Icon=telegram
Exec=/home/halo/.Telegram/Telegram  -many -workdir /home/halo/.TelegramDesktopSIM2
Path=/home/halo/.TelegramDesktopSIM2
NoDisplay=false
Categories=Network;
StartupNotify=false
Terminal=false

[par6n]

Worked perfectly in Ubuntu 15.04 (elementary 0.3.2 distro):

Telegram -many -workdir /home/ehsaan/.dubaisimcard/

[MJafarMashhadi]

@mbnoimi workdir directory should be created before launching telegram

[Innomen]

It seems my patience will only be punished when petulant devs are at play.

Seriously, why even bother having an issues page if you're going to find excuses to ignore them all?

It seems this app will NEVER have spell checking, multiple windows, log export, or user specific backgrounds. Because reasons? Party like it's 1999.

Oh wait, even in '99 chat apps had multiple windows, logs, and spell checking.

Pathetic that in 2016 I find myself looking back at the likes of ICQ and Aim and seeing them as objectively more advanced.

We truly are a decadent culture. I wonder how long till we start tearing down our monuments because we've forgotten how to quarry fresh stone.

In any case I'll just encourage my few contacts to migrate to a better app with a maintainer or two that gives a damn for something other than snarking and receiving compliments.

I pity everyone else afflicted by vendor lock in. Now I know why I'm not permitted to export my chat log. To sustain the aforementioned vendor lock in.

Enjoy the snide last word devs or devknights. This thread is now being ignored by me as well.

(Right wing profit motive excuses in 3... 2... 1...)

[john-preston]

@Innomen Wow, that was touching.. :'(

[cobalto]

@Innomen

[stek29]

@Innomen What's the license of your comment? Can I use it?

[trollfred]

@stek29 there's no point in asking in this thread since it is now being ignored by him

[par6n]

@Innomen It looks like Telegram is ignoring everyone, adding the most _USELESS_ features to their clients by leaving bugs unsquished.
I don't what that is called, but they made something fast, but imperfect. Hope someday Durov wakes up and see there's plenty to do yet.

[stek29]

@kittee

[Megachip]

So really? If I have a windows system with multiple users, all use the same telegram instance... how secure :(

You really shout separate data from executables (in installer version). Think of terminal server etc. with a lot of users... (beside the epic fail in windows rights management letting others accessing the the folder)

[john-preston]

@Megachip You can have everyone use his own instance. Or you can put your only instance in some write protected place — if Telegram can't write to it's executable path, it uses the current user's "AppData/Roaming/Telegram Desktop" folder.

[stek29]

@john-preston Doesn't TDesktop always use AppData unless it's Portable/Alpha build?

[cryptoneep]

doesn't work on OSX. driving me nuts..

[stek29]

@cryptoneep yup, it doesn't work on macOS sadly :(
Maybe you'll open an issue?

[anjunatl]

I've been itching for this feature, and I'm on OS X. I'll look through the code and see if I can do it, and if I can I'll make a pull request.

[noark9]

Telegram -many -workdir pathtoworkdir

works perfect on fedora 27

[MrSwed]

works on win7. but needs to create before workdir

so this could be realized by means of the telegram itself, inho

[cryptoneep]

Great, would love this on OSX as well!

[cobalto]

Well, It's a canon functionality on the mobile app now...

[linuxtopia]

how to apply for Telgram portable version of Linux that workdir? Command line doesnt know Telgram even cause of portable

[Rocco83]

+1 on that feature.
A plus would be the possibility to cleanup all of the content upon exit, keeping only the auth stuff.

[d0tfile]

@Rocco83 you can use Telegram -many -workdir pathtoworkdir, where pathtoworkdir it mounted as tmpfs for example. Directory pathtoworkdir will be destroyed after reboot.

[Rocco83]

@d0tfile thanks for the workaround.
I am anyway looking forward to do it without nasty double application.
As already mentioned, the multiple account are already a feature.
This must be "in" the application.
Also, if pathtoworkdir is missing, then also the authentication will be gone, and has to be re-issued. Which make sense, but again then a "flag" in the application is something that i would expect.

