Cheatsheet - macOS

Quick-reference cheatsheet for macOS keyboard shortcuts, system management commands, and developer utilities.

Keyboard Shortcut Modifier Key Legend

• Cmd / ⌘: Command Key
• Option / ⌥: Option (Alt) Key
• Ctrl / ⌃: Control Key
• Shift / ⇧: Shift Key
• Caps Lock / ⇪: Caps Lock Key
• Fn: Function Key
• Esc: Escape Key

Essential System Shortcuts

• Spotlight Search: Cmd + Space
• Force Quit Application: Cmd + Option + Esc
• Lock Screen: Ctrl + Cmd + Q
• Log Out User: Shift + Cmd + Q (Immediate: Option + Shift + Cmd + Q)
• Show/Hide Dock: Option + Cmd + D
• System Settings: Cmd + , (when in Finder or application menu)

Application & Window Management

• Switch Applications: Cmd + Tab (Hold Cmd, tap Tab to cycle, ~ cycles backward)
• Cycle Windows of Current App: Cmd + ~ (Backtick / Tilde key)
• Close Active Window: Cmd + W (Close All Windows: Option + Cmd + W)
• Quit Active App: Cmd + Q
• Minimize Active Window: Cmd + M (Minimize All: Option + Cmd + M)
• Hide Active App: Cmd + H (Hide Other Apps: Option + Cmd + H)
• Enter Full Screen: Ctrl + Cmd + F
• Mission Control: Ctrl + Up Arrow (or F3)
• App Exposé (Show Current App Windows): Ctrl + Down Arrow
• Switch Virtual Desktops (Spaces): Ctrl + Left/Right Arrow

Finder Navigation

• Go to Home Folder: Shift + Cmd + H
• Go to Folder (Direct Path): Shift + Cmd + G (e.g. ~/Library/Application Support/)
• Go to Desktop: Shift + Cmd + D
• Go to Applications: Shift + Cmd + A
• Show/Hide Hidden Files (. files): Shift + Cmd + .
• Show/Hide Path Bar: Option + Cmd + P
• Quick Look Preview: Select item + Spacebar
• Get Info: Cmd + I
• Duplicate Selected Item: Cmd + D
• Move to Trash: Cmd + Delete (Empty Trash: Shift + Cmd + Delete)

Screenshots & Screen Recording

• Capture Entire Screen: Shift + Cmd + 3 (Saves to Desktop)
• Capture Selected Area: Shift + Cmd + 4 (Drag crosshairs)
• Capture Specific Window: Shift + Cmd + 4, then tap Spacebar, click window
• Screenshot & Screen Recording Toolbar: Shift + Cmd + 5
• Copy Screenshot Directly to Clipboard: Hold Ctrl with any shortcut (e.g., Ctrl + Shift + Cmd + 4)

Text Editing & Navigation

• Move to Beginning / End of Line: Cmd + Left Arrow / Cmd + Right Arrow
• Move to Beginning / End of Document: Cmd + Up Arrow / Cmd + Down Arrow
• Move One Word Left / Right: Option + Left Arrow / Option + Right Arrow
• Select Line / Word: Hold Shift with any movement shortcut
• Forward Delete: Fn + Delete
• Delete Word Behind Cursor: Option + Delete
• Delete Entire Line Behind Cursor: Cmd + Delete
• Emoji & Symbol Picker: Ctrl + Cmd + Space

System Administration & Terminal Power Tools

# Storage & Disk Management
diskutil list                       # List all disks, APFS containers, and partitions
diskutil apfs list                  # Inspect APFS container volumes and snapshot seals
diskutil info /                     # Detailed volume info (mount point, UUID, free space)
hdiutil attach image.dmg            # Mount disk image (.dmg) from terminal
hdiutil detach /Volumes/image_name  # Unmount disk image

# Security & Gatekeeper
csrutil status                      # Check System Integrity Protection (SIP) status
spctl --status                      # Check Gatekeeper execution policy status
xattr -d com.apple.quarantine App.app # Remove Gatekeeper quarantine flag from downloaded app

# Time Synchronization
sudo sntp -sS time.apple.com        # Force NTP network time synchronization

# Spotlight Indexing & Metadata
sudo mdutil -E /                    # Rebuild Spotlight index for root volume
sudo mdutil -i on /                 # Enable Spotlight indexing
mdls filename.pdf                   # View all indexed Spotlight metadata attributes for a file
mdfind "kMDItemDisplayName == '*.rs'" # Fast metadata search for files

# Network & DNS
sudo dscacheutil -flushcache        # Flush local macOS directory/DNS cache
sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder     # Restart mDNS daemon to apply DNS flush
networksetup -listallnetworkservices # List network interfaces (Wi-Fi, Ethernet)
scutil --dns                        # Display active DNS nameservers and search domains

# Memory & Kernel Daemons
sudo purge                          # Flush inactive disk cache and memory buffers
launchctl list                      # List loaded launchd background services
launchctl print gui/$(id -u)        # Inspect per-user launchd service domain

# Hardware & System Profiling
system_profiler SPHardwareDataType  # Print CPU, memory, Apple Silicon chip info
system_profiler SPSoftwareDataType  # Print macOS version, kernel version, boot volume
sw_vers                             # Display macOS product name and build version

Application Data Directories

When troubleshooting or completely uninstalling applications:

• /Applications: App bundles (.app)
• ~/Library/Application Support/<AppName>: App state, databases, and persistent files
• ~/Library/Preferences/<com.vendor.app.plist>: User preference property lists
• ~/Library/Caches/<com.vendor.app>: Ephemeral application cache files
• ~/Library/Logs/: Per-application log outputs