Orca installed but no orca command: first check it went in as orca-ide (checked 2026-10)
When Orca will not install, or the terminal finds no command after it does, the usual causes are the command name, the Homebrew install command and the CLI registration: on Linux it installs as orca-ide, not orca; Homebrew needs the command with the tap; when the CLI says command not found it has to be registered under Settings → General → Orca CLI. SSH connects but starts no remote terminal, and phone pairing fails — the official docs have one sentence each on those (checked 2026-10-19).
Updated 2026-10-22
Point this tool at the QCode endpoint — one key for Claude, GPT and Chinese models.
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A few things to know first
Command and Package Names
Officially the Orca CLI installs as orca-ide on Linux and does not shadow the GNOME screen reader; the .deb and .rpm packages carry the same name. So "I installed it and orca does nothing" is mostly not a failed install.
The Full brew Command
The cask for this app is stablyai/orca/orca, and the official install command is brew install --cask stablyai/orca/orca, with upgrades running through the cask command; that cask tracks the stable channel only, so RC builds come from GitHub Releases or the in-app Check for Updates. The bare orca one has been disabled since 2026-09-01, reason fails_gatekeeper_check.
Where the CLI registers
When the terminal cannot find the command, the official fix is to register the CLI under Settings → General → Orca CLI; on macOS it installs a shim into ~/.local/bin, and that directory has to be on your shell's PATH.
Package format ≠ version
AppImage, .deb and .rpm install the same application; officially, what differs is only how updates reach you: the AppImage updates itself in place, while for .deb and .rpm Orca reports the new version and hands you the install command.
To be clear: same app, command name not always orca
The official install page gives this its own section, headed by the command name: the text says that on Linux the Orca CLI installs as orca-ide, not orca, because the screen reader that ships with GNOME (present by default on Ubuntu and other GNOME desktops) already owns /usr/bin/orca and Orca will not shadow it; the same section also settles the .deb and .rpm package names, which are orca-ide for the same reason. So on Linux, "installed, and orca does nothing" is usually not a failed install — that command was never called orca in the first place. A re-read of the install page on 2026-10-19 leaves those wordings unchanged, and the latest release is v1.4.230.
Counted that same day
The GitHub Releases latest fetched 2026-10-19 returns v1.4.230, published 2026-10-19T06:30:00Z, with assets covering the orca-macos-x64.dmg, orca-windows-setup.exe and orca-linux.AppImage builds. The snapshot taken 2026-09-23 was still v1.4.207, published 2026-09-22T09:44:40Z. The license reads MIT from the repository's own LICENSE file (the API's license field agrees). Counters that move by the minute, like stars and forks, are kept out of this page's body — that belongs in the comparison table on the P4 page, where every number carries its own fetch day. On phones, iOS goes through the App Store (the app's internal name in that listing is orca-ide); for Android the official channel is app-release.apk on the releases page plus a short install guide.
Timeline
2026-09-01: in Homebrew's public metadata this is the disable_date of the orca cask, and its disable_reason is fails_gatekeeper_check. The 2026-09-23 fetch read disabled: true and deprecated: false, and the 2026-10-20 re-check reads the same two states. So it was not "replaced by Orca" — Homebrew disabled it.
2026-09-22: the official docs this page draws on are six pages — install, troubleshooting, ssh, mobile, android-apk and headless Linux server — plus the README. 2026-10-19: the latest official release is v1.4.230; the commands, paths and package names here follow that documentation.
2026-10-19: the latest official release is v1.4.230, published 2026-10-19T06:30:00Z; the same release notes say Orca Server 2.0 is coming soon, while the current Remote Server is still experimental and may have bugs. CLI names, package names and cask status shift by version, so every section notes the day it was checked.
