Mac app permissions: Full Disk Access, Screen Recording and what OneMacTools asks for
OneMacTools asks for Mac app permissions such as Full Disk Access, Screen Recording, Microphone and Accessibility only when you use a feature that needs one, and every permission is optional. This page lists each permission, the features that use it, what stops working without it, and how to grant or revoke it in System Settings › Privacy & Security. It also lists the few things OneMacTools sends over the internet.
On this page
How OneMacTools handles Mac permissions
macOS protects your screen, microphone, camera, other apps' data and some folders behind permissions you grant per app in System Settings › Privacy & Security. OneMacTools follows three rules:
- Asked when needed. No permission is requested at launch. The prompt appears the first time you use a feature that needs it, such as clicking Record in Screen Recorder.
- Optional. Turning a permission down only affects the features listed for it below. Every other tool keeps working.
- Explained. When something is missing, the tool's message says which permission and usually has an Open Settings button that goes to the right pane.
OneMacTools needs no account, and nothing about your Mac or your files is collected. The Privacy page and Privacy Policy say the same.
Every permission OneMacTools may ask for
| Permission (System Settings › Privacy & Security) | Used by | Without it |
|---|---|---|
| Full Disk Access | Mac Clean Up and storage views, to measure Mail, Messages, Photos and other apps' data | Those folders are counted as “at least this much” and app containers aren't listed; everything else works |
| Screen & System Audio Recording (screen) | Screen Recorder, Grab Text from Screen, Colour Picker, Scrolling Screenshot | These tools stop with a message and an Open Settings button |
| Screen & System Audio Recording (system audio) | Record Meeting, to record the call's sound; per-app volume sliders in the Mac Health menu | Record Meeting can't capture the other side of the call; app volume can't be changed |
| Microphone | Record Audio, Screen Recorder (your voice), Dictate Anywhere, Record Meeting | Those tools can't record you |
| Speech Recognition | Transcription on this Mac | Transcription can't run |
| Camera | Camera Check only, a mirror before calls; nothing is recorded | Camera Check shows a button to open Camera settings |
| Accessibility | Dictate Anywhere (typing into other apps, Hold Right ⌥), Clipboard History (pasting straight in), Scrolling Screenshot (scrolling by itself), Clean Keyboard (locking media keys) | Text is copied for you to paste with ⌘V; Scrolling Screenshot needs you to scroll; Clean Keyboard locks fewer keys |
| Location Services | Showing your Wi-Fi network's name in Mac Health and filing speed tests under it | The network's name is hidden. Your location itself is never used |
| Automation (Keynote, Numbers, Pages) | Office & iWork to PDF, which asks those apps to export PDFs | Office & iWork files can't be converted |
| Notifications | Finished background jobs, Break Reminders, Keep Awake, internet drop alerts, Life Admin expiry reminders, Mac Health alerts, the runaway-process watchdog | No banners; jobs still finish and appear in History |
| Login Items & Extensions | Open OneMacTools at login, and the optional Admin Helper | Open OneMacTools yourself; Mac Health shows less for macOS's own processes |
OneMacTools doesn't ask for Contacts, Calendars, Photos library or Bluetooth access. Business Card to Contact saves a .vcf file that you double-click to add to Contacts yourself.
Full Disk Access on Mac: why it's optional
Full Disk Access lets an app read places macOS guards closely: Mail, Messages, Safari data and other apps' sandboxed containers. OneMacTools only uses it to measure sizes, so storage views can count folders that are otherwise hidden. The banner in the storage views says “Only file sizes are read.”
Unlike other permissions, macOS never shows a prompt for Full Disk Access; you add the app yourself.
- In OneMacTools, click Open Settings on the “Turn on Full Disk Access…” banner, or the Needs Full Disk Access link next to a folder with a lock.
- In System Settings › Privacy & Security › Full Disk Access, switch on OneMacTools.
- If it isn't listed, click + and choose OneMacTools in Applications, or drag it in from Finder.
- Quit and reopen OneMacTools so it picks up the change.
Without it, folders OneMacTools couldn't fully measure show a lock and “at least” sizes, and the storage review notes “App containers aren't listed without Full Disk Access.” Cleaning, tools and Mac Health work normally. For the storage side, see Mac storage clean-up and the guide What is System Data on Mac?.
