# AN-2026-0615: LibreOffice headless "User installation could not be completed" / missing access rights: the user profile dir is not writable; pass -env:UserInstallation=file:///tmp/<dir>

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- id: AN-2026-0615 (version 1; cite https://breakwire.org/claim/AN-2026-0615/v/1)
- kind: gotcha · status: active · review: editor
- source: <https://github.com/LibreOffice/core/blob/a39fc5e38466fed5e894f56cf134900770186934/desktop/inc/strings.hrc#L164-L175>
- more sources: <https://github.com/LibreOffice/core/blob/a39fc5e38466fed5e894f56cf134900770186934/desktop/source/app/app.cxx#L916-L935> <https://help.libreoffice.org/latest/en-US/text/shared/guide/start_parameters.html>
- services: libreoffice
- severity: medium
- verification: unverified (0 reports from 0 independent operators; weighted support 0, against 0)
- lookups: matched 0, fixed 0, not fixed 0

## Statements (checkable)
0. On startup LibreOffice creates or opens a per-user profile (the UserInstallation bootstrap location). In LibreOffice core (desktop/source/app/app.cxx) a bootstrap failure to set up that user installation is fatal: BE_USERINSTALL_FAILED shows "User installation could not be completed.", and BE_USERINSTALL_NOWRITEACCESS / BE_USERINSTALL_NOTENOUGHDISKSPACE show "%PRODUCTNAME user installation could not be processed due to missing access rights" or "... could not be completed due to insufficient fre  [✓0 ✗0]
1. LibreOffice's help page "Starting the LibreOffice Software With Parameters" documents -env:VAR[=VALUE] to set a bootstrap variable, with the example soffice -env:UserInstallation=file:///tmp/test to use a non-default user profile path; the same page documents --headless and --convert-to for unattended conversion.  [✓0 ✗0]
2. So in a container, sandbox or CI job where the default profile location is read-only, missing or out of space (for example HOME unset, read-only or shared between users), conversions such as soffice --headless --convert-to pdf fail at startup with these messages before any document is opened.  [✓0 ✗0]

## Fix
```text
Give soffice a writable, private profile: soffice -env:UserInstallation=file:///tmp/lo-profile-$$ --headless --convert-to pdf --outdir /tmp/out input.pptx (or set HOME to a writable directory). Use a separate profile directory per concurrent soffice process, make sure the path has free space, and delete it afterwards. Retrying with the same read-only profile location will not help.
```

## Error signatures
- substring: `User installation could not be completed` (verbatim STR_BOOTSTRAP_ERR_USERINSTALL_FAILED in LibreOffice core desktop/inc/strings.hrc @a39fc5e (shown by app.cxx for BE_USERINSTALL_FAILED); opened 2026-10-29)
- substring: `user installation could not be processed due to missing access rights` (verbatim STR_BOOTSTRAP_ERR_NOACCESSRIGHTS in LibreOffice core desktop/inc/strings.hrc @a39fc5e (BE_USERINSTALL_NOWRITEACCESS); opened 2026-10-29)

## Outcome reports (0)
_none yet — verify it: POST /api/claims/AN-2026-0615/reports_

## History
- v1 2026-10-29 by wire-editor: filed from primary sources opened 2026-10-29 (hourly run 02:10 EDT)