Introduction
Users should be aware that WineWine is a free and open-source compatibility layer that allows computer programs developed for Microsoft Windows to run on Unix-like operating systems. https://www.winehq.org/ (a Windows emulator that forms the basis of running Windows applications on Mac or Linux PCs) is under continuous development, and may change significantly over a relatively short period. New users should always use the most recent stable version available from Wine HQ for their version of MacOS or Linux distribution (11.0 at the time of writing, January 2026). Linux users should be aware that the Wine version available in the official repositoryA repository is a place (physical or online) where collections of original source data are stored and maintained. for the their distribution may lag behind that available directly from Wine HQ.
ƒh can be installed using just Wine, but many users prefer the more refined developments based on Wine, particularly CrossOver by CodeWeavers, which is available as commercial software in both Mac and Linux versions. There are also free alternatives PlayOnMac and PlayOnLinux, but these may be less functional than CrossOverCrossOver is a Microsoft Windows compatibility layer available for Linux, macOS, and Chrome OS. It enables many Windows-based applications to run on Linux, macOS, or Chrome OS operating systems. CrossOver is a retail product developed by CodeWeavers and based on.Installation of Wine or its derivatives is outside the scope of this basic introduction, so potential users should consult the various detailed guides available online for their chosen Operating System.
Only the latest versions of ƒh and AS are supported as described below.
Also see Reported Problems.
Note that this page is under revision as much of the following advice is out-of-date, and it is expected that this process will be completed by the end of January, 2026.
Family Historian V7
Family Historian V7 has some significant issues running on Crossover. Only install ƒh V7 if you are aware of these limitations.
- During the install process of V7 into a Wine Bottle it will report errors and may hang whist installing the Nova PDF driver
- Reports do not work. They display a black screen in preview mode, unlike V6 which prints the report content correctly, V7 will print a black report to the printer
- Reports cannot be saved to the Mac pdf printer
- Reports can be saved as RTF files and these will display and print correctly using an external program
- If a notesFamily Historian version 6 and below supports two types of Notes: Local notes (associated with a single person, record, or fact); and Note Records (sometimes called Shared Notes), that can be linked to multiple records and/or facts. Version 7 introduced field is selected and just a formatting change is made then no save button is displayed. To alter formatting additional text must be added to the note, formatting applied and then the additional text deleted, now a save button will be displayed.
- Pasting text from a Mac/Linux window or browser must be pasted in as unformatted text otherwise it will not paste into the Note, Text from SourceBoth Source records and Citations have a Text From Source field intended to hold transcripts of source documents. etc fields in ƒh
- Carriage returns may be stripped from Note, Text from SourceSource: "where information was found". This could be anything from an archive in a county records office, a book, or even a relative's recorded recollection. Citing your Sources helps to show how you reached a particular conclusion about an Individual. fields etc and similar on import into a new projectA Project is a Windows folder, created by Family Historian, which contains all your Family Tree information recorded in Family Historian. Normally located in the Documents\Family Historian Projects folder..
{This section needs checking} In Wine run winecfg, and with Default Settings selected under Applications, set Windows Version to Windows 7, and ensure that Drives are set appropriately. Install programs using the wine command to specify their installation .exe file. ( It is not certain whether WINEARCH is required to set a win32 wineprefix for FH which is a 32-bit application.) See Wine User’s Guide part 3 Using Wine.
Install these applications:
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Family Historian V6 or V4/V5 to V6 Upgrade CD or download as per the Family Historian Installation Advice
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Family Historian Version 6.2.7 Upgrade as advised in Program Updates below
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Microsoft .NET Framework V3.5 SP1 only needed by AS
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Utility ~ Ancestral Sources v5.2.0 32-bit latest download
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Windows Script 5.7 (needed by some Plugins)
Program Configuration
To ensure ƒh Reports display text correctly, set ƒh Tools > Preferences > General > Advanced > Emulator Compatibility Mode.
All the ƒh and AS settings below should specify similar folder paths, usually involving the Documents folder, and all the named folders and files must actually exist.
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ƒh File > Project Window in the Location field
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ƒh Tools > Preferences > Startup in the Default Startup File field
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ƒhTools > Preferences > Backup in the Default Backup Folder field
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AS Tools > Options > General settings > Folders in all three fields
If necessary, it is advisable to create new folders using Crossover, PlayOnLinuxPlayOnLinux is a graphical front end for the Wine software compatibility layer which allows Linux users to install Windows-based video games, Microsoft Office, Microsoft Internet Explorer, as well as many other applications. https://www.playonlinux.com/en//Mac or Wine rather than within ƒh or AS windows.
