I have a workflow which is installed as a Service. It is used to call code in my AppleScript applet. The Service has one action: a "Run AppleScript" action. I update the Service quite often with improvements. I need a way to know that the installed version of my Service is old. One way might be to give it a "version". I have tried many ways, none of which worked. In particular, usually there is a CFShortVersionString key in an app's info.plist file. I can add that to my Service's info.plist file. But, when I open my Service in Automator.app, make some changes and then save, all my custom entries in the info.plist file are deleted. Is there an editor for Automator workflows that does not remove custom keys in the info.plist file ? Thanks. UDATE: Adding a variable to the workflow is a good idea. But, I can't it working for me. Yesterday, I added the variable called "Version" and gave it a value "1.21". Today, the variable is still there but is empty. Probably because I still do not understand how it all works and I made a mess of it. In the end, a separate file in the service's bundle containing just the version string is easy for me as my AppleScript applet can read it without having to parse a complicated XML file (either as plain text or using System Events). Also, I still don't know how developers create workflows which DO contain version and other keys inside the info.plist file. Automator removes those keys and so developers must be using another tool – Xcode ? Have also found some services that contain a "version.plist" file. I have Googled for hours but, can find no documentation on the "version.plist" file content – which seems to duplicate some keys inside info.plist. The "version.plist" file does not seem to be used by Finder. In an example service provided by Apple, if I delete the CFBundleShortVersionString from the info.plist file, but retain the version.plist file, Finder's Get Info shows no version. UPDATE 2: Apparently version.plist is used by Installer. More detail here: http://mirror.informatimago.com/next/developer.apple.com/documentation/DeveloperTools/Conceptual/SoftwareDistribution/Concepts/sd_pkg_version_info.html Can't find that detail anywhere on developer.apple.com so, it might be out-of-date/wrong.

When I'm in Chrome, I'd like to be able to right-click on some links and choose "Open in Safari" from the Services submenu. As a security precaution, how can this be done without relying on any Chrome extensions or 3rd party apps?

>Why does setting the hard-limit for maxfiles to "unlimited" using launchctl limit result in a hard-limit slightly above the soft-limit? By setting the maxfiles limit using launchctl to launchctl limit maxfiles 10000 unlimited, I get the following result: nlykkei-mbp:~ nlykkei$ launchctl limit maxfiles maxfiles 10000 10240 Initially, after the system has booted, hard-limit is set to "unlimited", so why can't I set the same hard-limit by setting it manually?

I installed MySQL but I am unable to see if it is running or has stopped. How do I see what are the currently running services corresponding to the "Services" interface in Windows?

I use SSH extensively for intersystem communication within a private (192.x.x.x) network. Now there is a need to allow _only_ some functions (notably SCP) with a couple of servers from the external world. So, continuing to use port 22 internally, I would like to set up a more limited SSH server (say on port 10022) for access from the internet (yes, I am aware of the risks and take the responsibility if it all falls apart). I don't see that question addressed here at Ask Different(ly). I see there is a /etc/ssh/sshd_config file and it looks pretty standard... is it just a matter of duplicating and modifying that, and doing the same with a plist? If so, where would I find that plist? (I found /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/ssh.plist but that says it's disabled. I also found /System/Library/LaunchAgents/com.openssh.ssh-agent.plist but I'm not sure that's right either, especially since it is in the Agents (not Daemons) directory. Currenly, the active lines in /etc/ssh/sshd_config_alt are: Port xxxxx SyslogFacility AUTH LogLevel INFO PubkeyAuthentication yes AuthorizedKeysFile .ssh/authorized_keys PasswordAuthentication no AllowAgentForwarding no AllowTcpForwarding no PermitTTY no PermitUserEnvironment no ForceCommand internal-sftp This is what transpires when a person tries to SSH to that system > ssh -p nnnnn macstudio PTY allocation request failed on channel 0 This service allows sftp connections only. Connection to macstudio closed. Of course, the modified port 22 /etc/ssh/sshd_config file limits the incoming connections to local network.

