JabRef
v5
v5
  • JabRef Bibliography Management
  • Installation
  • Getting started
  • Collect
    • Add entry manually
    • Add entry using an ID
    • Add entry using reference text
    • Searching externally using Online Services
    • Add entry using PDFs
    • Browser Extension
    • Import
      • Custom import filters
      • Import inspection window
  • Organize
    • Edit an entry
    • Groups
    • Keywords
    • Mark and grade
    • Comment on an entry
    • Searching within the library
    • Complete information using online databases
    • Manage associated files
    • Manage field names and their content
    • Best practices
    • Cleanup entries
    • Check integrity
    • Find duplicates
    • Merge entries
    • Save actions
  • Cite
    • BibTeX and biblatex
    • Pushing to external editor application
    • Export to Microsoft Word
    • OpenOffice/LibreOffice integration
  • Share
    • Sharing a Bib(la)TeX Library
    • Shared SQL Database
      • Migration of pre-3.6 SQL databases into a shared SQL database
    • Export
      • Custom export filters
    • Send as email
  • Configuration
    • Customize the citation key generator
    • Customize entry types
    • Customize general fields
    • Customize key bindings
    • Library properties
    • Entry preview setup
    • Manage external file types
    • Manage protected terms
    • The string editor
  • Advanced information
    • Main Window
    • Entry Editor
      • Links to other entries
      • The Bibtex / Biblatex source tab
      • The 'owner' field
      • Time stamp field
      • LaTeX Citations Tab
    • About BibTeX and its fields
    • Strings
    • Field content selector
    • URL and DOI links in JabRef
    • Command line use and options
    • Automatic Backup (.sav and .bak) and Autosave
    • XMP metadata support in JabRef
    • Remote operation
    • Custom themes
    • Journal abbreviations
    • New subdatabase based on AUX file
    • How to expand first names of an entry
    • Debugging your library file
    • Resources
    • License
    • Knowledge
      • MS Office Bibliography XML format
      • Comparison of the Medline (txt), Medline (xml), and RIS format
      • EndNote Export Filter
  • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Linux
    • Mac OS X
    • Windows
  • Discussion Forum
  • Contribute to JabRef
    • How to Improve the Help Page
    • How to translate the JabRef User Interface
Powered by GitBook
On this page
  • Is there any way to include JabRef in the start menu of Ubuntu?
  • JabRef does not start under Linux! What can I do?
  • JabRef 5.x
  • JabRef 4.x
  • I am on Debian/Ubuntu and clicking on the JabRef icon works, but I cannot start JabRef from the command line. What is wrong?
  • Everything looks too big or too small. How can I change it to to a more reasonable size?
  • Where can I find JabRef's log files?

Was this helpful?

Edit on GitHub
Export as PDF
  1. Frequently Asked Questions

Linux

PreviousFrequently Asked QuestionsNextMac OS X

Was this helpful?

Is there any way to include JabRef in the start menu of Ubuntu?

Yes, there is. See for details.

JabRef does not start under Linux! What can I do?

JabRef 5.x

JabRef comes with a bundled JRE. There is no need to install Java separately. Thus, there should be no issues at start up.

JabRef 4.x

JabRef requires Java 8

Please follow the steps provided on our . JabRef 4.x does not run under Java 9 or newer. See

You might see the error message Error: Could not find or load main class org.jabref.JabRefMain. This means, you do not have support activated in your Java runtime environment. This typically happens if you use , where one needs to setup separately.

I am on Debian/Ubuntu and clicking on the JabRef icon works, but I cannot start JabRef from the command line. What is wrong?

You have several Java Virtual Machines installed, and under the command line the wrong one is chosen. Have a look at the previous question that tells you how to change the virtual machine used.

For Ubuntu you may also have a look at the .

Everything looks too big or too small. How can I change it to to a more reasonable size?

Where can I find JabRef's log files?

A: On Linux, the path to the log files is ~/.local/share/jabref/logs/$version/

In the background, JabRef uses . Applications using JavaFX can be scaled via java -Dglass.gtk.uiScale=1.5 -jar <application>.jar. If you have installed JabRef via a package manager, you probably don't have a .jar file but a binary file. In this case, you need to find your JabRef.cfg in your installation folder (possibly located at /opt/JabRef/lib/app/JabRef.cfg) and add in the section [JavaOptions] the line -Dglass.gtk.uiScale=1.5. Then, restart JabRef. Try finding a value that is suitable for you. On high resolution displays, values around 1.5 seem to be reasonable.

http://askubuntu.com/a/721387/196423
installation page
https://github.com/JabRef/jabref/issues/2594
JavaFX
OpenJDK
OpenJFX
Ubuntu page on Java
JavaFX