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iAmCorey

iAmCorey/birth

A free, open-source macOS app that lists all startup items, daemons and login items in one window, showing their code-signing identity and enable/disable controls.

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What is it?

Birth is a startup item manager for macOS. It collects launch agents, global agents, daemons and "Open at Login" apps from the scattered locations macOS uses, and shows each item's path, developer signing identity and whether it is currently running.

System Settings does not reveal where a startup item's plist lives, which executable it points to, or who signed it. Birth shows these details and lets you disable or remove items with one click. Removed jobs are stopped first, their plist is moved to the Trash, and a backup is kept in the Application Support folder.

The app is built with SwiftUI and Swift Package Manager, requires macOS 14 or later, and is distributed as a DMG as well as buildable from source. It flags items that claim to be Apple components but have invalid signatures.

Key features

  • 01Lists login apps, user and global agents, and daemons in one window
  • 02Shows each item's developer signing identity and flags masquerading Apple items
  • 03Enable or disable items, with a standard administrator prompt for daemons
  • 04Search by name, developer or path, or look up which item spawned a PID
  • 05Safe removal that stops the job and backs up its plist

Use cases

  • Finding out which background helper or updater is slowing down login on a Mac
  • Auditing unknown launch daemons and agents left behind by uninstalled apps
  • Checking whether a process was started by a persistent startup item

Quick start

  1. 1

    Clone the repository

    git clone https://github.com/iAmCorey/birth.git
  2. 2

    Enter the project folder

    cd birth
  3. 3

    Build the app

    ./scripts/make-app.sh
  4. 4

    Open the built app

    open dist/Birth.app

Things to know

  • Requires macOS 14 or later.
  • Login Items category is read-only and needs Full Disk Access.
  • Ad-hoc signature means permissions must be re-granted after each upgrade.
  • Not notarized by Apple, so first launch requires manual approval in System Settings.

Topics

#macos#startup-items#launchd#swift#system-utility#security-audit

FAQ

What is birth?
A free, open-source macOS app that lists all startup items, daemons and login items in one window, showing their code-signing identity and enable/disable controls. Birth is a startup item manager for macOS. It collects launch agents, global agents, daemons and "Open at Login" apps from the scattered locations macOS uses, and shows each item's path, developer signing identity and whether it is currently running.
Is birth free to use? What license does it have?
birth is open source under the MIT license. Check the license terms before using it in commercial products.
Is birth still maintained?
Updated within 6 months. The last commit to birth was on Aug 29, 2026.
What can I use birth for?
Finding out which background helper or updater is slowing down login on a Mac Auditing unknown launch daemons and agents left behind by uninstalled apps Checking whether a process was started by a persistent startup item
How do I install birth?
Clone the repository: git clone https://github.com/iAmCorey/birth.git Enter the project folder: cd birth Build the app: ./scripts/make-app.sh Open the built app: open dist/Birth.app
Where can I get birth?
The source code and installation instructions are on GitHub: https://github.com/iAmCorey/birth

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