For whatever reason, the "Open With" context menu in Finder is **always** listing every app four times (exactly). I've also used Onyx.app to clear user and system caches, but I'm still left with four repetitions of each app under the "Open With" service. I have restarted the system a few times just to be sure it was not some temporary corruption of the list. I'm running OS X 10.6.6 on a 2011 17" MacBook Pro with a recent fresh install of OS X (i.e. I didn't use Migration Assistant.app or a Time Machine backup). - no external or network drives mounted (including any time machine destinations) - Same list of duplicate apps if I create a new user account How can I fix this so one app shows?

I need to give location access to some apps on macOS and iOS so they can scan wireless networks, *that's a thing now.* I do not want system services or other apps to make location queries to Apple's location servers though, if these apps I'm setting up query their own servers (assuming Apple even allows devs to do that to begin with) so be it, but not Apple's. I've seen these hostname in Little Snitch alerts before, I think it's just one, it's something with the DNS labels "gss" and "loc" in it but I can't remember nor I've been able to find it in the logs. Maybe it was just on s i.e. "gs". Also I'm not sure if they were two labels or one with those two "words" *strings* a hyphen. I *did* find the *dying gasp*-like-function hostname for Find My Enterprise devices and plus a list of the services/hosts used for MDM (under which my devices are) but this, *general/generic location thing*, is on the consumer side service. In a way I can see why Apple wouldn't list in for the network admins. Anyway, I'd appreciate anything you have. Anything is good — except a wildcard hostname, but thankfully it's not. :)

There are some recent apps, e.g., Cisco Secure Client / AnyConnect VPN service, where the service cannot be stopped/started using the LaunchControl.app. For more control over what's running on the machine and when, I would like to be able to stop/start the service using the command line and make sure that it is loaded properly by checking its state using appropriate commands. **However, the method I have to stop the service results in me not being able to query the service status _after_ I start the service back up. What is the proper way to stop/start services for "bundled services" ??** To start, I check whether the service is running on or not:

$ launchctl print system/com.cisco.secureclient.vpn.service.agent
system/com.cisco.secureclient.vpn.service.agent = {
	active count = 1
	path = (submitted by smd.303)
	type = Submitted
	managed_by = com.apple.xpc.ServiceManagement
	state = running

	program identifier = Contents/MacOS/vpnagentd (mode: 2)
	parent bundle identifier = com.cisco.secureclient.vpn.service
	BTM uuid = 61DCA467-D6AD-4251-90D7-E49891CEAE80
	arguments = {
		vpnagentd
		-execv_instance
	}

	default environment = {
		PATH => /usr/bin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/sbin
	}

	environment = {
		XPC_SERVICE_NAME => com.cisco.secureclient.vpn.service.agent
	}

	domain = system
	minimum runtime = 10
	exit timeout = 45
	runs = 2
	pid = 1987
	immediate reason = inefficient
	forks = 5
	execs = 1
	initialized = 1
	trampolined = 1
	started suspended = 0
	proxy started suspended = 0
	last exit code = 0

	spawn type = daemon (3)
	jetsam priority = 40
	jetsam memory limit (active) = (unlimited)
	jetsam memory limit (inactive) = (unlimited)
	jetsamproperties category = daemon
	submitted job. ignore execute allowed
	jetsam thread limit = 32
	cpumon = default
	job state = running
	probabilistic guard malloc policy = {
		activation rate = 1/1000
		sample rate = 1/0
	}

	properties = partial import | keepalive | abandon process group | resolve program | has LWCR

I can stop this service using the following command:

sudo launchctl bootout system/com.cisco.secureclient.vpn.service.agent

However, when I do that, I cannot re-load the service back again to a state that is recognizable by LaunchControl, nor is it listed in launchctl print system/com.cisco.secureclient.vpn.service.agent

$ launchctl print system/com.cisco.secureclient.vpn.service.agent
Bad request.
Could not find service "com.cisco.secureclient.vpn.service.agent" in domain for system

