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Shortcuts, files, and settings for getting things done on your Mac.
Search this topicPress Shift, Command, and 4 together. Drag the crosshair around the area you want, then release the mouse or trackpad to capture it. Press Escape before releasing if you want to cancel. To capture the entire screen instead, press Shift, Command, and 3. Screenshots normally save to the desktop, although a previously changed save location can send them elsewhere. Open the thumbnail if you want to edit the capture immediately.
Try quitting normally with Command and Q first. If the app does not respond, press Option, Command, and Escape to open Force Quit, select the app, and choose Force Quit. Reopen it afterward to see whether it works normally. Force quitting can lose unsaved work in that app, so use it when ordinary quitting fails. If Finder is the problem, the same window offers Relaunch instead.
Make a backup, then open the Apple menu, System Settings, General, and Software Update. Install an update offered for your Mac and provide an administrator password if requested. Keep the Mac connected to power, and avoid closing its lid or putting it to sleep during installation. Software Update offers versions compatible with the Mac model, so another Mac may show a newer release that yours cannot install.
On macOS Ventura or later, open System Settings, General, then Storage. Review the category sizes and open the available information controls to inspect files or recommendations. Check Downloads for large items you no longer need, or move files you want to keep to another drive. Files placed in the Trash still occupy space until it is emptied. Emptying the Trash permanently removes them, so review its contents first.
Connect an external drive with enough capacity; Apple recommends at least twice your Mac’s storage capacity. Open System Settings, General, Time Machine, then Add Backup Disk and choose the drive. Follow the setup prompts and keep any encryption password somewhere safe. Setup may require erasing the selected drive, which removes its existing files, so copy anything needed elsewhere first. Leave the drive connected while the initial backup runs.
Install the browser you want to use first. On macOS Ventura or later, open System Settings, Desktop & Dock, and choose it from the Default web browser menu. On older macOS versions, look in System Preferences, General instead. The default determines which browser normally opens web links from other apps. You can still launch another installed browser directly whenever you want to use it.
Turn on the accessory and put it into its discoverable or pairing mode. Open System Settings, Bluetooth, find the device, and choose Connect. Follow any code or confirmation prompts shown on the Mac or accessory. If headphones connect but sound plays elsewhere, open System Settings, Sound, Output and select them. The accessory’s pairing procedure varies by model, so use its instructions if it never appears in the device list.
Hold the Control key while clicking to open the shortcut menu. To use a trackpad gesture instead, open System Settings, Trackpad and look for Secondary click, then select the gesture you prefer, such as clicking with two fingers. A compatible mouse has its own secondary-click options in Mouse settings. Try the action on a file in Finder to check that the shortcut menu appears.
Select the text, file, or other item, then press Command and C to copy it. Click the destination and press Command and V to paste. The Command key takes the role that Control often has in Windows shortcuts. You can also look in the app’s Edit menu for available copy and paste commands. If Paste is unavailable, check that the destination accepts the kind of content you copied.
Open Finder’s Applications folder and drag the app into the apps area of the Dock. Place it where you want among the other app icons. To remove an app’s Dock shortcut later, drag its icon out of the Dock until the removal option appears, then release. Removing a shortcut from the Dock does not uninstall the app, so it remains available in Applications.
Check whether the app provides its own uninstaller and use that if available, since it can remove related components. Otherwise, quit the app, find it in Finder’s Applications folder, and move it to the Trash. Emptying the Trash completes removal and permanently deletes its contents, so review those contents first. Some apps required by macOS cannot be removed this way, and uninstalling an app does not automatically cancel a subscription.
Press Shift, Command, and 5 to open the capture toolbar. Choose the entire-screen or selected-portion recording control, then open Options and select a microphone for narration. You can also choose where the recording will be saved. Click Record to begin. Stop with the menu bar’s Stop button or Command, Control, and Escape. The recording normally saves to the desktop unless you selected another location.
Press Control–Up Arrow to open Mission Control, then click the window you want. You can also use the Mission Control key or an enabled trackpad gesture. Full-screen apps and extra desktops appear along the top. Press the shortcut again to leave the overview without selecting a different window.
Bring the app forward and press Control–Down Arrow to show its open windows with App Exposé. Select the window you need or press the shortcut again to return. This helps distinguish several documents in one app without searching through windows from every other application you have open.
Click the desktop, then choose View > Use Stacks. Files are collected into expandable groups, and new desktop files join the appropriate stack. Click a stack to expand it and double-click a file to open it. This changes the desktop presentation; it does not replace a deliberate folder system for long-term filing.
With Stacks enabled, click the desktop and choose View > Group Stacks By, then select a date grouping or another available option. Tags can also be used. Choose a grouping that matches how you retrieve files: date can help with recent downloads, while kind separates images from documents.
Open Mission Control, move to the Spaces bar at the top, and click the plus button. Select the new desktop to use it. Switch between desktops with Control–Left Arrow or Control–Right Arrow. These spaces organize open windows within your login; they do not create separate user accounts.
Open Mission Control from the desktop containing the window, then drag that window onto the desired desktop thumbnail in the Spaces bar. Select the destination to continue working there. Dragging onto a full-screen app can invoke Split View instead, so use the ordinary desktop thumbnail when intended.
Create at least two spaces, switch to the intended one, and Control-click the app’s Dock icon. Under Options > Assign To, choose This Desktop. All Desktops shows it across spaces, while None removes the assignment. A full-screen app still uses its own space, so test the behavior with ordinary windows.
Select the files or folder in Finder, Control-click the selection, and choose Compress. One selected item produces a similarly named ZIP; several selected items normally produce Archive.zip. Rename the archive to describe its contents before sharing it. Keep the original files until you have checked the archive opens correctly.
Double-click the ZIP in Finder to expand it; the extracted item appears beside the archive. Open that extracted folder to find its contents. If expansion fails, check available storage and ask the sender to recreate the archive if necessary. Delete the ZIP only after confirming the extracted files are usable.
Select the file once, press Return, type its new name, and press Return again. Keep its filename extension intact unless you have a specific reason to change it. Renaming a document is different from converting its format, and system folders or your account’s home folder should not be casually renamed.
Select the files in Finder, Control-click one, and choose Rename. Use Replace Text, Add Text, or Format depending on whether you want a correction, a prefix, or a numbered naming scheme. Check the settings before applying them and preserve filename extensions so the documents continue opening in the right apps.
Activate a Finder window and choose View > Show Sidebar. If that command is unavailable, choose View > Show Toolbar first. For missing sections or standard locations, check Finder > Settings > Sidebar. An individual section may simply be collapsed; expand its heading before assuming that your files have disappeared.
Source checks for these answers: September 21, 2026 – September 22, 2026. Product instructions and local requirements can vary.