Important
Starting in October 2025, the CAT desktop editor enters maintenance mode:
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Only critical and security fixes will be provided.
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No regular new version releases will be scheduled.
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There are no plans to fully sunset the desktop editor at this time.
As of November 25, 2025:
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The minimum version will be set to 25.9.0. Earlier versions will no longer be able to login to Phrase to work with online files.
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An in-app prompt requesting approval to use the CAT Desktop Editor may appear. Admins or Project Managers can request access on behalf of their users by contacting Phrase Technical Support or their Customer Success Manager.
As separate TMS SAML SSO is no longer available, single sign-on is no longer supported.
Download the latest version to use with an updated OS.
The CAT desktop editor is a lightweight CAT tool that can be installed on current manufacturer supported Windows, Macintosh, and Linux operating systems. Minimum requirements are a processor (CPU) not more than 8 years old, 2GB of RAM and at least 256 MB of disk storage. While translating offline is supported, full functionality is provided when connected.
Panes in the editor can be moved outside the main window to give more visibility. To place the panes back in their original positions, select Restore default layout from the menu.
.MXLIFF files are the native file format for the editor and can be downloaded from translation projects.
The editor automatically connects to appropriate translation memories, term bases, and/or machine translations when logged in.
For supported versions, see the download site.
As of October 24, 2023 Windows (32-bit) is no longer supported. The minimum supported Windows (64-bit) version is 10.
To install CAT desktop editor, follow these steps:
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Double-click the downloaded installation file.
The installation launches.
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When installation completes, open the editor.
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From the menu, under , select the Login tab.
The tab opens.
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Enter login details:
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Server - typically cloud.memsource.com for the EU data center and us.cloud.memsource.com for the US data center
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Username
Unlike the web editor, this must be the username and not the email address.
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Password
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Click Save.
Login credentials are saved. If correct, the indicator will show green.
Supported versions are macOS 11 and higher.
Follow these steps:
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Navigate to and select Security & Privacy settings.
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In the section, select App Store and identified developers.
Administrator privileges required.
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With settings still open, unzip the installer and launch it. The installer will be blocked, but will appear in settings
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In settings, click Open anyway.
The installer launches.
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When installation completes, open the editor.
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From the menu, under , select the Login tab.
The tab opens.
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Enter login details:
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Server - typically cloud.memsource.com for the EU data center and us.cloud.memsource.com for the US data center
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Username
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Password
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Click Save.
Login credentials are saved. If correct, the Login indicator will show green.
The minimum supported Ubuntu (64-bit) version is 22.04. The 32-bit version is not supported.
To install the CAT desktop editor, follow these steps:
When new versions are released, the editor displays the window, where users can choose to download them in the background. The upgraded version will be opened when restarted. Updates are backwards compatible but if any issues occur, logging in to the project (with the same profile that you are using to log in to the editor) and downloading a fresh version of the bilingual MXLIFF file may solve the problem.
To set or change login preferences, follow these steps:
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From the menu, select Preferences.
The windows opens.
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Select the tab.
Provide, change or remove login details.
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Click Save.
Login details are applied.
Login credentials for different organizations are saved. There is no ability to switch organizations within the desktop editor; if a user is a member of multiple organizations, they will only be able to use the desktop editor under the default organization. Selecting the username for a specific organization applies the preferences for that organization. If not in use, or invalid, user credentials can be deleted.
Single Sign-On (SSO)
As separate TMS SAML SSO is no longer available, single sign-on is no longer supported.
To set or change network preferences, follow these steps:
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From the menu, select Preferences.
The window opens.
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Select the tab.
The section is displayed at the bottom of the window.
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If the proxy requires manual configuration, click the radio button.
Provide proxy type, server name and authentication details. These should be provided by a network administrator.
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Click Save.
Network details are saved.
The CAT desktop editor can be used to work offline but access to translation resources such as TMs, TBs, machine translation and QA will be limited. The preview feature is also only available while online.
It is recommended to be connected to the internet when using the editor but if connection is not possible, the following process can be used to work offline.
To prepare a job for working offline, follow these steps:
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Install the editor.
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From the linguist portal, pre-translate the .MXLIFF file.
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Download the pre-translated .MXLIFF file and begin translating in the editor.
Segments with TM matches are pre-translated.
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Go offline if required and continue translating.
Tip
Make backups of .MXLIFF files as well as any other important documents at regular intervals in line with the general best practices for offline work. Refer to clients' data protection policies e. g. on the mandatory use of encryption on external drives.
To go back online with the job, follow these steps:
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Log in.
Resource status will show green.
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Upload the .MXLIFF file with one of these methods:
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From the menu, select Upload to server.
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From the linguist portal menu, select Upload.
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Send the file to the Project manager for upload.
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Complete the translation.
.MXLIFF Upload Problems
The editor resource status provides detailed information about error messages during upload.
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The MXLIFF is broken.
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May occur if the file was translated in a CAT tool other than Phrase.
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The MXLIFF belongs to a different project.
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A workflow error; a translator creates their own projects and then tries to add their .MXLIFF files to a client profile.
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The MXLIFF belongs to a different workflow step.
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The .MXLIFF file should always be added to the same workflow step that it was exported from.
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The job has been deleted.
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The job into which the .MXLIFF file belongs has been deleted, but the translator has continued to translate the deleted .MXLIFF file. Because the job was deleted, the connection between the server and the .MXLIFF file was lost (connections cannot be made to deleted jobs). The translator was working offline when the job was deleted and the resource status was showing red.
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The PM can locate the deleted job in the recycle bin and undelete it.
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