I'm attempting to set up some profiles to deploy on our lab computers. I've gone looking for the desktop plist but it's nowhere to be found that I have access to as administrator. Is this plist just not present, or is it hidden somewhere and only accessible via root access?
iMac, Running Sierra
If you are looking for:
com.apple.desktop.plist
it lives in
~/Library/Preferences/
But you'll need to deploy it as a user profile not a device profile.
My advice is only deploy user profiles when you have a really compelling reason, if then. Apple's defaults are fine for most users and for the small minority, let them set them how they want.
C.
I've looked in ~/Library/Preferences previously but the plist is not there, which is why I'm stumped as to where it could be.
We have a compelling reason: we are a library and have to lock down the public lab computers and apply specific settings to all of them, settings that must be the same for anyone who logs in. We set a specific desktop background, customize and lock the dock, and set program preferences (such as browser homepages) etc. We definitely have to deploy user profiles for this; Apple's default preferences simply don't suit our needs.
My com.apple.desktop.plist file was last opened in 2015. I deleted it and it made no difference to my desktop settings. After deleting it, I changed desktop pictures and the file never got recreated, even after a restart.
I'm not sure that file is valid or used anymore in Sierra.
Download and run Find Any File to search for "com.apple.desktop.plist":
FAF can search areas that Spotlight can't like invisible folders, system folders and packages.
What desktop settings are you looking for?
Desktop plist missing