Screen Recording, Microphone and Accessibility
Screen & System Audio Recording
The first time you use Screen Recorder, Grab Text, Colour Picker or Scrolling Screenshot, macOS asks and adds OneMacTools to Privacy & Security › Screen & System Audio Recording. Switch it on, then quit and reopen OneMacTools; macOS only applies the change after a restart of the app. If OneMacTools isn't in the list, click + and add it from Applications. Record Meeting uses the same pane for the call's sound; if macOS asks about recording audio from other apps, allow it there.
Microphone
Asked the first time you record your voice. The microphone is on only while you're recording or dictating; Dictate Anywhere says “The microphone is on only while you dictate; nothing is saved.”
Accessibility
Accessibility lets an app type, paste and press keys in other apps. Dictate Anywhere and Clipboard History show macOS's prompt when you turn them on, and their message tells you what works until you allow it. Grant it in Privacy & Security › Accessibility by switching on OneMacTools.
How to revoke a permission in System Settings
- Open System Settings › Privacy & Security.
- Click the permission, for example Microphone or Full Disk Access.
- Switch off OneMacTools, or select it and click – to remove it from the list.
- Quit and reopen OneMacTools if it was running.
For startup items, use System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions, or turn off Open OneMacTools at login in OneMacTools' Settings. The Admin Helper has a Remove Helper button in Settings › Admin Helper. Notifications for OneMacTools are in System Settings › Notifications; inside the app you can also turn off Notify me when background jobs finish. All settings are described in the settings reference.
What stays on your Mac
Your files are processed on your Mac, including everything in on-device AI: text recognition, transcription, translation and Apple Intelligence. Settings, presets, job history and Mac Health history live in your user Library. Files and Life Admin keep their index on your Mac. The app contains no analytics, advertising or tracking code, and we never receive your files, their contents or their names.
What goes over the network
This is the complete list of what OneMacTools sends, and when:
| What | Sends | When |
|---|---|---|
| Download Video, Web Page to PDF, Web Page to Scrolling Video | The address you enter, fetched like a browser would | Only when you run them |
| Licence check | Your licence key and this Mac's name, to Dodo Payments | When you activate, then about once a week. The app keeps working offline |
| Update check | Which version you have | The app reads the OneMacTools update feed |
| Helper installs | Nothing about you | FFmpeg, yt-dlp and the WebP encoder come from Homebrew, only when you click Install |
| Apple model downloads | Nothing from your files | macOS fetches speech, translation or upscaling models the first time you need them |
| Internet Speed Test | Test traffic, via macOS's own speed test | Only when you run it |
| Phone and chat alerts | The alert text, to the service you set up (ntfy, Pushover, Slack, Home Assistant or your webhook) | Only if you turn on Also send alerts to my phone or chat |
| Public IP address | A request to Cloudflare asking which address the internet sees | Only when you click Show in the network details |
For licence details see Activate your licence. If you connect an AI assistant over MCP, OneMacTools itself still sends nothing, but text you allow an assistant to read goes wherever that assistant sends it; see AI assistant approvals.
Tools mentioned on this page
Questions
Does OneMacTools need Full Disk Access?
No. It's optional and only used to measure the size of protected folders such as Mail, Messages and other apps' containers in the storage views. Every tool works without it.
Why does OneMacTools want Location Services?
macOS only tells apps the name of your Wi-Fi network if they're allowed Location Services. OneMacTools uses it to show the network's name in Mac Health and to file speed tests under it; your location is never read.
Why does macOS keep asking for Screen Recording after I allowed it?
macOS applies the change only after the app restarts. Quit OneMacTools and reopen it. If it still asks, switch OneMacTools off and on again in Screen & System Audio Recording, or remove it with – and add it back with +.
Why does a converter need Automation access to Keynote, Numbers or Pages?
Office & iWork to PDF asks Apple's own apps to export the document as a PDF, which keeps the layout exactly. macOS asks you once per app; allowing it lets OneMacTools control only that export.
Is Accessibility access safe to give?
Accessibility lets an app type and press keys in other apps, so only give it to apps you trust. OneMacTools uses it to type dictated text, paste clipboard items, scroll for scrolling screenshots and lock keys while you clean the keyboard; nothing is recorded.
Does OneMacTools collect analytics or crash data?
No. The app has no analytics, advertising or tracking code. The website uses analytics for page visits, which is separate from the app.
How do I reset all of OneMacTools' permissions?
In System Settings › Privacy & Security, remove OneMacTools from each list with the – button. The next time you use a feature that needs a permission, macOS asks again.
