Client file locations

Canvus client organizes files across multiple folders. The files can be categorized as follows:

Configuration file: Canvus client configuration file is called mt-canvus.ini. There is an example and a working version of this file on your client machine.
Log files: Canvus client generates a log file while it is running.
Data files: Canvus client stores data files for your local canvases.
License files: Canvus client requires a license file.
Application files: Canvus client application itself.
Screen configuration file: Canvus requires a screen.xml file which specifies how content is rendered on the operating system desktop.
Input configuration file: Canvus requires a config.txt file which specifies how input from touchscreens is mapped on the application content.

Configuration file

The configuration file for Canvus client is called mt-canvus.ini. The Canvus client installation comes with an example configuration file that can be used as a reference.

Where is mt-canvus.ini on Windows computers?

Working version:

Canvus client automatically searches the following locations in order:
1. %APPDATA%\MultiTaction\canvus\mt-canvus.ini
2. %PROGRAMDATA%\MultiTaction\canvus\mt-canvus.ini
Where %APPDATA% refers to the user profile of the user running Canvus client.
Example version: C:\Program Files\MT Canvus\Examples\mt-canvus.ini

Where is mt-canvus.ini on Ubuntu computers?

Working version:

Canvus client automatically searches the following locations in order:
1. ~/MultiTaction/canvus/mt-canvus.ini
2. /etc/MultiTaction/canvus/mt-canvus.ini
Where ~/ refers to the home folder of the user running Canvus client.
Example version: /opt/mt-canvus-<version>/Examples/mt-canvus.ini

Where is mt-canvus.ini on macOS computers?

Working version:

Canvus client automatically searches the following locations in order:
1. ~/Library/MultiTaction/canvus/mt-canvus.ini
2. /etc/MultiTaction/canvus/mt-canvus.ini
Where ~/ refers to the home folder of the user running Canvus client, and Library is the one inside that home folder (Finder hides it by default; reach it with Go → Go to Folder and paste the path).

The configuration file is not beside the logs

On macOS the configuration lives under ~/Library/MultiTaction/canvus/, while the log files are written to ~/MultiTaction/canvus/logs/. The two directories are deliberately different: Canvus stores per-user application data in the standard macOS location, and the launch wrapper writes its console log next to the other MultiTaction runtime folders. Putting mt-canvus.ini in the logs folder has no effect — it is never read from there.

Example version: /Applications/MT Canvus.app/Contents/Resources/lib/Examples/mt-canvus.ini

To start from the shipped examples, copy them out of the application bundle:
```
mkdir -p ~/Library/MultiTaction/canvus
cp -R "/Applications/MT Canvus.app/Contents/Resources/lib/Examples/"* ~/Library/MultiTaction/canvus/
```

Never edit files inside the application bundle on macOS

Editing anything inside MT Canvus.app breaks the code signature, after which macOS refuses to open the application. Always copy the example out to ~/Library/MultiTaction/canvus/ and edit it there.

Where is my data?

Canvus client stores data files for local canvases in a subfolder under the root folder specified in your client configuration file. The default location depends on the operating system:

Windows: %APPDATA%\MultiTaction\canvus-data\data-300
Ubuntu: ~/MultiTaction/canvus-data/data-300
macOS: ~/Library/MultiTaction/canvus-data/data-300

Where are the log files?

Canvus client logs take this file name format: log<timestamp>-<num>.log. Find these log files in the following folders:

Windows: %LOCALAPPDATA%\MultiTaction\canvus\logs
Ubuntu: ~/MultiTaction/canvus/logs/
macOS: ~/MultiTaction/canvus/logs/

Additional console log on macOS

On macOS the same folder also holds mt-canvus-macos.log. This captures console output — including anything that fails before the application's own trace file is opened. When an application is launched from Finder there is no console, so this is the first file to check if Canvus does not appear at all.

Note

When Canvus client runs in single user mode, log files are not created by default.

Note

If Canvus client is started from Launcher, log entries are written to a pipeline log file. You can find pipeline log files here:

Windows computers: %LOCALAPPDATA%\MultiTaction\launcher\logs
Ubuntu computers: ~/MultiTaction/launcher/logs
macOS computers: ~/MultiTaction/launcher/logs

Where is my client license?

