System Library Extensions Mac

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Jan 12, 2012 Reboot the Mac; The kernel extension should now be installed. You can query a list of the active kernel extensions in OS X with the kextstat command to be sure, use grep to limit the results. Similarly, you can remove an item from the same /System/Library/Extensions/ folder to uninstall a kext file, rebooting the Mac again for the change to take effect. At this point, feel free to rummage around in the Extensions folder inside the Library folder inside the System folder at the root level of your Mac’s startup drive and chuck out the offending. Aug 24, 2017  Kernel extensions must be digitally signed using an Apple Developer ID for Signing Kexts certificate and installed into /Library/Extensions. System Integrity.

  1. Aug 08, 2013  The Early Boot Process Boot ROM. When the power to a Macintosh computer is turned on, the BootROM firmware is activated. BootROM (which is part of the computer’s hardware) has two primary responsibilities: it initializes system hardware and it selects an operating system to run.
  2. We explain how to solve when kerneltask is using too much cpu like 100% or it has high cpu time. In this tutorial we will fix high cpu usage on OSX MacBook Pro and others after high sierra update. Make sure you removed all usb devices!
  3. Access Library Folder On Mac. The Library Folder on your Mac contains Preference Files, Caches, and Application Support Data. While regular Mac users may not find the need to access the Hidden Library Folder, advanced Mac users will at times come across the need to access files inside the Library Folder for troubleshooting and other purposes.
  1. The Libraries of Mac OS X: /System/Library
< BackPage 6 of 10Next >
This chapter is from the book
Mac OS X Disaster Relief, Updated Edition

This chapter is from the book

This chapter is from the book

The Libraries of Mac OS X: /System/Library

I now take a more detailed look at the contents of each of the main Library folders in Mac OS X, starting with /System/Library. The number and variety of files and folders in any of these Library folders are far too great for me to cite even a bare majority of them. so I will limit the list to the ones that are most relevant for any troubleshooting you may have to do. Feel free to open these folders and browse around yourself, however. There is no fee for just looking.

Figure 4.8 The /System/Library folder (partial view; items A through I seen).


Core Services

Core Services is the most critical folder in the /System/Library folder. Like the System folder itself, it has an X on it to denote its special status. It contains the BootX file, required for starting up from Mac OS X (as described in Chapter 5).

The folder also contains the Dock, Finder Classic Startup, Help Viewer, and Software Update applications, as well as the loginwindow process (also covered in Chapter 5) and the Menu Extras (covered in Chapter 3). There are also fake Mac OS 9 Finder and System files, created so that Carbon applications that expect to see these Mac OS 9-type files will 'find' them. Yes, you will see the word Fake used in the Version description in the files' Show Info windows.

The SystemVersion.plist file determines what Mac OS X version is listed in the About This Mac window.

Figure 4.9 Some of the files and directories in the Core Services folder.


CFMSupport

CFMSupport contains software used for running Carbon applications. The CarbonLib file is in this folder, for example.

Extensions

This folder contains the kext (for kernel extension) files that load at startup, primarily acting as driver software for hardware peripherals (covered in Chapter 5). As their name implies, kext files are extensions of the basic kernel software that loads at startup.

Fonts

This folder is one of several Fonts folders in Mac OS X. This one contains the fonts that are considered to be essential for Mac OS X.

SEE

'Take Note: Multiple Folders of the Same Name in Multiple Library Folders,' earlier in this chapter.

Frameworks

Frameworks are an important component of Mac OS X, but you will have little reason to work with them directly in troubleshooting.

Briefly, frameworks are the Mac OS X equivalents of Mac OS 9's dynamic shared libraries, which means that they contain code that can be used by more than one application simultaneously. The basic idea is to eliminate the need to repeat code that will be used by multiple applications.

Frameworks have the structure of package files, although they appear to be ordinary folders and can be opened without the Show Package Contents contextual menu. A framework package can contain multiple versions of the shared software; applications that require the newer version can access it, and those that are incompatible with the newer version will be able to access the older version.

Frameworks can occur in other locations besides this folder. The ones in this folder are simply the ones that are most essential for the OS.

SEE

Technically Speaking:'Understanding Packages,' in Chapter 2, for more details on packages.

Preference Panes

This folder contains the panes that you access via the System Preferences application.

Printers

This folder contains files needed for printers to work with Mac OS X. Among other things, it contains the PPD and PDE files required for LaserWriter printers in Mac OS X.

SEE

Chapter 7 for more information on printing, including details on PPD and PDE files.

Having planned on performing a fresh install anyway, I further experimented by rming the entire /Library directory and rebooting. After all settings were back in place, a df -h showed that I reclaimed about 16GB.I understand that this could be a hugely risky move depending on what applications are installed and your level of comfort with losing data/time. This question is a bit old now, but I figured I'd add my experience for googling.While developing BLE applications on 10.11.x versions of Mac OS, I often found that I had to clear BLE data from /Library in order to return to a pre-connected/paired state on server (not client) devices.I began experimenting with /Library to reduce bloat on a system where HDD space was running low. I didn't expect that the system would return to an operational state.Upon boot I had to log back into iCloud, set up Slack, set preferences on keyboard, trackpad, terminal, browser, programs, etc.The system survived and is still running great. Delete

System library extensions mac os

QuickTime

This folder contains some QuickTime-related software, such as the QuickTime Updater application.

ScreenSavers

This folder contains the basic screen-saver options (Beach, Forest, and so on), which you accessed from the Screen Saver System Preferences window.

Services

This folder contains software needed for some of Mac OS X's Services feature, which allows you to access certain features of one application while you are in another application. You typically access this feature via the Services command in the menu that has the name of the active application (such as Finder, if Finder is the active application). If this feature is working, it allows you to open TextEdit with the selected text of your open application already pasted into an untitled TextEdit document, for example. This feature works only if the given applications support Services technology. Most do not, so most often, these options will be dimmed.

