tinyapps.org / blog

Menu bar firewall status indicator #

BitBar (open source) can be used to display an emoji of choice in the menubar depending on the built-in Application Firewall's state: off (0), on for specific services (1), or on for essential services (aka stealth mode) (2):

0. Install and launch BitBar
1. Create a new directory (e.g., ~/bitbar/) to store plugins when prompted
2. Save the following Bash script as ~/bitbar/firewall_status_indicator.10s.sh and make it executable (chmod +x firewall_status_indicator.10s.sh):

   #!/bin/bash
   
   state=$(defaults read "/Library/Preferences/com.apple.alf" globalstate);
   
   if [ "$state" -eq 2 ]; then
     echo "🔒"
   elif [ "$state" -eq 1 ]; then
     echo "❗️"
   else
     echo "‼️"
   fi
   
   echo "---"
   echo "Open Firewall preference pane| href='x-apple.systempreferences:com.apple.preference.security?Firewall'"
   

GeekTool (free) can display a tiny red or green status LED on the desktop or in the menubar to indicate the firewall status:

• Steps:
  0. Install and launch GeekTool
  1. Check "Enable" and "Automatically launch at login"
  2. Drag "Shell" to the desktop
  3. Position: 1007 | 4 (change as needed)
  4. Size: 95 | 45
  5. Check "Keep on Top"
  6. Command: if [ `defaults read "/Library/Preferences/com.apple.alf" globalstate` -eq 2 ];then EX=0;else EX=1;fi;exit $EX
  7. Refresh every: 60s (change as desired)
  8. Check "Display status feedback image"
• Notes:
  • To check for (1), change "-eq 2" to "-eq 1" and to check for either (1) or (2), change to "-ge 1"
  • If your geeklet causes GeekTool to freeze, delete ~/Library/Preferences/org.tynsoe.geeklet.shell.plist to start over.
• Props:
  • klktrk's comment on View firewall status via the Scripts menu
  • cxd101's comment on 10.5: Control the firewall from the command line
  • How to remove troublesome GeekTool geeklets

TextBar ($2.99) can be used to display a shield icon and the firewall state (0, 1, or 2 as explained above) in the menu bar:

0. Install and launch TextBar
1. Disable the default items
2. Click the plus symbol to add a new item
3. Replace echo 'Hello' with defaults read /Library/Preferences/com.apple.alf globalstate
4. Check the far left box to enable and select the shield image

/mac | Sep 10, 2017

Subscribe or visit the archives.