How to Show Hidden Files in the Finder in Mac OS X

By default, Mac OS X does not show hidden files in the finder. To view the hidden files, you only need to enter a simple terminal command to make the files visible or invisible. In this lesson you will learn how to show hidden files in any finder window in Mac OS X.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Mac OS X
• Terminal application

1. 
    
   Mac OS X Terminal Application

   Find your Terminal application (located in your Applications/Utilities directory) and double click to launch it.

2. 
    
   Enter the Command into Your Terminal application

   In your Terminal application enter the following command:defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles TRUE

3. Log out of your Mac OS X session and log in again or restart your computer to see the changes.

4. To reverse the effect and hide the hidden files in the finder, enter the following terminal command:defaults write com.apple.finder AppleShowAllFiles FALSE