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adamstac/disable-spotlight.md

Last active May 1, 2024 17:11
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disable-spotlight.md

Disable:

sudo launchctl unload -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.metadata.mds.plist

Enable:

sudo launchctl load -w /System/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.apple.metadata.mds.plist
Raw
spotlight-off.md

Commands

Disable the index:

mdutil -i off /

Enable the index:

mdutil -i on /

Erase the current Spotlight index:

mdutil -E /

Help

Usage: mdutil -pEsa -i (on|off) -d volume ...
	Utility to manage Spotlight indexes.
	-p             Publish metadata.
	-i (on|off)    Turn indexing on or off.
	-d             Disable Spotlight activity for volume (re-enable using -i on).
	-E             Erase and rebuild index.
	-s             Print indexing status.
	-a             Apply command to all volumes.
	-V vol         Apply command to all stores on the specified volume.
	-v             Display verbose information.
NOTE: Run as owner for network homes, otherwise run as root.

Sources:

@adamstac
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Good thread https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/disabling-spotlight-in-sierra.2075261/

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