Unlike Microsoft Windows, by default OS X hides system files from end users. There is a perfectly reasonable explanation for this. Some of the files which are hidden, are important and damaging them could prevent your system from booting all together.
However – on the flip side, there is often a valid reason for needing access to those files. Anything from needing to change a system setting to removing files an unruly application has left behind.
Alternatively, if you are just looking for something in your Library folder, did you know that if you click “Go” in the menu bar whilst in Finder, then whilst the menu is expanded click the Alt key on your keyboard the Library menu will appear.
Another method would be to run a command in a terminal window to change the system setting. To do this all you need to do is:
- Open Finder
- Open the Utilities folder
- Open a terminal window
- Copy and paste the following line in:
1SUDO defaults write com.apple.Finder AppleShowAllFiles YES; killall Finder - Press return
- Enter your administrator password when prompted
- Press return
You should find the finder window will disappear, along with the icons on your desktop. However, if you now launch a new finder instance you will now be able to see any hidden files or folders. Once you are done, perform the steps above however, replace the terminal command in step 4 with:
1 |
SUDO defaults write com.apple.Finder AppleShowAllFiles NO; killall Finder |
If the above is not working for you, you may want to try switching YES/NO to TRUE/FALSE .. Beware that this is case-sensitive!
1 |
defaults write com.apple.Finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE |
If you are experiencing issues using the examples above, please post a comment using the comments system below.