

- Mac set application for file type unidentified developer how to#
- Mac set application for file type unidentified developer install#
- Mac set application for file type unidentified developer license#
Long story short: the right-click 'Open' (or "Open Anyway" from Security screen of System Preferences) adds an exception to Gatekeeper for the app in question, which requires admin privileges. Or you could indirectly remove the quarantine flag by launching/allowing the app on another Mac (which does not have Gatekeeper restrictions in effect, or where you have an admin account which allows you to override it), then copying it to the restricted machine via a method that does not recreate the flag (apps copied from a SMB share, for example, will not be quarantined). You can accomplish the same thing by simply removing the quarantine flag from the app directly, like so: xattr -d "./My Sketchy App.app" Transplanting the app contents is just a roundabout way of removing this flag. But if it did have a quarantine flag, it still will, and Gatekeeper will be in effect. So if it did not have a quarantine flag, neither will your new app and you will be able to launch it. If you copy the contents of an app into another app's bundle, the newly-created app has whatever extended attributes the bundle did beforehand. You can see this flag by running the command ls on the directory containing your app bundle: 3 self wheel 102 My Sketchy App.app Safari and Mail will add this flag to downloaded files, but there is no requirement that all apps must behave this way. This means an extended attribute flag has been added to the file which indicates it was downloaded from the internet or else-wise from an unknown source. Regardless of whether an app bundle is signed, the Gatekeeper system will only check apps that are 'quarantined'. If this 'transplant' method does work, it is not because it tricks Gatekeeper rather because it prevents Gatekeeper from ever being invoked. You get a dialog box that says the app can’t be opened because it’s from an unidentified developer and your security settings won’t allow it.
Mac set application for file type unidentified developer how to#
Both of these will be destroyed if you replace all the contents, and selectively replacing the contents will result in an app which has a code signature that does not match that of the app it is claiming to be. How to Open a Mac App from an Unidentified Developer Sometimes you download a Mac app and it won’t open. The 'Known Developer' check requires the the app bundle to contain a _CodeSignature subfolder, and an app ID which corresponds to the signed developer in the bundle's ist file. The method suggested in another answer here to copy the contents to another app's bundle will not, in itself, circumvent Gatekeeper.
Mac set application for file type unidentified developer license#
This app would able to launch anywhere (though you would possibly be violating the license of the original software). You could then create an App in XCode and just include the contents of the other app you really are wanting to run in your app bundle, then sign it with your certificate.
Mac set application for file type unidentified developer install#
The only way to 'self sign' an app for Gatekeeper is to enroll in the Apple Developer Program (currently $100/annually), sign up for a code-signing certificate, and install XCode to create "your" app.
