Pacifist is a macOS utility for examining installer packages, disk images and file archives, then extracting selected contents. It gives access to individual files and folders inside a package, along with the scripts and resources that accompany them. Its installation analysis also connects files already on a Mac with the packages that placed them there.
Package contents
Opening a package in Pacifist exposes its contents for browsing and selection. An extraction can cover one file, a folder and its contents, or a larger selection. This makes an installer package usable as a source of individual items without having to run its complete installation process.
Pacifist reads macOS PKG packages and DMG disk images as well as ZIP, TAR, GZIP-compressed TAR, BZIP2-compressed TAR, XAR and YAA archives. It also handles older Mac OS 9 Installer Tome files. A disk image containing a package can be opened to display that package’s contents, keeping the files accessible through the surrounding container.
Extraction includes Mac file metadata such as extended attributes. A verification phase checks file checksums, including those for symbolic links and Mach-O binaries. The archive’s file listing can also be saved as a text file or printed when the required output is an inventory rather than extracted files.
File inspection
The file viewer opens supported items within Pacifist so their contents can be examined before extraction. It handles text and images, along with formats such as RTF, HTML, Word documents and property lists. Text can be searched within the viewer. A hexadecimal view exposes the bytes of binary files and formats without a dedicated viewer.
Package resources are accessible separately from the files intended for installation. Read Me documents and installation scripts can be inspected and extracted, allowing a reader to examine the instructions and commands accompanying the payload. Pacifist also checks embedded package signatures when opening packages.
Asset catalogs provide another kind of input. Pacifist can parse these catalogs and extract their images, including images stored in Assets.car files.
Installation receipts
Pacifist can investigate a file that is already installed by searching the Mac’s installation receipts. These records connect installed files with packages, so the search can identify the package responsible for a particular item.
Receipt Search can also lead back to extraction when the corresponding source packages can be located. The receipts identify the relationship; recovering the file still depends on having the package that contains it.
Remote archives
Open URL lets Pacifist read supported archives from a web address. For formats including ZIP, XAR, DMG and supported flat installer packages, it retrieves the portions needed to read the archive rather than requiring the complete file to be downloaded first. The archive can therefore be inspected before deciding which contents to extract.
QuickLook integration brings archive-content viewing into Finder. Browser plug-ins for Chrome and Firefox provide another route into Pacifist’s handling of archives on the Web.
Pacifist’s command-line interface
Pacifist also provides a command-line interface for viewing and extracting archive contents. These operations can be incorporated into scripts when the work needs to run as part of an automated process, while the graphical interface remains available for inspecting a package and choosing individual items interactively.
