SetDefaultAppsX

"Enhanced" version of SetDefaultapps by Scott E Kendall

Setup Instructions

Overview

SetDefaultAppsX is a macOS script that allows users to set default applications for various file types (mailto, http, ftp, documents, etc.) using a graphical dialog interface.

Quick Start (Simplest Method)

1. Install utiluti: https://github.com/scriptingosx/utiluti
2. Run the script: ./SetDefaultAppsX.sh

That's it! The script will automatically:

• Download and install swiftDialog if needed
• Create directories in /Users/Shared/SetDefaultAppsX/
• Run without requiring sudo

Requirements

• macOS (Apple Silicon or Intel)
• utiluti - Command-line tool for managing UTI (Uniform Type Identifier) associations
  • Will be automatically downloaded and installed if not present
  • Source: https://github.com/scriptingosx/utiluti
• swiftDialog - swift UI for clean dialogs
  • Will be automatically downloaded and installed if not present
  • Source: https://github.com/bartreardon/swiftDialog

Installation Steps

Step 1: (Optional) Run the Preparation Script for System-Wide Setup

Note: The preparation script is optional. If not run, SetDefaultAppsX will automatically create directories in /Users/Shared/SetDefaultAppsX/ instead.

For a system-wide installation in /Library/Application Support/, run:

sudo ./PrepareSetDefaultAppsX.sh

This script will create:

• /Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/ - Main support directory
• /Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/logs/ - Log files directory
• /Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/SupportFiles/ - Optional banner images

If you skip this step, the script will automatically use /Users/Shared/SetDefaultAppsX/ and create all necessary directories there without requiring sudo.

Step 2: (Optional) Add Custom Banner Image

If you want to customize the dialog banner:

sudo cp your-banner-image.png "/Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/SupportFiles/SD_BannerImage.png"

Step 3: Install utiluti and swiftDialog for Managed Macs

Alternatively, if not detected, both will be automatically downloaded and installed if not present

Step 4: Run SetDefaultAppsX

Once the preparation is complete, any user can run the script without sudo:

./SetDefaultAppsX.sh

Directory Structure

With PrepareSetDefaultAppsX.sh (System-Wide)

After running PrepareSetDefaultAppsX.sh, the following structure will exist:

/Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/
├── logs/
│   └── SetDefaultAppsX.log
└── SupportFiles/
    └── SD_BannerImage.png (optional)

Without PrepareSetDefaultAppsX.sh (Automatic Fallback)

If the preparation script is not run, the script will automatically create:

/Users/Shared/SetDefaultAppsX/
├── logs/
│   └── SetDefaultAppsX.log
└── SupportFiles/
    └── SD_BannerImage.png (optional)

Manual Setup (Alternative)

If you prefer to manually create the directories instead of using the preparation script:

# Create directories
sudo mkdir -p "/Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/logs"
sudo mkdir -p "/Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/SupportFiles"

# Set permissions
sudo chmod 755 "/Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX"
sudo chmod 777 "/Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/logs"
sudo chmod 755 "/Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/SupportFiles"

Managed Preferences (Optional)

For enterprise deployments, you can use a managed preferences plist to customize settings:

Location: /Library/Managed Preferences/com.setdefaultappsx.defaults.plist

Keys:

• SupportFiles - Path to support files directory
• BannerImage - Filename of banner image
• BannerPadding - Number of spaces for banner text padding

Example:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
    <key>SupportFiles</key>
    <string>/Library/Application Support/SetDefaultAppsX/SupportFiles/</string>
    <key>BannerImage</key>
    <string>SD_BannerImage.png</string>
    <key>BannerPadding</key>
    <integer>5</integer>
</dict>
</plist>

Troubleshooting

Warning: "Application Support directory not found"

This is normal if you haven't run the preparation script. The script will automatically fall back to /Users/Shared/SetDefaultAppsX/ and create all necessary directories there.

If you want to use the system-wide location instead, run:

sudo ./PrepareSetDefaultAppsX.sh

Error: "Cannot create log file"

This should not happen with the automatic fallback to /Users/Shared. If it does, check that /Users/Shared exists and is writable:

ls -ld /Users/Shared

Error: "utiluti is not installed"

The script will automatically download and install utiluti from GitHub. Ensure you have internet connectivity.

swiftDialog not installing

The script will automatically download and install swiftDialog from GitHub. Ensure you have internet connectivity.

File Descriptions

File	Purpose
PrepareSetDefaultAppsX.sh	One-time setup script (run with sudo)
SetDefaultAppsX.sh	Main script for setting default apps (run as user)
SETUP.md	This documentation file

Version History

• 2.1 (2025-12-16)

  • Automatically install utiluti
  • Check for both binaries needed and install if necessary

• 2.0 (2025-12-15)

  • Removed JAMF dependencies
  • Added standalone swiftDialog installer
  • Fixed Apple Silicon CPU detection
  • Replaced GiantEagle references with SetDefaultAppsX
  • Removed sudo from main script
  • Added preparation script for directory setup

• 1.0 (2025-12-11)

  • Initial version by Scott Kendall

Support

For issues or questions:

• utiluti: https://github.com/scriptingosx/utiluti
• swiftDialog: https://github.com/bartreardon/swiftDialog