Fix it yourself vs. docs
What the docs state
Checked 2026-10-19; seven statements match official pages word for word: 1) on Linux the Orca CLI installs as orca-ide, not orca; 2) the screen reader that ships with GNOME already owns /usr/bin/orca, and Orca will not shadow it; 3) the install command is the one with the tap and the upgrade command is the cask one, and that cask tracks the stable channel; 4) every release ships three Linux packages — an AppImage, a .deb and an .rpm, for both x64 and arm64; 5) the three contain the same app, and what differs is only how updates reach you; 6) the fix for command not found is to register the CLI under Settings → General → Orca CLI, and on macOS the shim lands in ~/.local/bin; 7) the phone pairing offer is a capability containing a device credential and E2EE material, and it should go only to the intended client. The official install page also says Orca is a desktop app whose builds are downloaded per platform from GitHub, and that the macOS build is signed and notarized, so the first launch may still ask you to confirm.
⚠️ Common wrong assumptions
One: "typing orca gives nothing, so it is not installed". On Linux it was never called orca; the official page says outright it will not shadow the GNOME screen reader, so check orca-ide and PATH first. Two: "orca was pulled from brew, so Homebrew cannot install Orca". The disabled one is the same-named cask with no tap (disabled since 2026-09-01, reason fails_gatekeeper_check, still disabled on the 2026-10-20 re-check); the tapped stablyai/orca/orca is this route, the official install page's first line. Three: "SSH connects, so it works". The official troubleshooting page splits files and terminals into two things and lists one case on its own: SSH carries files, but it cannot pull down a whole folder by itself — a whole folder needs recursive SFTP, and on the system's own sftp channel only half may work (checked 2026-09-22; snapshots in Sources). A re-check on 2026-10-20 finds the official wording unchanged, so these still stand.
Wrong install vs missing
First: command and install path
The name: does which orca-ide return anything, and is ~/.local/bin on your PATH. The channel: on macOS, the cask with the tap or the .dmg from GitHub — both are stable, but only the cask follows brew upgrade. Once the name and the channel line up, most "command not found" cases disappear on their own.
Then: signing, remote host and image
Signing and approval: the official macOS section says the build is signed and notarized, and that the first launch may still ask you to confirm, which is normal for Electron-based apps. The remote machine: if SSH connects but no terminal starts, the docs have you confirm that the remote has Node and network access for the first-time relay install; on Linux also make, g++/clang++, python3, then reconnect once. The minimal image: a server without a desktop needs Xvfb and the shared libraries Electron links against — what is missing is the libraries, not Orca itself.
Choosing an install route
macOS: the official line is the one with the tap, brew install --cask stablyai/orca/orca, and upgrades run through brew upgrade --cask orca; that cask tracks the stable channel, so RC builds mean GitHub Releases or the in-app Check for Updates. The bare orca cask name is held by another artifact: Homebrew public metadata fetched 2026-09-23 reads disabled: true, disable_date 2026-09-01, disable_reason fails_gatekeeper_check (not delisted, and deprecated is still false), and the 2026-10-20 re-check still reads disabled: true, deprecated: false. Linux: the official install page lists AppImage, .deb and .rpm (both x64 and arm64 are there); they install the same application, and what differs is only how updates reach you — the AppImage updates itself in place, while .deb and .rpm get the version notice and the install command from Orca. The command is orca-ide: the .deb and .rpm packages put it at /usr/bin/orca-ide, while with the AppImage you register it under Settings → General → Orca CLI, and the shim lands in ~/.local/bin, so check that it is on your PATH. Older versions are on GitHub Releases. Headless servers have their own official page: install Xvfb and the shared libraries Electron needs first. The Arch route is yay -S stably-orca-bin, or stably-orca-git built from source.
Where QCode fits in
Nothing on the install side belongs to QCode: Orca ships no model and holds no credentials, and after installation model access still comes from the configuration of the agent CLI you launched. What matters is where that key points — with your own endpoint you change the base_url and the key of that CLI; getting Orca itself up, opening the remote terminal and pairing the phone are install-side jobs; the endpoint setup is described in the site's custom-endpoint guide. On the QCode side it is billed per token and each model's price is listed on /models. Want to try a few newer models on QCode first? Pay-as-you-go Packs start at $4 for a one-time quota you use within 7 days.
FAQ
Typed orca on Linux — no response. Install failed?
