Frequently Asked Questions

Mission Control organizes your windows into different Spaces — but your desktop files stay the same across all of them.

InfiniDesk adds the missing piece: it lets you create multiple desktop views, each showing a different set of files and folders. It's perfect for keeping your workspace focused and clutter-free.

Behind the scenes, your files remain in the Desktop folder — InfiniDesk just controls what's visible. Use Mission Control for windows, and InfiniDesk for files — they work great together.

InfiniDesk is for anyone who uses their Mac desktop as a working surface — and wants to keep it organized and focused on the task at hand.

It's ideal for writers and researchers, planners and analysts, developers and creatives — anyone who benefits from using separate desktops for drafts, reference materials, or tasks. It's also helpful for students managing assignments across subjects, administrators coordinating multiple workstreams, or presenters who need a clean, distraction-free desktop with a single click.

No. InfiniDesk was built with data safety as a core priority.

The app does not delete, move, rename, or copy any of your files or folders. It simply changes the visibility of files and folders based on the active virtual desktop. Since your data is never modified or relocated, data loss is not a possibility when using InfiniDesk.

Absolutely. InfiniDesk was built from the ground up with privacy in mind.

The app runs entirely on your Mac and does not connect to the internet or transfer any data externally. Everything stays local, on your machine.

We are committed to your privacy — all future updates of the app will also respect this same principle.

Yes. InfiniDesk is code-signed with an Apple Developer ID and notarized by Apple. This confirms that it contains no malicious code and meets Apple's security requirements.

The app is created by Ben Shirt-Ediss, a long-term Mac user and researcher/software developer based in Spain.

InfiniDesk is tested on macOS versions from Big Sur (11) through to Sequoia (15). It's fully compatible with both Intel and Apple Silicon Macs.

1. Download the app to somewhere on your Mac, and double click the InfiniDesk.dmg installer file.
2. In the installer window, move the InfiniDesk icon across and drop it over the Applications folder icon. The app is now installed on your Mac.
3. Open the Applications folder, and double click the InfiniDesk app.
4. Note: in System Preferences › Privacy & Security you may need to allow your Mac to run apps from "App store and identified developers": And also, on newer Macs in System Preferences › Desktop & Dock make sure the "Show Items On Desktop" is checked:
5. The first time you run the app, a message similar to below will be shown. This is a normal message for signed apps distributed outside the Mac App Store. Click Open. Note that InfiniDesk runs in the Mac status bar, at the top right of the screen. It does not have an icon in the Dock.

Let's say your desktop is cluttered with files, folders, and shortcuts. InfiniDesk helps you organize it in just a few steps:

1. Set up. On first use, InfiniDesk will ask you to confirm where your Desktop folder is. It will then create your first virtual desktop (you can name it anything you like). Your desktop will look exactly the same as before.
2. Create another virtual desktop. Choose ➕ Add a New Virtual Desktop from the menu. Your current desktop items will disappear — you're now looking at a clean, empty workspace.
3. Switch between desktops! Use the InfiniDesk menu to go back to your original desktop. Your files will reappear just as they were.
4. Start organising. Select some desktop items by dragging a box around them. Then choose 🔀 Move Selected Items to another Virtual Desktop from the menu, and pick where they should go.
5. Repeat as needed. Add more desktops and move items between them. Your once-cluttered desktop is now neatly organized across multiple views.

There's no set limit — you can create as many virtual desktops as you like. Each one can be named however you prefer.

1. In the InfiniDesk menu, select Temporarily Disable InfiniDesk. This will make all managed desktop items visible at once. All the folders and files managed by InfiniDesk will now be in your Desktop folder.
2. Quit the InfiniDesk application.
3. Drag InfiniDesk from your Applications folder to the Trash/Bin.
4. Delete the folder at ~/Library/Application Support/InfiniDesk to remove InfiniDesk's settings.

InfiniDesk is now completely uninstalled.

After 50 switches, InfiniDesk enters a disabled mode. All your virtual desktops will be shown together — their contents stacked on top of each other, like a cluttered desktop.

Importantly, none of your data is lost. You'll simply lose the ability to view and manage your desktops separately until you register the full version.

InfiniDesk costs $12.99 in the US, £12.99 in the UK, €12.99 in the EU, or the equivalent in local currency elsewhere.

It's a one-time payment for lifetime access — no subscription.

★ The license is for a single Mac computer.

★ Once registered, future versions of InfiniDesk can be installed and will remain registered.

