View hidden folders on Mac

I just bought a new MacBook Pro and I want to backup my iPod on it. I have done this before on Windows by viewing the hidden folders, but I don't know how to do it on a Mac. Help?

Hello Buffa1o,
And welcome to  Discussions!
There are a couple ways to do this, but I am going to stick with the terminal method, because I find it to be the quickest and most convenient. So head to *Applications -> Utilities -> Terminal*. When the window pops up, type this command in verbatim:
*defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE* -> Hit Enter to execute it and then type...
*killall Finder* and again hit Enter.
From there you should be able to open your iPod via Finder and see the iPod_Control folder that contains all your iPod's stored media. When you are finished, type the same 2 commands supplied above, except change TRUE to FALSE.
Hope this helps.
B-rock

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Undo view hidden folders & files

hi
i had a problem where i was downloading to an external hard drive called storage. i downloaded a file with out the hard drive on so mac put this file on the mac hard drive in a folder called storage, but it has hidden. i googled how to view hidden files and got this code:
defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE killall Finder
put now i cant undo or hide the hidden files. the same site tells me to use the same put replace true with false but terminal comes back with:
defaults[790:10b] Unexpected argument Finder; leaving defaults unchanged.
how can i hide the hidden files?
please help
thanks

Separate the two operations as they are two separate commands.
defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFile FALSE
(press return)
killall Finder
(press return)

View hidden folders

this drives me crazy, mac has screwed up again....
how in do you change the preferences so you can see hidden folders? I need to port data from cpu to the other that must land in the library folder under the user account on the new machine and I cant freakin find it.....
thoughts?

Open terminal and type (or copy and paste) this line then hit Enter.
defaults write com.apple.Finder AppleShowAllFiles YES
All folders & files will be visible.

How do I view hidden folders?

I recently did a clean install of Lion on my MacBook Air and I have a copy of my previous home folder sitting on my desktop. How do I view the hidden Library folder that is in the previous home folder on my desktop? I'm sure there is an easy "Go to Folder" command, but I don't really know how the syntax for that is supposed to work so I can find it.
Thanks!

No, but you can hold down the option key while clicking on the 'Go' menu in the Finder menubar and that will show your current ~/Library folder in the menu, which you can then click on.
However, as I understood your original post, you're trying to look at a hidden folder on your desktop (an old Library folder? Not sure how that's happened, but anyway).
If you don't want to show ALL hidden files you can just make one specific file visible by using this command in Terminal instead of the global one I gave you before (NOTE: this assumes there is an invisible file on your desktop called 'Library'. If that's not the case, change the path to wherever the hidden file is):
chflags nohidden ~/Desktop/Library
Then press 'Return'. To make the same file hidden again just use:
chflags hidden ~/Desktop/Library
Then press 'Return'.

How to view hidden folders in Finder

Sometimes, it's not just folders, it's files too. Sometimes in non-mac sources, like my SMART TV, I see files named .filename.mp4 along with filename.mp4. And these fraudulent files are really bothering. And the worst part, I can't see them in Finder. So I need help to remove the .file.mp4.
I used the term 'filename.mp4' to represent an MP4 video file. But the files that have a . before them need to be deleted.
Thanks!!
Emmanuel Isaac

As Jeff Shenk says, they are "Apple Double" format which Mac OS X uses when storing Mac files on a non-HFS+ file system. The ._ files contains the resource fork of a file. Some applications store additional information about a file in the resource fork. This could be things like font information, custom file icons, album art, track information, information about file formatting from a word processor, etc... This is no limit to what an app might store in a resource fork.
For future reference you can easily take Mac OS X screen shots using:
Command-Shift-3
- Capture entire screen
Command-Shift-4
- Drag to select copy region
Command-Shift-4-Space   - Capture Window under cursor
If you want a menu or pop-up, then do the
Command-Shift-4-Space
after the menu or pop-up is setup as you like it.
If you want to capture the screen shot to the Clipboard, then add the "Control" key to any of the above, and you can then paste the screen shot from the Clipboard into any app that accepts picture input.

What are hidden folders on mac for?

i have a macbook pro and i found out there are hide folders, his got me interested, so i would like to know what they are for. One of them says ".localized" and the other one says ".DS_Store". I would also like to know how to keep the invisible

They are OS X system files and should not be tampered with.
They can't be made invisible but you can setup other user accounts with limited access to files and folders > OS X Mavericks: About users, administrators, groups, and guests

Can't view hidden network folders on pc (server 2003)

Hi, sorry if this has been discussed before, but I can't find anything after searching forums/google for 2 days, on and off. I'm a born again newbie to Mac and I'm trying to view hidden folders on my company network. I am able to access the network and gain access to all of my network folders, but not the hidden ones, for example, hiddenfolder$. Is there anyway to do this? My anti Mac boss, doesn't want our work "exposed" to the company and insists they stay hidden, out of sight, out of snooping eyes. Thanks for your help.

