Show all files in Finder

Sep 19, 2009 · Follow on Twitter and Mastodon

This post will show you how to easily show all hidden files in Finder, both with a Terminal script and a keyboard shortcut.

To show hidden files in OS X, you can type the following in the Terminal:

defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE
killall Finder

This will reconfigure and restart Finder, which upon a restart will now show you all hidden files. To hide these files again, just run this command:

defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles FALSE
killall Finder

An even easier way is to use the keyboard shortcut Cmd+Shift+., which toggles the visibility instantly. No Terminal hacks required.