How to access bookmark url in macOS

[onmyway133]

By default the approaches above grant you access while the app remains open. When you quit the app, any folder access you had is lost.

To gain persistent access to a folder even on subsequent launches, we’ll have to take advantage of a system called Security-Scoped Bookmarks.

Add entitlements

Use of app-scoped bookmarks and URLs

<key>com.apple.security.files.user-selected.read-only</key>
<true/>
<key>com.apple.security.files.bookmarks.app-scope</key>
<true/>

Enabling Security-Scoped Bookmark and URL Access

If you want to provide your sandboxed app with persistent access to file system resources, you must enable security-scoped bookmark and URL access. Security-scoped bookmarks are available starting in macOS v10.7.3.

To add the bookmarks.app-scope or bookmarks.document-scope entitlement, edit the target’s .entitlements property list file using the Xcode property list editor. Use the entitlement keys shown in Table 4-4, depending on which type of access you want. Use a value of for each entitlement you want to enable. You can enable either or both entitlements.

func saveBookmark(item: ShortcutItem) {
    guard let url = item.fileUrl else { return  }
    do {
        let bookmarkData = try url.bookmarkData(
            options: .withSecurityScope,
            includingResourceValuesForKeys: nil,
            relativeTo: nil
        )

        item.bookmark = bookmarkData
    } catch {
        print("Failed to save bookmark data for \(url)", error)
    }
}

func loadBookmark(item: ShortcutItem) -> URL? {
    guard let data = item.bookmark else { return nil }
    do {
        var isStale = false
        let url = try URL(
            resolvingBookmarkData: data,
            options: .withSecurityScope,
            relativeTo: nil,
            bookmarkDataIsStale: &isStale
        )
        if isStale {
            saveBookmark(item: item)
        }
        return url
    } catch {
        print("Error resolving bookmark:", error)
        return nil
    }
}


_ = url.startAccessingSecurityScopedResource()
NSWorkspace.shared.open(url)
url.stopAccessingSecurityScopedResource()

_ = url.startAccessingSecurityScopedResource()
NSWorkspace.shared.selectFile(
    url.path,
    inFileViewerRootedAtPath: url.deletingLastPathComponent().path
)
url.stopAccessingSecurityScopedResource()

Read more

• Modern AppKit File Permissions
• https://stackoverflow.com/questions/42179567/what-does-startaccessingsecurityscopedresource-actually-do
• Enabling App Sandbox