★ Use the Register menu item in the app to purchase.

1. After purchasing, you'll receive a registration email with a key file called infinidesk.regkey attached.
2. Save this file to your desktop.
3. Open the InfiniDesk menu and select Register again.
4. The app will confirm that registration was successful, and the 50-switch limit will be removed.

Note: Your registration key is tied to your Mac and won't work on other Macs.

Open the InfiniDesk menu and click Register. A web browser window will open. If you are already registered, you can request your registration email to be resent.

If you delete the app from the Applications folder and reinstall it in the Applications folder at a later date, your desktop setups will remain intact.

If you upgrade macOS, follow these steps:

1. Before upgrading, disable InfiniDesk. Click Temporarily Disable InfiniDesk in the menu.
2. Make a copy of all items (files and folders) in your Desktop folder.
3. Make a copy of the InfiniDesk database located at: ~/Library/Application Support/InfiniDesk/infinidesk.db
4. Upgrade macOS.
5. Copy back the items into your Desktop folder.
6. Copy back the InfiniDesk database to: ~/Library/Application Support/InfiniDesk/
7. Re-install the latest version of the app from the InfiniDesk website.

Simply download the latest version from the InfiniDesk website and drag it into your Applications folder, replacing the old version.

If you're already registered, the new version will be automatically registered too.

Upcoming updates will include AppleScript support, extending the utility of InfiniDesk significantly. You will be able to switch virtual desktops using customizable hotkeys and automate actions like changing the desktop background when switching virtual desktops.

Additionally, language support will be expanded to include Spanish, French, and Romanian.

InfiniDesk is currently only available directly from the infinidesk.app website.

The Mac App Store has certain technical and business constraints that are not compatible with how InfiniDesk is designed and offered.

InfiniDesk needs access to the Desktop folder and Finder to work correctly — which are operations typically restricted by the Mac App Store's sandboxing rules.

Also, the app uses a custom registration system where you can try the app for free, and then unlock the full version using a registration key file after purchase.

It's quite common for independent Mac apps to be distributed outside the App Store, especially when they require more control over licensing, updates, or system integration.

Yes. InfiniDesk is fully compatible with existing macOS desktop management features like Stacks, Sort By, Clean Up, and other options available by right-clicking the desktop.

Each virtual desktop retains its own layout and settings:

• If Use Stacks is enabled, each desktop shows its items grouped into stacks.
• Sort By options apply to all desktops. Sort By None preserves manual arrangement.
• Clean Up can be used to reorganize icons on individual desktops.
• Icon size, grid spacing, and text size can also be adjusted across all desktops as usual.

Not at the moment. Unfortunately, Apple does not provide developers with tools to integrate directly with Mission Control. When a user switches Spaces using Mission Control, macOS does not send any signals that other apps can detect or respond to. As a result, InfiniDesk operates independently of Mission Control for now.

Yes. Stage Manager is Apple's solution for organizing window groups, similar to Mission Control (introduced since macOS 13 Ventura). InfiniDesk focuses on managing the files and folders displayed on your desktop. Since they operate in different areas—windows vs. desktop contents—they are fully compatible and can be used together.

Yes. Widgets are not affected when InfiniDesk is used to change the set of displayed files on the desktop; widgets stay visible all the time.

Yes. Just create a virtual desktop with no items on it (you can name it something like "Empty"). Whenever you want a clean, distraction-free workspace, switch to that desktop with a click. It's perfect for presentations or screen sharing during online meetings.

Yes. Virtual desktops are given a computer screen 🖥️ menu icon by default. But you can add your own menu icon by including a Unicode character code at the beginning of the desktop name.

For example, naming a desktop "U+1F680 Product Launch" will show as "🚀 Product Launch" in the menu.

You can find Unicode character codes at unicodeplus.com or similar sites.

No. All virtual desktops within InfiniDesk are independent: each desktop displays a different set of files/folders.

This option reveals all desktop items from all your virtual desktops at once.

It's useful if you need to search across all desktops for something — such as by opening the Desktop folder in Finder and performing a search.

You should also use this option before uninstalling InfiniDesk, so that all your desktop items are visible and accessible.

Not yet. At present, desktops can only be switched via clicking the InfiniDesk menu. However, support for hot key switching is planned for a future update of the app.

Yes. InfiniDesk fully supports multi-monitor setups. When you switch desktops, it remembers which items were on which monitor and restores them to the correct positions.

