The Finder will refresh after you hit the Return key, which causes Finder to quit and relaunch itself for the changes to take effect, thus revealing hidden files on the Mac.

Here is what the defaults command string which shows hidden files looks like in the Mac Terminal:

Hit the Return key after the command is entered into the Terminal command prompt, that will execute the command and allow the hidden files to become visible in the file system of Mac OS.

Enter the proper command exactly as shown below, choosing for your version of MacOS or Mac OS X:įor showing hidden files and folders in macOS High Sierra 10.13, MacOS Sierra 10.12, OS X El Capitan 10.11, Yosemite 10.10, and OS X Mavericks 10.9, use the following command string to show hidden files:ĭefaults write AppleShowAllFiles TRUE killall Finderįor showing hidden files in Mac OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion, OS X 10.7 Lion, Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard, and before, use this defaults command string instead:ĭefaults write AppleShowAllFiles TRUE killall Finder.

Launch the Terminal app, found in /Applications/Utilities.

This changes the default setting of Mac OS X so that Finder always shows all files, including showing hidden files. How to Show Hidden Files & Folders on Mac

Mac console commands hidden files