I have found two mechanisms that are working for me.
1) Connect first to a non-hidden share. Authenticate properly to the server. Now, try and connect to the hidden share. It appears that Leopard is failing to ask for authentication from me if I connect to the hidden share first. If I connect to the non-hidden share first, it remembers the authentication and works fine for me.
2) The directions from this post work for me: http://groups.google.com/group/comp.sys.mac.misc/browse_thread/thread/fe43e0b718 3465a8
Quoted:
Generally Finder -> Go -> Connect to Server...
smb://workgroup;username:[email protected]/sharename
Should work, where:
workgroup: Workgroup (optional if default is
the correct workgroup)
username: Username (optional if you are prompted)
password: Password (optional if you are prompted)
server.address: Server NetBIOS name
-OR- domain.name.com
-OR- IP address
sharename: Share name (optional if server lets you browse)
I have been able to omit the workgroup/domain in my case with success, and just supply the username and password.
My current theory is that is that Leopard is just not asking for "authentication", so the two mechanisms that work for me appear to force the authentication to happen in a different fasion.
Good luck. I hope it works for you.
-Matt

MY system folder, including hidden folders are littered with duplicate folders and files with the suffix (from old Mac) How do I remove them

I have a Macbook Pro running Leopard 10.5.8. I had a problem with my my operating system (my fault, I moved a file I shoudnt have) couldnt boot up but was able to boot up from a backup. I managed to repair my original system except now all the system folders, including hidden folders are littered with duplicate folders and files with the suffix (from old Mac). For the most part the dupes are an exact copy, but not always. I want to remove them to free up space and cant imagine duplicate folders in the /system/library are not hindering my computer. But I dont know where to start and am afraid of doing irreparable damage. Any ideas

pacull,
Use iCal>View>Show Notifications to choose what to do with the notification.

Viewed my hidden folders and this came up!

I viewed my hidden files and folders on my Mac and I found these on my Desktop. I have no idea what they are. I'm guessing they are external drives. People have had access to my Mac and I am wondering if someone put these on my Mac or are they on everyones? It's starting to freak me out. My Mac just hasn't been the same since I left it over at a friends house.

Everyone has them. DO NOT MESS WITH THEM!
There are a lot of hidden files and folders on Mac OS X that are there for the normal operation of your Mac, or they are for configuration/setups environments that not everyone uses, but do not cost anything to keep around just incase.
/home and /net are for NFS environments, and are symbolic links that take up almost no space on your hard disk.
You also have /etc, /bin, /usr, /dev, /opt, /sbin, /tmp, /var, /private, /System, /Library. Do not mess with any of these unless you want to own a door stop.

Folder Options - View Hidden Files and Folders

Hello,
On this same laptop, there seems to be an issue with *Folder Options - View Hidden Files and Folders.*
Each time i "check" that option to View - then i go back to verify/confirm the changes done - but the checkbox is "unchecked" again. Despite clicking on Apply and Ok to save the changes! The changes are never saved..
I have used other laptops for this same option and it all worked fine.
Please advise whether i need to apply or amend other settings for this to work?
Regards.

Hi
> Therefore, i doubt the antivirus program is the causal factor here..
I wouldnt say so.
I mean normally Bitdefender shouldnt cause such a problem thats right but theoretically its possible. Such security software programs are really good and necessary on every computer with internet connection but due the high security it could maybe blocks some changes from Windows.
In my opinion its worth a try to test it without Bitdefender. Alternative you can use AntiVir (freeware) and the Windows firewall. In my opinion a really good freeware solution.

I have 3 hidden folders on my thumb drive, I am unble to see them in my MAC, can anyone help me out.

I have 3 hidden folders on my thumb drive, I am unble to see them in my MAC, can anyone help me out.

How do you know that they are there?

How do I create hidden folders in iweb

I switched to Mac from PC which means I lost FrontPage. I have 6 small websites for my books and I need to rebuild these. I don't have time to learn Dreamweaver at this time. How do I create the essential hidden folders I need in iWeb to place the books for download?