Partially. InfiniDesk does not directly support syncing desktops across different Macs. It's designed to be a simple and robust productivity tool - syncing via cloud services would introduce significant complexity and could cause delays or conflicts when updating desktops.

However, you can manually recreate a similar InfiniDesk setup on multiple Macs. Just place the same shortcuts to files and folders on each machine's desktop. Then, use a cloud service (like Dropbox or iCloud Drive) to sync the actual files those shortcuts point to. This gives you a consistent experience across devices without needing full desktop syncing.

InfiniDesk needs a few system permissions to work correctly with your Mac. Each permission serves a specific purpose and is only used to support the app's core functionality:

"InfiniDesk" would like to access files in your Desktop folder. This permission allows InfiniDesk to manage the visibility of files and folders in your Desktop folder — which is essential for how the app works.

"InfiniDesk" wants access to control "Finder". This lets InfiniDesk detect which items you've selected on the desktop, so it can move them to another virtual desktop when you use the 🔀 Move Selected Items to Another Virtual Desktop feature. This is the app's only interaction with Finder.

"InfiniDesk" wants access to control "System Events". This enables InfiniDesk to add itself to your Mac's startup items — if you've chosen to have it launch automatically when your Mac starts.

Remember: InfiniDesk never sends any data externally and does not use these permissions for anything unrelated to its desktop management features.

InfiniDesk does not appear in the Dock when running. This is because it runs as a background menu bar app, and it only appears in the Mac menu bar at the top right of the screen.

If you launch InfiniDesk (by double-clicking it in the Applications folder) and don't see 'InfiniDesk' or the name of your current desktop in the top-right menu bar, first confirm that the app is running by opening the Activity Monitor app.

If it is running, the issue may be that your menu bar is already full of other apps: especially on MacBooks with a screen notch for the camera, icons can actually become hidden behind the notch (As of June 2025, Apple has still not fixed this issue).

Try closing some other apps to free up space. You can also use third-party utilities to manage and organize your menu bar icons, like Ice.

If the problem persists, please Contact Us.

Third-party apps that automatically manage or clear desktop items may conflict with InfiniDesk, as both attempt to control the visibility or arrangement of desktop files.

Issue: Using Command (⌘) + C to copy items on one virtual desktop and then attempting to paste (Command (⌘) + V) or move (Command (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + V) these items onto another virtual desktop does not work as expected in InfiniDesk.

Why: InfiniDesk's virtual desktops are simply different filtered views of the same underlying Desktop folder - they are not separate physical folders. As a result, clipboard-based file operations do not behave like they do between truly distinct locations.

What to do: To move files between virtual desktops, use the mouse to select the desired items and then choose 🔀 Move Selected Items to Another Virtual Desktop from the InfiniDesk menu.

Issue: If a file download is started to one desktop, and then the desktop is switched such that the file download finishes on a different desktop, the same downloaded file will be shown on both desktops.

What to do: Avoid switching desktops as the file download completes. If this happens, delete the file and try again. A future update may address this issue.

There is no issue the other way around: when a large file already on the desktop is copied or moved away from the desktop.

Issue: This warning appears when you try to copy a file to the desktop, but the file already exists there — it's just currently hidden by InfiniDesk because it belongs to a different virtual desktop.

For example, you might be viewing 'Desktop 1' and copy a file to the Documents folder. Later, while on 'Desktop 2', you try to copy that same file back to the desktop. macOS then warns you that the file can't be replaced because it's already on the desktop — but hidden.

What to do: This is a rare issue. If it occurs, simply click "OK" to cancel the operation. The warning just means the file is already present on a different (currently hidden) desktop managed by InfiniDesk.

Tip: If it's your intention, just use 🔀 Move Selected Items to Another Virtual Desktop in the InfiniDesk menu to safely move items between desktops.

Issue: If Linux-style symbolic links are created on the desktop (using ln -s commands in the Terminal), they have constant visibility across all virtual desktops.

What to do: Use shortcuts/aliases to files and folders instead of symbolic links. In practice, symbolic links are rarely used.

The keyboard shortcut Command (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + Period (.) is built into macOS and can be used to toggle the visibility of hidden files and folders on the desktop and in Finder.

Issue: After using this command, switching desktops in InfiniDesk no longer updates the displayed desktop correctly. All items are shown on the desktop until the command is issued again to toggle file visibility off.

What to do: This is a minor issue. To continue using InfiniDesk as expected, simply press Command (⌘) + Shift (⇧) + Period (.) again to revert the visibility setting.