AppleGate

AppleGate does one thing: it gives you a simple macOS preferences window where you can permanently disable macOS's authoritarian gatekeeper features.

I made AppleGate because I hate macOS's authoritarian gatekeeping features, which block running applications from developers not authorized by Apple; and lie and gaslight the user by saying apps are corrupt and should be moved to the Trash when they are merely not signed by an Apple-authorized developer. I disabled Apple's Gatekeeper, but it kept turning back on automatically and silently, maybe during system updates. So I made AppleGate: a gatekeeper on the gatekeepers.

What AppleGate does

• Shows the main macOS execution gatekeeping features in one straightforward window.
• Detects the real current state of each item so the checkboxes match reality.
• Lets you disable the protections that macOS still allows a normal system to disable.
• Marks the protections we recommend leaving on.
• Warns you before disabling a protection, including the real downside and the minimal or nonexistent benefit.
• Lists protections that cannot be disabled from a normal running macOS installation.
• Re-applies your chosen settings automatically if macOS silently turns them back on later.
• Handles the usual Gatekeeper "Allow applications from: Anywhere" step without making you dig through System Settings by hand when macOS allows that path.

What this is not

• It is not a general Mac utility suite.
• It is not a malware scanner.
• It is not a developer tool for people who want to think about Apple's security model all day.

It is a small finished app for people who want Apple to stop deciding what software they are allowed to run.

Build

sh scripts/render-native-desktop.sh
sh tools/release/build-macos-app.sh

AppleGate is macOS-only by design.

Local packaging defaults keep checkout cruft out of the repo:

• Generated native package source: ${XDG_STATE_HOME:-$HOME/.local/state}/applegate/generated/
• SwiftPM packaging scratch: ${XDG_STATE_HOME:-$HOME/.local/state}/applegate/build/swiftpm/
• Built .app and zip artifacts: ${XDG_STATE_HOME:-$HOME/.local/state}/applegate/dist/