Hide and show your desktop with a single click in the menu bar with Desktop Ghost Pro version 2.3.
Desktop Ghost Pro Version 2.3 Release Notes:
Introduced a “Menu bar item toggles desktop” option in Settings. When this setting is enabled a single click on the menu bar icon will toggle between showing and hiding your desktop. To enable this setting go to the Advanced tab in the Settings window. A brief demonstration video of this new feature is provided below.
Updated for macOS Tahoe.
Fixed crash when double clicking on certain file types in the Desktop Explorer window.
File Cabinet Pro has a new app icon and is compatible with macOS Tahoe.
You can now invoke “Deselect All” using the Option+Command+A keyboard shortcut.
File Cabinet Pro’s popover window now has rounded corners.
Resizing the popover window is more flexible. You can enlarge the popover window even when the menu bar icon is close to the right edge of the screen.
Fixed an issue that caused icon view to sometimes show low quality images after enlarging the zoom value.
Fixed an issue that sometimes caused File Cabinet Pro’s window to inappropriately get moved to the front when toggling the visibility of the Dock and/or when switching between Spaces.
Fixed an issue that caused icons in icon view to show placeholder images for far too long under certain conditions.
The “Sidebar” toolbar item is now included in the default set of items in the toolbar customization palette.
Fixed an issue that caused the “Go to Folder” window to sometimes get clipped off the right edge of the screen.
Changed the image used in the “Arrange by” toolbar item on macOS 11.0 and later.
Desktop Ghost Pro for Mac adds convenient new features that makes managing the hidden state of your desktop files faster and easier.
Here’s What’s New in Desktop Ghost Pro Version 2.2:
-You can now exclude files from being hidden directly on your desktop. To use this new feature, simply select the files you don’t want to hide, right-click, and choose the “Add to Exclusion List” menu item. To remove a file from the exclusion list, the process is exactly the same. All you need to do is select the file, right-click, and choose the “Remove from Exclusion List” menu item.
Previously you needed to open Desktop Ghost Pro’s settings window to modify your exclusion list but now excluding files is easier than ever. To see a demo of how to use this highly requested feature, watch the brief video below:
-You can now hide and show icons on the desktop by right-clicking on the Desktop directory in Finder’s Favorites sidebar.
Hide icons on your desktop by selecting the Desktop sidebar item in a Finder window with Desktop Ghost Pro for Mac.
Note that you must enable Desktop Ghost Pro’s Finder extension in order to use the new features described above. Learn how to enable the Finder extension by following the instructions here.
Also New in Desktop Ghost Pro for Mac:
-Desktop Ghost Pro is now localized in Japanese, bringing a cleaner desktop experience to more users around the world.
Fixed an issue that caused the Terminal icon to be inappropriately displayed in alias file icons. Since macOS Ventura the built in Quick Look framework provided by the operating system started creating flawed icons for alias files.
Instead of relying completely on Quick Look, File Cabinet Pro now composites icons for alias files to workaround this issue. File Cabinet Pro still uses the Quick Look framework to generate the icon for the original file type and then layers the alias arrow badge over it. Prior to Ventura, Quick Look handled all of this and no additional work was required by developers.
Conditions for Proper Alias Icon Display
File Cabinet Pro needs to know the type of file an alias points to in order to composite the icon. Because of this, alias icons will only display properly if at least one of the following conditions is true:
1) The file type of the original file the alias points to can be inferred by the filename extension (e.g. Filename.png alias).
2) File Cabinet Pro has permission to resolve the alias and query the original file to determine its type.
If either of the above conditions aren’t met the icon may still display incorrectly. Usually File Cabinet Pro has permission to the original file but if you are using the sandboxed version of the app (the Mac App Store version) there may be times where File Cabinet Pro can’t resolve the alias. But you can fix this problem by doing one of the following in the Mac App Store version:
Make the name of the alias file end in: .fileExtension alias (replace .fileExtension with the actual file extension of the original file).
Add the parent directory (or any ancestor directory) of the original file to your Favorites sidebar.
Follow this tutorial and grant File Cabinet Pro permission to an entire directory tree in File Cabinet Pro Settings.
Grant File Cabinet Pro full disk access in System Settings.
Developer Feedback to Apple
I filed two bug reports with Apple about this. The first bug report I filed back in 2023 against NSWorkspace -iconForFile: (which presumably uses the Quick Look framework internally). I also filed a bug report against the Quick Look framework back in March. Apple did not respond to either bug report.
The image below is an example of the preview Quick Look provides for alias files to third-party apps (starting in Ventura):
And here is a screenshot of the icon File Cabinet Pro now generates for file aliases in version 8.5.7:
In addition to files and folders, with Desktop Ghost Pro 2.1, you can now hide external disks, connected servers, and removable media from appearing on your desktop to stay spotless and distraction-free.
