telegram-desktop

Start GUI

$ telegram-desktop

$ telegram-desktop -autostart

$ telegram-desktop -startintray

telegram-desktop [URL]

URL
    An optional argument specifying a Telegram URL (e.g., tg://resolve?domain=username) to open a specific chat, channel, or bot directly upon launching the application. This functionality often relies on desktop environment integration for handling tg:// links.

--version
    Prints the installed version of Telegram Desktop to the console (standard output/error) and then typically launches the application.

The telegram-desktop command is used to launch the official Telegram Desktop client for Linux. Telegram is a popular, cloud-based mobile and desktop messaging app with a focus on speed and security. It allows users to send messages, photos, videos, and files of any type, as well as create groups for up to 200,000 members or channels for broadcasting to unlimited audiences. The desktop client provides a full-featured interface to access all Telegram functionalities directly from the Linux desktop, including encrypted chats, voice and video calls, and stickers. While primarily a graphical application, this command serves as the entry point to start the user interface and interact with the Telegram service.

As a graphical application, telegram-desktop is primarily controlled through its user interface rather than command-line arguments. Most of its features and settings are accessible only within the running application. Direct command-line interaction beyond launching or opening specific URLs is very limited.

On Linux, telegram-desktop is typically integrated with the desktop environment's MIME type and URI scheme handling, allowing tg:// URLs to be opened directly by the application from web browsers or other applications. This is the common mechanism for clicking on Telegram links to launch or focus the app.

telegram-desktop can be installed via various methods on Linux, including official tar.gz archives, distribution package managers (like APT, DNF), Snap, or Flatpak. The command's behavior might vary slightly depending on the installation method (e.g., how it handles paths, updates, or background processes).

Telegram, founded by Pavel Durov, launched in 2013, with its desktop client emerging shortly after. The telegram-desktop application is a native cross-platform client (often based on Qt) designed to provide a full-featured messaging experience independent of web browsers. Its development has focused on security, speed, and providing a rich set of features for both personal and group communication, evolving alongside the mobile applications to maintain feature parity and user experience across devices.

xdg-open(1), flatpak(1), snap(1)