Restrict "Open With" Application List To Just Boot Drive

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Restrict "Open With" Application List To Just Boot Drive

Is there a way to restrict the list of applications in Snow Leopard's *Open With...* contextual menu and file menu to just applications forund in the main boot volume's Applications folder?

I have a problem... I use Chronosync backup software, and I have several networked computers that my main machine backs up each night onto a huge external drive. Chronosync backs up files in native uncompressed and un-archived format, so the Finder can see all of the applications each of the backups contains. Thus, the *Open With...* menu contains HUNDREDS of applications and duplicate applications that I do not ever with to launch. In addition, every time I go to the *Open With...* menu while selecting a common file type, like .JPG for instance, my Mac locks up with a spinning beachball for about 30 seconds (or more) while it gathers the list of hundreds of apps to show me. (very frustrating)

I need a way to restrict LaunchServices to just the boot drive Apps. Can anyone please help with a solution on this?

24" iMac 2.8 C2E / 1TB / 4GB, Mac OS X (10.6.4)

Posted on Sep 26, 2010 2:16 PM

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Answer 1

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baltwo

Level 9

62,362 points

Sep 26, 2010 2:58 PM in response to G J Piper

AFAIK, the LaunchServices database doesn't show duplicate apps from multiple mounted volumes. I have three mounted volumes that are bootable and basically duplicates of each other, including apps. The contextual menu only shows one set of apps. It might be that you need to reset the database. This, in the Terminal app, should do the trick:

*/System/Library/Frameworks/CoreServices.framework/Versions/A/Frameworks/LaunchS ervices.framework/Versions/A/Support/lsregister -kill -r -domain local -domain system -domain user*

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Answer 2

G J Piper Author

Level 1

99 points

Oct 6, 2010 5:15 PM in response to baltwo

Thanks! I actually tried that, but the results were not immediately apparent. It is working now and my menus arer small again!

I believe that my problem was a result of cloning my original hard drive to an external, where a bunch of backups were stored already via Chronosync, then after I'd replaced my internal HD, I cloned it back. During the time I was booting off the external so I could still work.

Somehow, the database saw the change as an introduction of hundreds of new apps all from the backup drive. The database remained intact after the clone was restored back to the new drive, and it caused there to be hundreds or thousands of possible apps to open things like .txt or .png files. If I inadvertently hovered over the "Open With..." in the contextual menu when clicked on one of these files, it would take sometimes minutes to come back from beachball lockup.

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Answer 3

baltwo

Level 9

62,362 points

Oct 6, 2010 6:47 PM in response to G J Piper

Thanks for the feedback. Good computing.

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Answer 4

Oct 7, 2010 8:25 PM in response to G J Piper

I've found that adding "noexec" to each entry in /etc/fstab for the backup/external drives solved a similar issue I was having.

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