sidsharths1245/maclocksmith — explained in plain English
Analysis updated 2026-05-18
Free a file stuck with a file in use error without opening Activity Monitor.
See exactly which process and PID is holding a file lock.
Force quit the blocking app with one click from Finder.
| sidsharths1245/maclocksmith | arpitbhalla/swift-app | jangles-byte/ramble | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stars | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Language | Swift | Swift | Swift |
| Last pushed | — | 2022-12-19 | — |
| Maintenance | — | Dormant | — |
| Setup difficulty | easy | hard | easy |
| Complexity | 1/5 | 2/5 | 2/5 |
| Audience | general | developer | vibe coder |
Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.
Unsigned app, so Gatekeeper requires a manual right click Open the first time.
MacLocksmith is a small macOS Finder extension built to solve the annoying file in use error, where the Finder or an app refuses to open, move, or delete a file because something else is quietly holding a lock on it. Rather than making you hunt through Activity Monitor, MacLocksmith adds an Unlock File option directly to the Finder's right click menu. When you right click a stuck file and choose that option, the tool uses the lsof command under the hood to find exactly which running process is holding the lock, then shows you that process and its ID in a small window. From there, clicking the Force Kill Process button terminates that process immediately, which frees the file so you can finish whatever you were trying to do with it. There is also an optional auto quit setting so the utility closes itself right after a successful kill instead of staying open. Installation means downloading the MacLocksmith disk image from the project's releases page, dragging the app into Applications, launching it once so macOS registers the Finder extension, then turning the extension on in System Settings under Extensions. Because the app is not signed by Apple, Gatekeeper will ask for manual approval the first time you open it, which you do by right clicking the app and choosing Open rather than double clicking it. Developers who want to build it themselves can clone the repository, open the Xcode project, switch the build configuration to Release, and build it directly, with the finished app appearing in the project's build folder. This is a lightweight, single purpose utility rather than a full file management suite.
A macOS Finder extension that finds and force quits whatever process is locking a stuck file, right from the right click menu.
Mainly Swift. The stack also includes Swift, macOS.
No license information is given in the README.
Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 5min to a first successful run.
Mainly general.
This repo across BitVibe Labs
double-check against the repo, no cap.