OS X Finder : How to Reveal Hidden Files in Finder

Show hidden files in the OS X Finder

You ever need to know what the hidden files are in a certain directory?  Usually, going to the terminal one could easily view and edit the hidden files, ie: .htacess.  However, what if you wanted to grab a directory and move it to an FTP client, such as Cyberduck?  If you grabbed a directory with several .htaccess files through out the directory structure n OS X the hidden files would simply be ignored.

So, simply from a Terminal window and execute the following commands:

<Big:jes> 0 [07-13 22:21] ~/dev/website (.670 Mb)
! defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles -bool true

<Big:jes> 0 [07-13 22:21] ~/dev/website (.670 Mb)
!  KillAll Finder

^{Note: killall Finder just kills all current running processes called Finder. It has no permanent effect.} 

The finder now shows all hidden files.  However, there is a downside, the icons in the folder are now 50% transparent. I normally use details only, so it does not bother me... However, if you so desire to toggle the finder simple execute the following:

<Big:jes> 0 [07-13 22:21] ~/dev/website (.670 Mb)
! defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles -bool false

<Big:jes> 0 [07-13 22:21] ~/dev/website (.670 Mb)
! KillAll Finder

To make it easy enter the top commands in a script fshow.sh and the bottom fhide.sh

tags: osx  finder  hidden  files  

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