Auto-run Scripts when macOS Boots

This article is for those looking for a detailed and straightforward guide on installing auto-run scripts when macOS boots.

NOTE

This guide walks you through connecting to a server with the iTerm2 terminal emulator on macOS.

We go into the system under an account with administrator rights and start the terminal emulator.

Now let’s create a script that will contain the scripts required to execute when macOS boots, using the command:

1
sudo vim /Users/valdemar/Documents/Scripts/run-service.sh

NOTE

In this tutorial, a script called “run-service.sh” is created in the user’s home directory. You can create a script in any convenient place for permanent storage.

Specify the password for the account and press “Enter”.

Hit the “i” button to go into edit mode, then add the scripts you need to execute when you boot macOS.

Now press the “Esc” button to exit edit mode, then type "" and press the “Enter” button to save your changes and exit the editor.

Let’s enable the execution of the file “run-service.sh” using the command:

1
sudo chmod +x /Users/valdemar/Documents/Scripts/run-service.sh

Now you need to use the Cron Task Scheduler to schedule the script to run after the operating system starts up.

Open the task scheduler using the command:

1
sudo crontab -e

Hit the “i” button to switch to edit mode, then add a line with the “@reboot” parameter and specify the full path to the previously created script:

1
@reboot /Users/valdemar/Documents/Scripts/run-service.sh

Now press the “Esc” button to exit edit mode, then type "" and press the “Enter” button to save your changes and exit the editor.

The script will now automatically run when macOS boots, even before the user logs in.