In the current context, Services also refers to some options that can be incorporated into any Cocoa application. As of Mac OS X 10.1, just two such Services are stored here: AppleSpell and Summary. AppleSpell, for example, allows a developer to include a spelling-checking feature in his application without having to write his own code.

Facebook Extension For Mac

Sounds

This folder contains the sound files (in AIFF format) that are listed in the Alerts tab of the Sound System Preferences window.

Note: AIFF is one of several sound formats supported by Mac OS X. Another is the well-known MP3 format, commonly used for music files stored on your drive and used by iTunes and iPod.

StartupItems

This important folder contains the various protocols that load at startup while you wait for the log-in window and Desktop to appear. These items include the Apache Web server, AppleShare, AppleTalk, Networking, and Network Time.

SEE

Chapter 5 for more information on the startup sequence.

Related Resources

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Home > Articles > Apple > Operating Systems

  1. The Libraries of Mac OS X: /System/Library
< BackPage 6 of 10Next >
This chapter is from the book

System Library Extensions

Mac OS X Disaster Relief, Updated Edition

This chapter is from the book

This chapter is from the book

The Libraries of Mac OS X: /System/Library

I now take a more detailed look at the contents of each of the main Library folders in Mac OS X, starting with /System/Library. The number and variety of files and folders in any of these Library folders are far too great for me to cite even a bare majority of them. so I will limit the list to the ones that are most relevant for any troubleshooting you may have to do. Feel free to open these folders and browse around yourself, however. There is no fee for just looking.

Figure 4.8 The /System/Library folder (partial view; items A through I seen).


Core Services

Core Services is the most critical folder in the /System/Library folder. Like the System folder itself, it has an X on it to denote its special status. It contains the BootX file, required for starting up from Mac OS X (as described in Chapter 5).

The folder also contains the Dock, Finder Classic Startup, Help Viewer, and Software Update applications, as well as the loginwindow process (also covered in Chapter 5) and the Menu Extras (covered in Chapter 3). There are also fake Mac OS 9 Finder and System files, created so that Carbon applications that expect to see these Mac OS 9-type files will 'find' them. Yes, you will see the word Fake used in the Version description in the files' Show Info windows.

The SystemVersion.plist file determines what Mac OS X version is listed in the About This Mac window.

Figure 4.9 Some of the files and directories in the Core Services folder.


CFMSupport

CFMSupport contains software used for running Carbon applications. The CarbonLib file is in this folder, for example.

Extensions

This folder contains the kext (for kernel extension) files that load at startup, primarily acting as driver software for hardware peripherals (covered in Chapter 5). As their name implies, kext files are extensions of the basic kernel software that loads at startup.

Fonts

Mac System Extension

This folder is one of several Fonts folders in Mac OS X. This one contains the fonts that are considered to be essential for Mac OS X.

SEE

'Take Note: Multiple Folders of the Same Name in Multiple Library Folders,' earlier in this chapter.

Frameworks

Frameworks are an important component of Mac OS X, but you will have little reason to work with them directly in troubleshooting.

Briefly, frameworks are the Mac OS X equivalents of Mac OS 9's dynamic shared libraries, which means that they contain code that can be used by more than one application simultaneously. The basic idea is to eliminate the need to repeat code that will be used by multiple applications.

Frameworks have the structure of package files, although they appear to be ordinary folders and can be opened without the Show Package Contents contextual menu. A framework package can contain multiple versions of the shared software; applications that require the newer version can access it, and those that are incompatible with the newer version will be able to access the older version.

Frameworks can occur in other locations besides this folder. The ones in this folder are simply the ones that are most essential for the OS.

System Library Extensions Mac

SEE

Technically Speaking:'Understanding Packages,' in Chapter 2, for more details on packages.

Preference Panes

This folder contains the panes that you access via the System Preferences application.

Printers

This folder contains files needed for printers to work with Mac OS X. Among other things, it contains the PPD and PDE files required for LaserWriter printers in Mac OS X.

SEE

Chapter 7 for more information on printing, including details on PPD and PDE files.

QuickTime

This folder contains some QuickTime-related software, such as the QuickTime Updater application.

ScreenSavers

This folder contains the basic screen-saver options (Beach, Forest, and so on), which you accessed from the Screen Saver System Preferences window.

Services

This folder contains software needed for some of Mac OS X's Services feature, which allows you to access certain features of one application while you are in another application. You typically access this feature via the Services command in the menu that has the name of the active application (such as Finder, if Finder is the active application). If this feature is working, it allows you to open TextEdit with the selected text of your open application already pasted into an untitled TextEdit document, for example. This feature works only if the given applications support Services technology. Most do not, so most often, these options will be dimmed.

In the current context, Services also refers to some options that can be incorporated into any Cocoa application. As of Mac OS X 10.1, just two such Services are stored here: AppleSpell and Summary. AppleSpell, for example, allows a developer to include a spelling-checking feature in his application without having to write his own code.

Sounds

Mac user profile location. This folder contains the sound files (in AIFF format) that are listed in the Alerts tab of the Sound System Preferences window.

Note: AIFF is one of several sound formats supported by Mac OS X. Another is the well-known MP3 format, commonly used for music files stored on your drive and used by iTunes and iPod.

StartupItems

This important folder contains the various protocols that load at startup while you wait for the log-in window and Desktop to appear. These items include the Apache Web server, AppleShare, AppleTalk, Networking, and Network Time.

SEE

Chapter 5 for more information on the startup sequence.

Related Resources

  • Book $55.99
  • Book $55.99

System Library Extensions Macon Ga

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