Configuration changes are needed as described below in Plugins to allow some Plugins to work.
File paths
{Needs checking} ~ Example file paths.
Program Updates
The simplest way to update both ƒh and AS is to use their own Help > Check for Updates commands and follow the automated download and install process, although this may not succeed in Wine.
Otherwise use the following strategies for both ƒh and AS program updates.
{Needs checking} After the update has been downloaded, preferably using Firefox, it may be necessary to copy the update file to the virtual C drive and run the update exe file from there and apply it to the existing bottle. – See thread Upgrading FH to 6.2.3 on a MAC with wine for further advice.
Plugins
Plugins downloaded from the Plugin StorePublished plugins can be downloaded from the Family Historian Plugin Store. sometimes will not import using the browser Open With option, although Save followed by an explicit Import command works OK. A workaround in Firefox is to use its Firefox > Preferences settings to associate .fh_lua Plugin files with Family Historian then Open With works OK too.
Plugin Library Modules
Some Plugins require extra library modules not included in the ƒh installation, but their download will fail or be very slow. So download and run the Install Library Modules Plugin shortcut to install these library modules in advance: compat53, luasql, md5, mime, pl, socket, utf8 & zip.
Problems With Plugins
The Plugins listed below may have limitations. Ensure that COMPUTERNAME is set as advised above.
Backup and Restore Family Historian Settings
Version 2.5 or later is almost fully operational in Crossover but fails in Wine. Even in Crossover it only detects the primary Family Historian installation, and NOT any subsidiary installations such as Family Historian Demo 3.0 or Family Historian 6.0 Beta, and it will omit the settings of any custom Named ListNamed Lists are a way in FH to group related items — which can be records of any type(s) — so that you can easily find them to work with. not mentioned in the current Project. PlayOnLinux/Mac this plugin is operational in the current version.
Check Installed Plugins Against the Store
This may say all Plugins are Not In Store because Crossover does not support the winhttp service needed to check the Plugin Store. See Forum thread Check Installed Plugins Against the Store – Crossover issue.
This plugin works in PlayOnLinux/Mac, however, on occasions when performing the update ƒh will crash. So manual install is a safer option for plugin updates.
Some Plugins also check the Plugin Store for a later version, but cannot do so for the same reason as above.
Therefore, it is necessary to occasionally check the Plugin Store manually to ensure you have the latest versions.
This problem appears to be partially fixed in Crossover 18.5.0 although automatic Plugin Store downloads still fail, so must be updated manually.
Research Planner
This Plugin also relies on the winhttp service so will fail in Crossover (& Wine? ).
Printing and PDF
All ƒh Print Setup and Print options work with any Mac (or Linux?) printer, even when a Report is displayed incorrectly on screen (see Reported Problems below).
The free PDFWriter for Mac offers a way of creating PDF output via the ƒh Print commands rather than the ƒh Save Diagram/Report As > PDF File (.pdf) commands.
The free CUPS-PDF for Linux offers similar PDF features.
Reported Problems
Avoid using Internet Explorer as it can lead to download issues. Instead use Firefox or Chrome in the native Mac or Linux environment.
Although the Family Historian PDF (novaPDF printer) installs, Wine based emulators do not support Windows printer drivers, so the novaPDF printer does not work.
You can use the wine uninstaller or wine control to remove it if you want to.
Having done so, the ƒh Save Diagram/Report As > PDF File (.pdf) commands say PDF file output is not enabled.
Some ƒh Reports may display text incorrectly, but this is usually cured by using Tools > Preferences > General > Advanced > Emulator Compatibility Mode. See Index for related topics
Use Tools > Preferences > Internet Data Matches > Location to Display Matches: External Web Browser to avoid problems with the internal window.
The ƒh command Tools > Preferences > Backup > <<Select > Make New Folder, and similar commands in Plugins, produce a hieroglyphic error message. The workaround is to create the folder beforehand using Crossover, PlayOnLinux/Mac or Wine, and select the pre-existing folder in ƒh or Plugins.
When changing a DateWhen an Event happened, or an Attrribute was true. field and the Invalid Date message opens saying Unknown date. Please enter a valid date. do not change focus to another application as ƒh will freeze and must be closed. This problem may affect other error messages.
If ƒh &/or AS &/or another program are running at the same time, and one program changes the shared GEDCOMGEDCOM, an acronym for GEnealogical Data COMmunication, is a specification for exchanging genealogical data between different genealogy software. It is a file format that most genealogical programs and online trees recognise. file, then the other program(s) correctly report the file has changed, but then may freeze and Force Quit must be used.