Usually it is installed. The official install page gives the command name its own section: on Linux the Orca CLI installs as orca-ide, because the screen reader that ships with GNOME already owns /usr/bin/orca and Orca will not shadow it; the .deb and .rpm packages are named for the same reason. So a dead orca command is mostly a naming issue, not a missing install.
Why does brew install --cask orca report that this cask is disabled?
Because the orca cask without a tap is not this project's release channel. Homebrew's public metadata on 2026-09-23 shows disabled: true, disable_date 2026-09-01 and disable_reason fails_gatekeeper_check, while deprecated is still false; the the 2026-10-20 re-check reads the same values: disabled is still true, deprecated is still false, and disable_date and disable_reason are unchanged. What the official install page gives is the tapped command (the cask path after the tap reads stablyai/orca/orca), upgrades run through the cask command, and it says that cask tracks the stable channel.
AppImage, deb or rpm — which to pick?
The official wording is that every release ships these three package formats (both x64 and arm64 are there): they contain the same app, and what differs is how updates reach you, so pick on that — that is, the basis for the choice is how updates reach you, not feature differences. For the Arch route take stably-orca-bin, or stably-orca-git, which builds from source.
The terminal says the Orca CLI is command not found — where do I fix it?
The official troubleshooting page gives the registration step: register the CLI under Settings → General → Orca CLI. On macOS it drops a shim into ~/.local/bin, and then you confirm that this directory is on your shell's PATH. In other words a reinstall does not fix it — what is missing is that one entry in PATH.
SSH connects but the remote terminal will not start — what to check first?
The official troubleshooting page lists a few conditions: confirm the remote has Node and network access for the first-time relay install; on a Linux remote add the C/C++ toolchain make, g++/clang++, python3; reconnect once after installing so Orca can reinstall its native modules. Another page (headless Linux server) adds the server-side prerequisite: a server image without a desktop ships none of the Electron shared libraries, so Xvfb and those libraries go in together.
The phone-pairing offer looks fine — so why will it not connect?
The official headless page splits the cause in two. The pairing offer itself carries a device credential and end-to-end encryption material, so it belongs only with the intended client and not in proxy access logs; a connection that fails is usually on the network side: boundEndpoint is the address the process listens on, advertisedEndpoint the one the client dials, and the docs state that as long as DNS, the firewall, Docker port publishing, Tailscale policy or a reverse proxy does not route advertised to bound, a perfectly valid-looking offer still cannot connect.
Sources
Official documentation (archived locally verbatim on 2026-09-22): the five pages install, troubleshooting, ssh, mobile and android-apk live at https://raw.githubusercontent.com/stablyai/orca/HEAD/docs/site/content/docs/<page-name>.mdx; the two pages headless Linux server and linux glibc compatibility live under docs/reference/; README sits at the repository root. The Homebrew side uses the public metadata at https://formulae.brew.sh/api/cask/orca.json; the release and asset names come from https://api.github.com/repos/stablyai/orca/releases/latest. Everything was fetched over the public internet, with no logged-in state.
Make the CLI show up first
Suggested debug order: is orca-ide on PATH → CLI registration (Settings → General → Orca CLI) → remote Node and toolchain → then the model endpoint. Official wording checked 2026-10-19.
Related reading
What Orca ADE is and parallel worktrees
The mechanics are on that page: what it is, what parallel work saves, what you give up for it. Getting it installed and connected is what this page is about.
Cursor custom API key and Base URL
Where keys go in Settings → Models, which slot can change the Base URL, why Tab skips your key, and the QCode setup.
GitHub Copilot BYOK for Claude and GPT
BYOK setup for VS Code Custom Endpoint and Copilot CLI: URL forms, plan requirements and the JetBrains limit.
Crypto payment guide
Nine coins, 56 networks, zero platform fee for AI coding API credits.
This page restates Stably's open Orca docs and repo content. No affiliation with Orca or Stably, no endorsement. Command name, cask status, package formats and SSH/phone behaviour stop at the official pages captured 2026-10-19; official wording wins if it changes. Model availability and prices are listed on /models.