- Q1: When starting the app on macOS, how do I get past the "Detectorist.app Not Opened" message?
- Q2: When starting the Windows executable, how do I get past the "Windows protected your PC" / "Don't run" message?
- Q3: How do I reset the application settings?
A: macOS prevents unsigned apps, but you still can open a apps from an unknown developers. Here's how:
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When you attempt to open the app, a warning like this appears where you have no option to open it anyways, so just select Done:
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Once you saw the warning dialog above, check out the System Settings -> Privacy & Security which has a new entry. Select Open Anyway:
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From the Finder open the Detectorist.app again, and you'll now see the option to open the application. Select Open Anyway:
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Authorize the action using fingerprint or password
From now on the application can be started like any other.
Background: For this open source application there's no valid Developer ID certificate the app could signed with. Hence you get a warning. Apple requires code signing for macOS apps to verify their integrity and origin. The Apple Developer Program membership, which provides signing certificates, costs $99 annually.
Q2: When starting the Windows executable, how do I get past the "Windows protected your PC" / "Don't run" message?
A: The compiled Windows executable is not signed, therefore Microsoft Defender issues a warning. You can still run it, just to click on "More info", then you'll see the option to "Run anyway"
A: Detectorist stores settings (window size, last used folder, confidence threshold, etc.) using platform-specific storage. To reset them:
defaults delete com.kenwer.detectoristNote: Simply deleting the plist file (~/Library/Preferences/com.kenwer.detectorist.plist) may not work because macOS caches preferences in memory via cfprefsd.
Delete the registry key at HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\kenwer\detectorist, or run:
reg delete "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\kenwer\detectorist" /frm ~/.config/kenwer/detectorist.conf