[Draghmar]

Could someone explain me how to use this command with portable Telegram on Windows?
Telegram -many -workdir pathtoworkdir
I created two folders in Telegram folder and created two shortcust to the .exe file where I putted command for each temp folder. But when I try to launch second instance I'm getting some error:

[2018.04.21 15:37:39] Launched version: 1002017, alpha: [FALSE], beta: 0, debug mode: [FALSE], test dc: [FALSE]
[2018.04.21 15:37:39] Executable dir: D:/Użytki/Telegram/, name: Telegram.exe
[2018.04.21 15:37:39] Initial working dir: D:/Użytki/Telegram/
[2018.04.21 15:37:39] Working dir: D:/Użytki/Telegram/
[2018.04.21 15:37:39] Command line: D:\Użytki\Telegram\Telegram.exe -many -workdir D\Użytki\Telegram\temp2
[2018.04.21 15:37:39] Executable path before check: D:/Użytki/Telegram/Telegram.exe
[2018.04.21 15:37:39] Logs started
[2018.04.21 15:37:39] Many instance allowed, starting...
[2018.04.21 15:37:39] FATAL: Could not open 'D:/Użytki/Telegram/tdata/working' for writing!

What I'd like to achieve is to use Telegram with one account on two Windows profiles (I had two: personal and for work), which I often switch (not log out) between and Telegram can work only on one of them. I thought that is something normal for this app when you have web and mobile version working at the same time without any issues.

[stek29]

@Draghmar There can't be two apps instances at the same time with one tdata folder.
Even if you somehow trick TDesktop to launch it would lose messages and show other weird things caused by how one auth key pair for multiple instances works (or rather doesn't work).

You can, however, just log in with two separate instances, or close TDesktop in one profile before opening it in other one.

[Draghmar]

@stek29 Ok, so what's this command actually do? Because I thought it was for that purpose.
Closing is out of the question - too much hassle. And what do you mean by separate instances? Making two copies (folders) of the TDesktop and running each of them on one of the profiles?

[auchri]

@Draghmar I think you forgot the :
The path should be D:\foo instead of D\foo.

[Draghmar]

@auchri Oh man...How stupid of me. I didn't noticed that missing colon. Thanks!

[sadalhayat]

@cryptoneep

on mac, just use -workdir
don't add -many argument.

I'll try to create the script for launcher and share it here.

[sadalhayat]

How to run Telegram Desktop as portable app and multiple instances on macOS

http://telegra.ph/tdmac-08-07

On Linux,
you can use -many -workdir command line parameter or create the launcher.
https://github.com/telegramdesktop/tdesktop/issues/533#issuecomment-222131863

On macOS,
just use -workdir parameter, it won’t work if you add -many.
<path to Telegram binary> -workdir <path to folder>

---

How to create TDesktop launcher app with Apple Script Editor:

1. Open Script Editor on /Applications/Utilities.

2. Copy following script:

set rootFolder to POSIX path of ((path to me as text) & "::")
set dataFolder to (rootFolder & "cache")
set appPath to (rootFolder & "Telegram.app")
do shell script "mkdir -p \"" & dataFolder & "\""
do shell script "open -a \"" & appPath & "\" --args -workdir \"" & dataFolder & "\""

3. Save as Application, let’s called “launcher”. Close Script Editor.

4. Put the launcher in the same folder with Telegram.app of TDesktop stable/alpha.
Download from desktop.telegram.org or GitHub, don’t use TDesktop from Mac AppStore.

5. Done. Run the launcher.

You can clone and create alias/shortcut for your launcher, also you can use it as portable app for removable USB disk.

App data are stored in “cache” workdir, same folder with the laucher & app. If you want to use different name, edit the launcher with Script Editor.

---

Security Settings:

• Enable cloud password (Two-step Verification).
• Enable local passcode.
• Check active sessions regularly.

---

cc @john-preston @stek29 @cryptoneep

[yegor256]

@auchri doesn't work on macOS for me, unfortunately. I submitted an issue about it, would be great if you can take a look: https://github.com/telegramdesktop/tdesktop/issues/6198

[lgg]

@mbnoimi @auchri I used method with -many and -workdir, but now I can't split them to separate instances of app. How I can do that? (like this 2 instances are different apps). On windows everything works fine btw

Ubuntu 19, gnome

[mbnoimi]

@lgg The following launcher works fine under Linux Mint 19.2 XFCE

Telegram-SIM2.desktop

[Desktop Entry]
Version=1.0
Type=Application
Name=Telegram SIM2
Icon=telegram
Exec=/home/halo/.Telegram/Telegram -startintray -many -workdir /home/halo/.TelegramDesktopSIM2
Path=/home/halo/.TelegramDesktopSIM2
NoDisplay=false
Categories=Network;
StartupNotify=false
Terminal=false

[lgg]

@mbnoimi tray icons are different, but app windows are in one icon on gnome dock

[mbnoimi]

@mbnoimi tray icons are different, but app windows are in one icon on gnome dock

Unfortunately I never used Ubuntu desktop.