I want to get rid of some system services completely. I turned off sip with csrutil disable. Then following command sudo launchctl disable com.apple.cloudphotod Gave me an unexpected answer: Unrecognized target specifier, did you mean gui/501/com.apple.cloudphotod I've read man, searched forums and so on. But I can't get why do I need specify the context agent is running in, how do I know that from launchctl list and is the a way to avoid the need to specify it? There are many services and I'm completely uncertain which one is in which context. Side question: I also was looking for a gui tool such as Windows Services.msc, found Soma-zone's LaunchControl. Downloaded tar.gz archive, unarchived, started the app, and... it says "can't open the app". Did I miss something and tar.gz needs some special handling? Never dealt with that.

As you can already see in the text below and screenshot of the terminal, whenever I try to send a signal to a service I have given Not privileged to signal service. and Could not kickstart service "com.apple.accessibility.heard": 1: Operation not permitted.

~ % launchctl kickstart -k gui/$(id -u)/com.apple.accessibility.heard    
Could not kickstart service "com.apple.accessibility.heard": 1: Operation not permitted
~ % sudo launchctl kickstart -k gui/$(id -u)/com.apple.accessibility.heard
Could not kickstart service "com.apple.accessibility.heard": 1: Operation not permitted
~ % launchctl kill SIGHUP gui/$(id -u)/com.apple.accessibility.heard     
Not privileged to signal service.
~ % sudo launchctl kill SIGHUP gui/$(id -u)/com.apple.accessibility.heard
Not privileged to signal service.

Does anybody have an idea to overcome this issue? Edit: Just to be clear, I am trying to start Background Sounds feature from terminal

defaults write com.apple.ComfortSounds comfortSoundsEnabled -bool YES
defaults write com.apple.ComfortSounds lastEnablementTimestamp $(date +%s)
launchctl kill SIGHUP gui/$(id -u)/com.apple.accessibility.heard

Second Edit: I have solved my problem using the following commands, but still wondering **why cannot send signals to services?** defaults write com.apple.ComfortSounds comfortSoundsEnabled -bool YES killall heard launchctl kickstart gui/$(id -u)/com.apple.accessibility.heard

After I assign a keyboard shortcut to initiate a service in System Preferences, I press the keyboard shortcut and nothing happens. I have to first click on the service title under the services menu (found if you click on the application title in the top left corner of the screen). Only then will the keyboard shortcut function correctly. If I quit that application, I have to manually click on the service title under the services menu each and every time I re-open the application. I would've thought that the fix would "last" until the computer is shut down or restarted, but nope, it lasts only until the application is quit out of. It may sound as though I am making a mountain out of a molehill, but this extra step essentially defeats the purpose of the keyboard shortcut in the first place, especially since I usually do not know and cannot keep track of if I have already manually run the service since the last time that I opened that application. I have to repeat these steps for every application, including stock applications like Finder. Otherwise, the shortcut will not work while I am in that application. This happens for every service I created. This happens regardless of the keyboard shortcut. Is there any way to have the keyboard shortcut trigger the service without having to manually run the service first? --- My computer runs OS X El Capitan, version 10.11.6. It should be noted, however, that I first observed this bug from the very first time that I assigned a keyboard shortcut to my service, which was at least a year ago. In other words, I have never experienced the keyboard shortcut function as it was designed to work. --- It should be noted that this bug is not unique to my computer; reports of others experiencing this idiosyncrasy abound on the internet... [Service not running the first time it's invoked via key combination](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/260684/service-not-running-the-first-time-its-invoked-via-key-combination) [Services shortcut not working properly](https://apple.stackexchange.com/questions/222722/services-shortcut-not-working-properly) [Assigning a shortcut to a service](https://superuser.com/questions/889508/assigning-a-shortcut-to-a-service/889530) [Assign a shortcut to running a script in OS X (read the last paragraph in this answer)](https://superuser.com/questions/153890/assign-a-shortcut-to-running-a-script-in-os-x/264943#264943)

I put my computer to sleep and everything was normal, but when I woke it up again, the CPU and fans started to run at 100 %. This is what I saw in Activity Monitor: **What is this and why does it use so much CPU??** None of these applications had any open/save dialogue open, now was I using QuickLook (space bar on a selected file in Finder) I have seen this, but only for a single application, once or twice before. Waiting a few minutes didn't change anything and a "regular" kill didn't help, but force kill worked.