Thanks Kirk
I just wasted 6 hours before I realized this. I'm so frustrated switching from PC to Mac. The learning curve is tremendous and very frustrating. I've lost over a month of productivity due to little issues like this. Hopefully no one else will suffer. Here's the remedy I came up with.
Basically iWeb cannot be used for anything other than basic vanity mini websites. If you're doing ecommerce, need various folders or are using it to market products with downloads or anything needing protected, this is not the product to use.
For others with my issue, how do you update or change a FrontPage site when you no longer have it and no longer have a PC (most of the open source programs available for this only work on PC). My sites were built in FrontPage. I needed to update and change them. This is how to do it.
From the hosting panel with your hosting company use the FTP uploader. You need to save the entire FrontPage Website to your computer or an external harddrive. You can then open it and edit it in DreamWeaver. You may be able to do this with outher editors as well but this one I know you can. Dreamweaver can be rented on a month-to-month basis now and it does come with a 30 day free trial.
If you don't know how to do CSS style sheets, you will need to go into each open page, cut the text, past it into an rtf document in Mac. Then, choose format and change it to 'plain text' and recopy and past into the open page of Dreamweaver. This gets rid of the funky formatting FrontPage does and changes all the copy to <p> tags. Then go into the code view in Dreamweaver and add the <h1> <h2> and other headings where needed. Dreamweaver does allow you to specify the attributes and create an in page CSS.
All of this is temporary but at least you'll be able to work on, edit and make changes even if you've lost access to a PC and FrontPage. Eventually you will need to replace the entire FrontPage site

How to view hidden user files and reset permissions

I am having difficulties getting the hidden files to appear first of all. I have tried a couple of different things that have been suggested in other posts. And I would really like a point in the right direction to find information on resetting permissions. Thanks in advance for any help.

To view hidden files, I use a third party program called Desktop Utility, takes only a few seconds to activate and have them shown. Quick and easy.
http://sweetpproductions.com/
Resetting Permissions info and How TO;
http://osxdaily.com/2011/11/15/repair-user-permissions-in-mac-os-x-lion/
When you use the Disk Utility app and Repair Permissions — it doesn’t actually repair the permission settings on folders and files in your Home folder where your documents and personal applications reside.
There is an additional Repair Permissions application utility hidden away. This tool is located inside boot Repair Utilities. Here’s how to access it.
Restart Lion and hold down the Command and R keys.
You will boot into the Repair Utilities screen. On top, in the Menu Bar click the Utilities item then select Terminal.
In the Terminal window, type resetpassword and hit Return.
The Password reset utility launches, but you’re not going to reset the password. Instead, click on the icon for your Mac’s hard drive at the top. From the drop-down below it, select the user account where you are having issues.
At the bottom of the window, you’ll see an area labeled ‘Reset Home Directory Permissions and ACLs’. Click the Reset button there.

Deleting hidden folders and console.log files

I have heard that OS X logs activity of various programs and Applications in hidden folders/files.
Can someone please tell me how to view and delete this information in the hidden folder(s) without compromising my OS X system?
Also, how do I delete information in the console.log folders?
Thank you.
Maverich

Hi Maverich!
The invisible files & folders are hidden for a reason!
If you don't know exactly what you are doing, you shouldn't muck about with them!
The Mac OS X is very good at protecting us from being our own worst enemy.
Your Mac runs Cron Scripts daily, weekly, & monthly, if the Mac is left on 24/7.
If you prefer, you may also choose to run them manually.
Mac OS X: How to force background maintenance tasks (logs and temporary items)
I put my Display to sleep after 15 minutes of inactivity, but never Sleep or seldom Shutdown My iMac, and my Console folder, within the Logs folder is only 276 KB.
ali b

Browse other time machine disks and hidden folders

I recently did a clean install of Snow Leopard, and used the "Browse other Time Machine disks" option to restore my documents from my backup. Now, however, I want to restore a folder that resides in the hidden /usr, and can't figure out how to do so. Normally, the solution would be to open a Finder window go use Go > Go to Folder and type the path to the folder, then enter Time Machine. However, when using Browse for other disks, once it enters Time Machine, it resets the Finder window to Macintosh HD. Does anybody know how to restore hidden folders from a Time Machine backup on another disk (from a different installation of Mac OS X)? Thanks

Shardsofmetal wrote:
The problem I have is navigating to the hidden folder in the Time Machine backup. It resets my Finder window when I enter Time Machine, and I can't figure out how to navigate to the hidden folder within the Time Machine interface.
it should not reset the finder window when you enter TM. open a /usr in finder. enter commandshiftg and enter /user in popup. this will open /usr in a separate window. enter TM from that window. provided you did not exclude system files from backups you'll see past backups of /usr and the view will not reset. if you did exclude system files from backups then the view will reset.

View hidden folders on Mac

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