Defaults (software)
{{Distinguish|text=the generic computer science concept of defaults}}
{{Short description|Command-line utility}}
{{notability|date=December 2016}}
{{primary sources|date=December 2016}}
{{lowercase|title=defaults}}
defaults is a command line utility that manipulates plist files. Introduced in 1998 OPENSTEP, defaults is found in the system's descendants macOS and GNUstep.{{man|1|defaults|ManKier}}{{man|1|defaults|Darwin}}
The name "defaults" derives from OpenStep's name for user preferences, Defaults, or NSUserDefaults in Foundation Kit. Each application had its own defaults plist ("domain"), under {{tt|~/Defaults}} for the user configuration and {{tt|/Defaults}} for the system configuration. The lookup system also supports a {{tt|NSGlobalDomain.plist}}, where defaults written there will be seen by all applications.{{Cite web |title=User Defaults Summary for GNUstep Libraries |url=http://www.gnustep.org/resources/documentation/User/Gui/DefaultsSummary.html |website=www.gnustep.org}} In macOS, the {{tt|Defaults}} part of the path is replaced by the more intuitive {{tt|Library/Preferences}}. defaults accesses the plists based on the domain given.
defaults is also able to read and write any plist specified with a path, although Apple plans to phase out this utility in a future version.{{Cite web |title=Unofficial macOS defaults man page |url=https://ss64.com/osx/defaults.html |website=ss64.com}}
Usage
Common uses of defaults:
$ defaults read DOMAIN # gets all
$ defaults read DOMAIN PROPERTY_NAME # gets
$ defaults write DOMAIN PROPERTY_NAME VALUE # sets
$ defaults delete DOMAIN PROPERTY_NAME # resets a property
$ defaults delete DOMAIN # resets preferences
DOMAIN should be replaced by the plist file name sans extension ('.plist'). plist files are named with reverse domain name notation. For example:
$ defaults read com.apple.iTunes # prints all iTunes preference values
plist files store keys and values. The PROPERTY_NAME key is the name of the property to modify. For example, to remove the search field from Safari's address bar:
$ defaults write com.apple.Safari AddressBarIncludesGoogle 0
$ # or
$ defaults write com.apple.Safari AddressBarIncludesGoogle -bool NO # case-sensitive!
Using "1", "YES", or "TRUE" instead restores this to the default of including search.
Preferences can at times corrupt applications. To reset Address Book's preferences, either the file ~/Library/Preferences/com.apple.AddressBook.plist must be removed or the following command issued:
$ defaults delete com.apple.AddressBook
= Compound values =
defaults prints values in the OpenStep format. It allows the VALUE to be arrays and dicts, as long as they conform to old-style plist syntax.{{Cite web |title=macos - modifying a Plist from command line on Mac using Defaults |url=https://stackoverflow.com/questions/13740337/modifying-a-plist-from-command-line-on-mac-using-defaults |website=Stack Overflow}}
Settings
Some example settings configurable with defaults under macOS:
SS64 documents a set of other keys that can be changed for each software (not the global domain) in macOS.{{Cite web |title=System preference settings for macOS - macOS - SS64.com |url=https://ss64.com/osx/syntax-defaults.html |website=ss64.com}} Other sites also document settings to be changed using defaults.{{Cite web |title=Top 11 Terminal Command Tricks for Mac That You Should Know |url=https://www.guidingtech.com/top-terminal-command-tricks-mac-macos/ |website=Guiding Tech|date=19 August 2019 }} Apple does not publish a complete list of these "secret knobs", but their support site does occasionally provide defaults commands for user to change a certain setting, such as the creation of .DS_Store.{{Cite web |title=Adjust SMB browsing behavior in macOS High Sierra 10.13 and later |url=https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208209 |access-date=5 January 2020 |website=Apple Support |language=en}} (type into a search engine to find more: site:support.apple.com "defaults write")
GNUstep documents its defaults more clearly, so that there is no such thing as a "hidden settings" community like there is for macOS.
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- [https://developer.apple.com/documentation/foundation/nsuserdefaults?language=objc NSUserDefaults documentation] Apple Inc