I am trying to add a ⌘ Command T shortcut for opening a terminal session in a given directory on macOS but for some reason after I put the shortcut in *Keyboard Shortcut* and then *Service*. When I press a ⌘ Command T, I get a new tab in Finder and not a shell. Attempted to reset to defaults but that did not fix the issue. How do I set up an automation so pressing those keys does an action inside terminal app on macOS? For reset I just click the Restore Defaults button.

What is com.apple.MobileSoftwareUpdate.UpdateBrainService? I have it running and using a lot of CPU resources. (about 300% CPU core in top) I also found out it would mount a partition at /System/Volumes/Update/mnt1 when it's running. I am not 100% sure if this mount point is related to this process. It's just my observation. I am running MacOS Big Sur 11.2.3 (20D91). My auto update is always turned **off**. I found two online links talking about it, [link1](https://discussions.apple.com/thread/252177683) and [link2](https://www.reddit.com/r/MacOS/comments/lhhrb9/what_is/) . But they don't explain what it is and why it's running. Thank you very much. **Update 1:** I figured out even if I have Automatically keep my Mac up to date turned off. There is an Advanced... button in **Software Update** preference. In the Advanced... setup popup window, it has the following options enabled: Check for updates, Download new updates when available. I think this might cause com.apple.MobileSoftwareUpdate.UpdateBrainService process running and downloaded Big Sur updates. I am not very sure. Just a guess. **Update 2:** I have clicked **Restart** in ***Software Update*** preference. Now, my system updated to 11.4. I have turned off Check for updates in Advanced... window. Hopefully, this issue and process will never run again.

After updating to macOS Sonoma, my folder context menu is cluttered with many services I don't use. How can I remove these unnecessary services?

I have been living with this for a long time, but now (hope with your help) I am committed to solve it because it doesn't look quite normal. Why this window of this sharingd process, shows up at boot time in desktop almost in milliseconds and disappears (like if it was granted with some kind of "auto click"). I don't share (wish not) anything with any other host in any net. This is a plain standalone home computer with its plain vanilla internet connection. Likely targets: com.apple.sharingd (signer: Apple Proper) com.apple.preferences.sharing.remoteservice (signer: Apple Proper) In my share settings I have all unticked (no file sharing, no remote services, nothing). And, why shows this behaviour if many other services start as well, but they don't throw "grant/acceptance windows" on desktop? If is a system necessary process I just don't want to remove it from disk (i. e. deleting the com.apple.sharingd...), but should be a way to disable it? I also don't want just to block it through firewall. I would like to do it the good way. Stopping the service, yes? Any command line string to stop it? Thank you.

I've read the following manual pages on launchd: launchctl, launchd, and launchd.plist. However, nothing is really said in these manual pages regarding what the launchctl boostrap and launchctl bootout (sub)commands actually do (see below). Is it to be inferred from their names? Futhermore, I cannot find information in the man pages, regarding what user/group the service (agent/daemon) runs as. However, launchd.plist mentions UserName/GroupName for controlling the user/group for the system domain. So, what user are per-user services in /Library/LaunchAgents or ~/Library/LaunchAgents run as? Finally, I would expect I need to bootstrap/load my daemon's .plist, but after putting the .plist in /Library/LaunchAgents or /Library/LaunchDaemons, it was automatically loaded (run) at system boot. Indeed, RunAtLoad=true, but what's the purpose of bootstrap, if services run anyway? man launchctl: bootstrap | bootout domain-target [service-path service-path2 ...] | service-target Bootstraps or removes domains and services. When service arguments are present, bootstraps and correspondingly removes their definitions into the domain. Services may be specified as a series of paths or a service identifier. Paths may point to XPC service bundles, launchd.plist(5) s, or a directories containing a collection of either. If there were one or more errors while bootstrapping or removing a collection of services, the problematic paths will be printed with the errors that occurred. If no paths or service target are specified, these commands can either bootstrap or remove a domain specified as a domain target. Some domains will implicitly bootstrap pre-defined paths as part of their creation.

