Is this the best way to start/stop/status filesharing for macOS ?
-- AppleScript to enable File Sharing on macOS
do shell script "sudo launchctl load -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.smbd.plist" with administrator privileges
do shell script "sudo launchctl load -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.AppleFileServer.plist" with administrator privileges
-- AppleScript to disable File Sharing on macOS
do shell script "sudo launchctl unload -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.smbd.plist" with administrator privileges
do shell script "sudo launchctl unload -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.AppleFileServer.plist" with administrator privileges
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You should not use both āsudoā and āwith administrator privilegesā in one command.
Either one will do.
thanks for the response.
So the issue Iām getting is it seems like the toggle turns off then turns back on however, the service doesnāt seem to.
scenario1 - failed
check the file sharing window
file sharing toggle is on
close file sharing window
run unload commands
check the file sharing window
file sharing toggle is on
attempt to connect to the mac specific share
connection failed
scenario 2 - success
check the file sharing window
file sharing toggle is on
click the file sharing toggle off ā manually
click the file sharing toggle on ā manually
attempt to connect to the mac specific share
connection successful
so it seems the commands above arenāt doing what the manual clicking does. So how do I script it so it does do what the manual clicking does?
I have never used those commands, so canāt tell how they might go wrong. Sorry.
Iām not very confident in English, so I might be misunderstanding something (apologies if thatās the case!).
Iām using macOS 15, so com.apple.AppleFileServer is no longer configurable
this is just about SMB file sharing.
Just wanted to share a quick note about enabling/disabling file sharing (SMB) on macOS.
Behavior can vary a bit depending on the OS version.
In earlier versions of macOS
I used to disable file sharing like this:
/usr/bin/sudo /bin/launchctl unload -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.smbd.plist
/usr/bin/sudo /bin/launchctl disable system/com.apple.smbd
Starting with macOS 14, I now do it this way:
/usr/bin/sudo /bin/launchctl bootout system/com.apple.smbd
/usr/bin/sudo /bin/launchctl disable system/com.apple.smbd
And when I want to start file sharing again on macOS 14 or later, I use:
/usr/bin/sudo /bin/launchctl enable system/com.apple.smbd
/usr/bin/sudo /bin/launchctl bootstrap system /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.smbd.plist
Iām not entirely sure if this method is the ācorrectā one, but it works for me on macOS 14 and later. If mentions their macOS version, there might be someone who can offer a more optimized solution for their setup.
Hope this helps!
Interestingā¦ I figured the sudo was for the shell and the administrator privileges was for AppleScript.
Just a heads-up for anyone still running a file server for multiple users. Appleās current SMB implementation respects no server permissions. Itās the Wild West. Have a robust backup strategy.
Yes, I totally agree.
For a beginner like me, itās all a bit too complexā¦ sigh
Between
com.apple.smb.server.plist,
nsmb.conf,
launchctl,
and also:
/usr/libexec/smb-migrate-preferences
/usr/libexec/smb-sync-preferences
dscl, user/group configurations,
and directory ACLsā¦
Itās definitely a challenge to get everything set the way you intend.
āBestā is outside my purview and I see that this concerns Monterey and I donāt currently have a system running that OS but I expect this code to function. If GUI scripting is acceptable then you can try the following.
tell application "System Settings"
activate
delay 3
reveal pane "Sharing"
delay 1
end tell
set FileSharingCheckboxReference to getFileSharingCheckboxReference()
Checkbox_Status(FileSharingCheckboxReference)
-->false
Checkbox_Activate(FileSharingCheckboxReference)
-->true
Checkbox_Status(FileSharingCheckboxReference)
-->true
Checkbox_Deactivate(FileSharingCheckboxReference)
-->true
Checkbox_Status(FileSharingCheckboxReference)
-->false
on getFileSharingCheckboxReference()
tell application "System Events" to tell application process "System Settings" to return checkbox 1 of group 1 of scroll area 1 of group 1 of group 2 of splitter group 1 of group 1 of window "Sharing"
end getFileSharingCheckboxReference
on Checkbox_Status(CheckboxReference)
tell application "System Events"
tell CheckboxReference
return (value as boolean)
end tell
end tell
end Checkbox_Status
on Checkbox_Activate(CheckboxReference)
tell application "System Events"
tell CheckboxReference
if value is 0 then
perform action "AXPress"
return true
end if
end tell
end tell
end Checkbox_Activate
on Checkbox_Deactivate(CheckboxReference)
tell application "System Events"
tell CheckboxReference
if value is 1 then
perform action "AXPress"
return true
end if
end tell
end tell
end Checkbox_Deactivate
thanks you for this but as Iāve found that when the screen saver locks the screen this doesnāt run. still testing the other posts to see if it works successfully.
do shell script āsudo launchctl bootout system /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.smbd.plist; sudo launchctl bootstrap system /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.smbd.plistā with administrator privileges
this seems to be workingā¦ but still testing.