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Authors: fire1ce | Created: 2021-08-27 | Last update: 2026-07-14

macOS Application Tweaks

These are two small macOS shortcuts I keep around: opening another instance of an application and launching Firefox's Profile Manager without remembering the full command.

Open another application instance

macOS open supports -n, which opens a new application instance even when one is already running:

open -n -a 'Visual Studio Code'

Not every application supports multiple independent instances cleanly. Test the command before creating a permanent shortcut.

Turn it into an app

  1. Open Script Editor.
  2. Create a new script.
  3. Add the command, replacing the application name:
do shell script "open -n -a 'Visual Studio Code'"
  1. Click File > Export.
  2. Choose a name and the Applications folder.
  3. Set File Format to Application, then export.

You can now launch the shortcut from Finder, Spotlight, or the Dock.

To change its icon, open Get Info for both the source app and the shortcut. Copy the source icon, select the small icon in the shortcut's Get Info window, and paste.

Firefox Profile Manager shortcut

Firefox provides a built-in Profile Manager. Close Firefox first, then test it in Terminal:

/Applications/Firefox.app/Contents/MacOS/firefox -P

If Firefox is installed somewhere else, adjust the path. Mozilla also provides about:profiles for managing profiles from a running Firefox session.

To create a launcher, repeat the Script Editor export steps with:

do shell script "/Applications/Firefox.app/Contents/MacOS/firefox -P"

Be careful when deleting profiles. Mozilla recommends keeping the profile files unless you are certain you no longer need bookmarks, passwords, settings, and other stored data.

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