Sandkorn - Comprehensive Information on Your Apps
Sandkorn, from developer Peter Borgas, is a free app that provides you comprehensive information on the apps installed on a computer, particularly sandboxed apps and what those apps are entitled to access.
Every app you obtain from the Mac App Store today is sandboxed, isolated from other apps and information sources, however, the apps have certain entitlements to different resources on your computers, some of which, but not all, you can see in System Settings > Security and Privacy. On a Mac, what you see in your applications folder are actually bundles you can right-click on an app and select View Package Contents and see what is contained in the bundle. Some apps have plugins and XPC services bundled with them that have their own entitlements. BBedit has 18. Xcode has a whopping 90!
Entitlements are things like:
- Calendar
- Contacts
- Location
- Bluetooth
- Camera
- Microphone
- Printing
- Incoming Network Traffic
- Outgoing Network Traffic
- Folders in your home directory
Although I only have six apps showing in my Security and Privacy Settings that have permission to access my camera, there are 56 apps that are capable of using it. Theoretically, they should ask before I access a feature that requires its use, but I'm just a guy on my couch with a laptop. If you are analyzing software in a highly sensitive area, knowing these entitlements is vital information.
Aside from the information I have already described, Sandkorn is the best app I've found for generating lists based on certain criteria, like architecture. If you're one of the people that recoil in horror over the prospect of using Rosetta on your precious M-series Mac, Sandkorn can tell you if you have any Intel apps installed. It can generate lists of pure Apple Silicon and Universal apps. If you keep apps in a non-standard location, such as an external or secondary hard drive, you can have Sandkorn scan those locations too.
Get additional information on Sandkorn at the developer's website. Check out his other apps like Lingon X and Smultron while you're there.
You can download Sandkorn from the Mac App Store.