I'm trying to create an Automator Service that will act on selected text, converting dashes to spaces, and also making word caps for all the text. A friend gave me this python script (I know nothing about python or shell scripting): #! /usr/bin/python cliptext = "%clipboard" print cliptext.replace('-', ' ').replace('%', ' ').replace('&', ' and ').replace('#', ' ').title() It works great as a TextExpander snippet, but I'd like to have it available in the Services menu as well. I don't need it to use any specific scripting language, it just needs to run within Automator. My coding buddy had no experience with Automator so he couldn't help out. His script requires copying the text to the clipboard, and then runs the formatting and pastes the result. I'd like to be able to just run this on the selected text and not have to deal with the Clipboard (at least manually). The particular use for this is to rename photo uploads on Flickr, since Flickr uses the filename to generate the photo name. When exporting artwork via Photoshop or Illustrator using Save For Web, the lowercase and dashes are my default settings. I want to be able to highlight the Flickr title, and then run the Service to reformat the file name to a properly formatted title.

I am building a launchctl service which can run a java service. I am able to create launchctl service with root user and test start/stop/status/automatic start at reboot use cases. I am struggling with running same launchctl service with non root user(ec2-user in my case) My plist file looks like below Label siem ProgramArguments java -jar /Users/ec2-user/siem.jar RunAtLoad KeepAlive WorkingDirectory /Users/ec2-user StandardErrorPath /tmp/mycommand.err StandardOutPath /tmp/mycommand.out I have tried various steps to run the above service with ec2-user. UID for ec2-user is 501. ec2-user@ip-172-31-30-212 ~ % launchctl bootstrap gui/501 ~/Library/LaunchDaemons/siem.plist Bootstrap failed: 125: Unknown error: 125 Verified the content of plist file ec2-user@ip-172-31-30-212 ~ % plutil ~/Library/LaunchDaemons/siem.plist /Users/ec2-user/Library/LaunchDaemons/siem.plist: OK Tried bootstraping service with user ec2-user@ip-172-31-30-212 ~ % launchctl bootstrap user/501 ~/Library/LaunchDaemons/siem.plist Bootstrap failed: 5: Input/output error All of the above errors are not verbose and doesn't seem to find any way. **My goal : I want to run launchctl service with non root user.** **Environment Details:** **OS** : macOS on AWS EC2 Instance **macOS Version** : BigSur and Monterey **Update 1:** Checked system logs Nov 26 17:51:23 ip-172-31-30-212 com.apple.xpc.launchd (siem): Service could not initialize: 20G224: xpcproxy + 23787 [86D1F823-583D-36B7-A047-55971A034143]: 0xd Nov 26 17:51:23 ip-172-31-30-212 com.apple.xpc.launchd (siem.label): Service could not initialize: 20G224: xpcproxy + 23787 [86D1F823-583D-36B7-A047-55971A034143]: 0xd Nov 26 17:51:23 ip-172-31-30-212 com.apple.xpc.launchd (siem): Service exited with abnormal code: 78 Nov 26 17:51:23 ip-172-31-30-212 com.apple.xpc.launchd (siem): Service only ran for 0 seconds. Pushing respawn out by 10 seconds. Nov 26 17:51:23 ip-172-31-30-212 com.apple.xpc.launchd (siem.label): Service exited with abnormal code: 78 Nov 26 17:51:23 ip-172-31-30-212 com.apple.xpc.launchd (siem.label): Service only ran for 0 seconds. Pushing respawn out by 10 seconds.

any hint on how to create a keyboard shortcut to translate a selected text in Safari (or, even better, in any app?)