Release Notes:
Desktop Ghost Pro can now hide mounted volumes (external disks, hard disks, connected servers, and/or removable media) from appearing on the desktop! For this feature to work you must grant Desktop Ghost Pro permission to send Apple events when prompted.
You can enable or disable this permission at any time in the System Settings app by going to Privacy and Security -> Automation.
Creatives, presenters, and anyone who screenshares no longer need a frantic “tidy-up” before going live. Hide files, folders, and mounted volumes on Mac with Desktop Ghost Pro.
Quick FAQ
Will my drives disappear from Finder?
No. Hiding a volume only removes its icon from the desktop. Finder sidebar and Disk Utility remain unchanged.
Can I hide internal disks too?
Absolutely. The feature lets you choose any mounted volume — internal, external, or network.
To learn more about Desktop Ghost Pro, visit the official product page here.
To purchase Desktop Ghost Pro visit our online store here.
Hide desktop icons on Mac with the newly released version of Desktop Ghost Pro!
Desktop Ghost Pro 2.0 is the most significant update since the app’s original release—redesigned visually, refined functionally, and optimized to integrate with modern macOS. It delivers a seamless way for you to instantly hide desktop icons on Mac without deleting or moving anything, restoring focus and visual clarity using a keyboard shortcut or single click.
New Features Include:
New Ways to Hide Desktop Icons on Mac with Version 2.0
Integration with Apple Shortcuts! Automate clean-up, build Focus automations, and/or invoke your shortcut from Siri!
If you are running the app in “dock mode” you can now hide and show files on your desktop from the dock icon’s right-click menu.
A Completely Redesigned Mac App
Desktop Ghost Pro has been completely redesigned with a new app icon, a new menu bar icon, and an improved app interface.
Hide Desktop Icons on Mac from Finder using Desktop Ghost Pro’s Finder extension.
To learn more about Desktop Ghost Pro, visit the official product page here.
To purchase Desktop Ghost Pro visit our online store here.
-Brought back the ‘Launch at Login’ feature in File Cabinet Pro settings if you are running macOS 13.0 or later. Due to changes in prior versions of macOS we had to remove this feature but now it is back. If you are on a version of macOS prior to 13.0 you can still have File Cabinet Pro launch at login but you must configure it in System Settings.
In this tutorial, we’ll show you how to enable Finder extensions on macOS Sequoia (15.2 and newer). We’ve covered how to do this on older macOS versions before, but since then Apple has rearranged the Settings pane so the steps you’ll find in older guides won’t help if you’re running macOS Sequoia.
Wait, Why macOS Sequoia 15.2 and Not 15.0?
When Sequoia 15.0 shipped, the familiar checkbox list used to enable Finder Extensions in System Settings completely disappeared. The only way users could enable Finder extensions on macOS 15.0 was via the command line (Terminal) or by installing third party apps. Apple acknowledged that this was a bug in the macOS operating system and fixed it in version 15.2. If you are running on a version of macOS Sequoia prior to 15.2, please update your operating system to restore Finder Extension functionality to System Settings.
A Brief Reminder of What Finder Extensions Are:
Finder extensions (sometimes called Finder Sync extensions) let apps bolt extra features onto the Finder like status-badge icons (✔︎/⚠︎), custom toolbar buttons, or right-click actions. They ship inside some of the apps you install but stay disabled until you turn them on in System Settings. 
Updated Instructions for macOS 15.2 and Later
Open System Settings.
In the sidebar choose General → Login Items & Extensions.
Click File Providers (you may only see it if at least one app on your Mac contains a Finder extension).
Turn on the toggle switch next to the extension’s name to enable it.
To enable Finder Extensions on macOS Sequoia, navigate to the “File Providers” section of System Settings as shown in this screenshot. Note that you must click on the little “i” button on the right side to open this section.
Note: Don’t get confused by the Finder section under “Login Items & Extensions”
If you open System Settings and go to General → Login Items & Extensions, you’ll notice that there is a “Finder” section right above the “File Providers” section. This area is for enabling what used to be called Finder “Quick Actions” (although the text in System Settings now suddenly calls Finder Quick Actions Finder Extensions, which is confusing). If you are looking to enable or disable a Finder extension for an app you downloaded from the Mac App Store or from a developer’s website, you want to go to the “File Providers” section.
Quick Summary: To Enable Finder Extensions on macOS Sequoia
Remember this path in System Settings:
System Settings → General → Login Items & Extensions → File Providers
What if I’m running a version of macOS prior to Sequoia?
-If you are macOS Ventura or macOS Sonoma to enable Finder Extensions follow the instructions here.
-To enable Finder Extensions on macOS Monterey or earlier follow the instructions here.
