Cleans up FileProvider problems, improves the log browser, and adds pinned file reporting. Recommended for those using Sonoma and later with iCloud Drive.
FileProvider
Introduced in macOS 15, pinning files in iCloud Drive gives you the best of both worlds, as you can evict files to save space, and pin those you want to keep downloaded. But be careful when pinning folders, as they behave oddly.
iCloud services have changed greatly since their introduction in October 2011. Here’s a thorough run-down on iCloud today, from dataless files to FileProvider.
Soon after introducing iCloud and iCloud Drive, Apple changed the way most metadata was handled to ensure it was synced up to the cloud. Recently this has been reversed, and little metadata is now synced. Was this an accident or intentional? What is the workaround?
A summary of iCloud Drive syncing of attributes, data, extended attributes, document versions (complex), Spotlight index content, and QuickLook previews.
What happens when you move a file with metadata attached in extended attributes to iCloud Drive? Which of those are preserved when you access that file from another Mac?
For over a decade, cloud services did their own thing. Apple then encouraged them to use a new File Provider framework, and led the way with iCloud Drive.
It now consists of many discrete services. How to test CloudKit’s shared databases, iCloud Drive’s cloud storage, and whether your Mac can install from iCloud.
If you have Optimise Mac Storage enabled, pinning files you want kept locally is a valuable new feature, but has its quirks, and could get your Mac into trouble.
Unless you exclude them from backups, Time Machine will back up all items in iCloud Drive as long as they’re stored locally when the backup is made.
