The Manage Agents option is missing

If File > Manage > Agents is missing after you install ADT, FileMaker Pro is usually not loading the ClarisConfig.json the installer prepared. Another config may take priority, or macOS may be blocking FileMaker Pro from reading your Documents folder.

Note  Check the version first Agent Access is available in FileMaker Pro 26.1 or later during the developer preview. Earlier versions, including 26.0, do not have the Manage Agents command. See Get FileMaker Pro 26.1 if you need the preview build.

Try this first

1. Confirm the FileMaker Pro version.

   Choose FileMaker Pro > About FileMaker Pro. You need version 26.1 or later. If more than one copy is installed, check the copy you are using, not another copy in the Applications folder.

2. Run the current ADT installer again.

   The installer adds the FMADTManageAgentsDialog feature flag to the config FileMaker Pro should load. It preserves your other settings.

3. Quit and reopen FileMaker Pro.

   FileMaker Pro reads feature flags when it starts. Closing a file or opening a new window is not enough. Quit the application completely, then reopen the copy you checked in step 1.

If the command is still missing, find the config FileMaker Pro is loading before editing or creating another one.

Find the config FileMaker Pro loads

The easiest check is to ask your coding agent. If you have several FileMaker Pro copies, include the path to the one you open.

Find every ClarisConfig.json file that this copy of FileMaker Pro could load.
List the files in load order, identify the first one that exists, and check
whether it is readable, is valid JSON, and contains
"FMADTManageAgentsDialog": true. Do not change any files yet.

FileMaker Pro uses the first ClarisConfig.json it finds, then stops. It does not combine settings from multiple files. A config in a higher-priority location hides every lower-priority config, even when the files contain different settings.

macOS load order

Check the locations in order for the exact FileMaker Pro copy you use. Stop at the first existing file; that is the only config this copy loads.

To inspect priority 1 in Finder, Control-click the FileMaker Pro application, choose Show Package Contents, then open Contents/MacOS. At priority 2, check the folder that contains the application. For /Applications/FileMaker Pro.app, the config is /Applications/ClarisConfig.json — not the root of the .app or directly inside Contents.

Each FileMaker Pro copy checks inside its own application first. A config in /Applications can affect several copies stored in that folder when none has a config inside its application. This is why editing ~/Documents/ClarisConfig.json can appear to do nothing: an existing file higher in the list may hide it completely.

Allow FileMaker Pro to read Documents

If ~/Documents/ClarisConfig.json is the first existing config, confirm macOS allows FileMaker Pro to read that folder. A denied permission can make a correct config look as though it is missing.

1. Quit FileMaker Pro.

2. Choose Apple menu > System Settings.

3. Open Privacy & Security, then Files & Folders. You may need to scroll.

4. Find FileMaker Pro and turn on Documents Folder for the copy you use.

5. Reopen FileMaker Pro and check File > Manage > Agents.

If FileMaker Pro is not listed, open a FileMaker file from your Documents folder so macOS can ask for access, then choose Allow. Return to Files & Folders to confirm Documents access is on. See Apple's Control access to files and folders on Mac.

This permission matters only when Documents contains the winning config. If a config exists inside or beside FileMaker Pro, FileMaker Pro stops before checking Documents.

Check the winning file

Open the first existing config in a text editor and look for this setting:

{
  "FMADTManageAgentsDialog": true
}

Your file may contain other settings. Keep them; add or correct only the FMADTManageAgentsDialog property and preserve valid JSON syntax.

After correcting the winning file or its permissions, quit and reopen FileMaker Pro. Then choose File > Manage > Agents, select Enable Agent Access for this application, and leave the port at 19080 unless your ADT environment uses another port.

What the ADT installer changes

The installer follows the same priority order as FileMaker Pro:

• If one or more configs already exist, it edits the highest-priority file and leaves lower-priority files alone.

• It adds only the FMADTManageAgentsDialog property and preserves other settings.

• It preserves an existing value for that property, including false.

• If no config exists, it creates ~/Documents/ClarisConfig.json.

• It does not create a new config beside FileMaker Pro or inside the application.

The installer can prepare the file, but it cannot make FileMaker Pro read a Documents folder macOS has denied access to. Check Privacy & Security > Files & Folders when Documents is the winning location.

For a new config, Documents is the recommended location. It is specific to your user account, needs no administrator access, and survives FileMaker Pro updates. Avoid creating a config inside the macOS application: an update may replace it, and changing an application bundle can invalidate its code signature.

Get FileMaker Pro 26.1

For this preview, get FileMaker Pro 26.1 or later from the Developer Preview group in Claris Community, not from the normal FileMaker download page.

1. Sign in to Claris Community with the account enrolled in the developer preview.

2. Open the Developer Preview group.

3. Download and install the current FileMaker Pro 26.1 or later build posted in the group.

4. Choose FileMaker Pro > About FileMaker Pro after installation and confirm the version.

If you cannot see the group or its downloads, your Community account may not have preview access. Contact the person who invited you to the preview or your Claris program contact.

Windows load order

Windows has one fewer distinct location because the executable and application locations resolve to the same program folder.

Still missing?

Ask your coding agent to collect the FileMaker Pro version, the complete config search order, the winning config's contents and permissions, and the ADT installer log. Then see Collect Information for Support.