The location for an activated Canvus client license depends on the operating system:

Windows: Canvus client searches these folders for a license, in order:
- %PROGRAMDATA%\MultiTaction\Licenses
- %LOCALAPPDATA%\MultiTaction\Licenses
- %APPDATA%\MultiTouch\Licenses
Ubuntu: Canvus client searches these folders for a license, in order:
- /etc/MultiTaction/Licenses
- ~/MultiTaction/Licenses
- ~/.MultiTouch/Licenses
macOS: Canvus client searches these folders for a license, in order:
- /etc/MultiTaction/Licenses
- ~/MultiTaction/Licenses

The system-wide directory is searched first on every platform, so a stale system-wide license can shadow a newer per-user one.

Where is screen.xml?

The location of screen.xml (see configure-graphics-coordinates) depends on the operating system:

Windows: Canvus client searches these locations for screen.xml in order:
1. %APPDATA%\MultiTouch\screen.xml
2. %PROGRAMDATA%\MultiTaction\screen.xml
Where %APPDATA% refers to the user profile of the user running Canvus client (e.g. C:\Users\multi\AppData\Roaming).
Ubuntu: Canvus client searches these locations for screen.xml in order:
1. ~/.MultiTouch/screen.xml
2. /etc/MultiTaction/screen.xml
Where ~/ refers to the home folder of the user running Canvus client (e.g. /home/multi).
macOS: Canvus client searches these locations for screen.xml in order:
1. ~/Library/MultiTouch/screen.xml
2. /etc/MultiTaction/screen.xml
Where ~/ refers to the home folder of the user running Canvus client (e.g. /Users/multi).

Note

If Canvus does not find a copy of screen.xml in either location, it automatically creates a default configuration in the location under current user profile.

If you want to use a system-wide configuration, remove any screen.xml file under the user's profile and ensure the system-wide configuration file exists.

Where is config.txt?

The location of config.txt (see configure-input-mapping) depends on the operating system:

Windows: Canvus client searches these locations for config.txt in order:
1. %APPDATA%\MultiTouch\config.txt
2. %PROGRAMDATA%\MultiTaction\config.txt
Where %APPDATA% refers to the user profile of the user running Canvus client (e.g. C:\Users\multi\AppData\Roaming).
Ubuntu: Canvus client searches these locations for config.txt in order:
1. ~/.MultiTouch/config.txt
2. /etc/MultiTaction/config.txt
Where ~/ refers to the home folder of the user running Canvus client (e.g. /home/multi).
macOS: Canvus client searches these locations for config.txt in order:
1. ~/Library/MultiTouch/config.txt
2. /etc/MultiTaction/config.txt
Where ~/ refers to the home folder of the user running Canvus client (e.g. /Users/multi).

Note

If Canvus does not find a copy of config.txt in either location, it automatically creates a default configuration in the location under current user profile.

If you want to use a system-wide configuration, remove any config.txt file under the user's profile and ensure the system-wide configuration file exists.

Where is Canvus client application binary?

The Canvus client application itself ([mt-canvus-app.exe]{.title-ref} on Windows and [mt-canvus-app]{.title-ref} on Ubuntu and macOS) can be found in the following locations:

Windows: %PROGRAMFILES%\MT Canvus\bin
Ubuntu: /opt/mt-canvus-<version>/bin
macOS: /Applications/MT Canvus.app/Contents/MacOS

Tip

On Ubuntu, the folder name includes the version, so replace <version> with the version you have installed. For example, /opt/mt-canvus-26.09.5/bin. Only one version of the Canvus client can be installed at a time: installing a new version replaces the previous one.

Launching on macOS

On macOS, open the application normally (from Applications, Spotlight or Launchpad) rather than running mt-canvus-app directly. Opening the application runs a wrapper that sets the asset search path, the Qt plugin path and the bundled gflags interposer that the client needs to start. Calling the binary directly is only intended for the command-line licensing options — see the macOS install guide.