How to Control the 2D or 3D Appearance of the Mac's Dock GA S REGULAR Menu Lifewire Tech for Humans Newsletter! Search Close GO Computers, Laptops & Tablets > Apple
How to Control the 2D or 3D Appearance of the Mac's Dock
Terminal and cDock let you choose your favorite look
By Tom Nelson Tom Nelson Writer Tom Nelson is an engineer, programmer, network manager, and computer network and systems designer who has written for Other World Computing,and others. Tom is also president of Coyote Moon, Inc., a Macintosh and Windows consulting firm. lifewire's editorial guidelines Updated on May 11, 2021 Tweet Share Email Tweet Share Email In This Article
Expand Jump to a Section The Evolution of the Dock's Appearance Use Terminal to Apply a 2D Effect to the Dock Use Terminal to Switch Back to a 3D Dock Effect Use cDock to Change the 2D or 3D Dock Aspect The Mac's Dock has undergone revisions over time. It started life as a basic 2D Dock that was flat and slightly translucent and then morphed into a 3D look with Leopard. With OS X Yosemite, the Dock reverted to a 2D look. If you became fond of the 3D look and want to experience it in OS X Yosemite or later, or if you have an OS with the 3D look and want the 2D appearance, it's possible to switch between the two Dock looks. Here's a look at the evolution of the Dock and how to change back and forth between a 2D and 3D appearance using Terminal or the third-party cDock utility. The information in this article applies OS X Leopard and later OS X and macOS versions as indicated. Flickr The Evolution of the Dock
OS X Cheetah introduced the Dock, creating the Mac desktop's distinctive look. It was a basic 2D dock with the original Aqua pinstripe interface elements introduced in the first OS X version. The Dock morphed a bit through Puma, Jaguar, Panther, and Tiger, but remained 2D. With the advent of OS X Leopard, the Dock underwent a dramatic change with a three-dimensional, reflective look. The Dock icons looked like they were standing up on a ledge. The 3D look continued through Snow Leopard, Lion, Mountain Lion, and Mavericks. However, with OS X Yosemite came the return of the flat, two-dimensional Dock, which remained through subsequent releases. Use Terminal to Apply a 2D Effect to the Dock
Use Terminal with OS X Leopard, Snow Leopard, Lion, Mountain Lion, and Mavericks Docks that are currently sporting a 3D look. From the Utilities folder, launch Terminal or type Terminal into spotlight search. Enter the following command line into Terminal. Copy and paste the command or type it in exactly as shown in a single line of text. defaults write com.apple.dock no-glass -boolean YES Press Return. Enter the following text into Terminal. If you type the text rather than copy and paste it, be sure to match the case of the text. killall Dock Press Return. The Dock disappears for a moment and then reappears. Enter the following text into Terminal. exit Press Return. Terminal ends the current session. Quit the Terminal application. Your Dock should now revert to a 2D look. Use Terminal to Switch Back to a 3D Dock Effect
Use this Terminal trick with OS X Leopard, Snow Leopard, Lion, Mountain Lion, and Mavericks Docks that currently sport a 2D look. From the Utilities folder, launch Terminal or type Terminal into Spotlight Search. Enter the following command line into Terminal. Copy and paste the command or type it in exactly as shown in a single line of text. defaults write com.apple.dock no-glass -boolean NO Press Return. Enter the following text into Terminal. If you type the text rather than copy and paste it, be sure to match the case of the text. killall Dock Press Return. The Dock disappears for a moment and then reappears. Enter the following text into Terminal. exit Press Return. Terminal ends the current session. Quit the Terminal application. Your Dock should now revert to a 3D look. Use cDock to Change the 2D or 3D Dock Aspect
A third-party app called cDock changes the 2D or 3D aspect of your Dock and provides other customizations, including transparency controls, custom indicators, icon shadow, reflections, and more. If you have OS X Yosemite, installing and using cDock is a simple process. For OS X El Capitan through macOS Big Sur, installing cDock requires an extra step that involves disabling your SIP (System Integrity Protection). This security measure prevents potentially malicious software from modifying protected resources on your Mac. While cDock is by no means malicious, the SIP security system prevents cDock's Dock-modification methods. Disabling the SIP system isn't recommended just to perform cosmetic Dock changes. If you choose to go ahead with the process, cDock includes instructions for how to disable SIP. How to Use cDock
Here's how to change your Dock's appearance using cDock: Download cDock. The most recent version is cDock 4, which is compatible with Macs running macOS Mojave (10.14) or higher. Earlier versions are available at the cDock website for older operating systems. Open the downloaded Zip file. Open cDock. Allow cDock to move itself to the Applications folder. If you're using a version later than Yosemite, disable System Integrity Protection. Apple doesn't recommend disabling System Integrity Protection. Do so at your own risk. cDock installs its system components. Re-enable System Integrity Protection. To do this, start your Mac using the Recovery partition. Launch Terminal and enter this command: csrutil enable Press Return, quit Terminal, and restart your Mac. Use the cDock menus to change the Dock's appearance, including switching to a 3D Dock. The cDock app is not currently compatible with M1 Macs. Was this page helpful? Thanks for letting us know! Get the Latest Tech News Delivered Every Day Subscribe Tell us why! Other Not enough details Hard to understand Submit More from Lifewire How to Make a Bootable Flash Installer of OS X or macOS How to Modify the Mac Finder Sidebar How to Delete a File in Terminal on Your Mac How to Flush DNS Cache on a Mac Can I Upgrade or Downgrade to Snow Leopard (OS X 10.6)? How to Use Spotlight, the Finder Search Window How to Update Your MacBook Pro Set up a Gmail Account Using the Mac's Mail Application How to Update Your MacBook Air Laptop Adding Custom Dock Spacers to Your Mac is Easy How to Turn a 2D Drawing Into 3D Art in Paint 3D Make a Bootable USB Installer for OS X El Capitan How to Run Widgets on Your Mac Desktop How to Show or Hide Hidden Files and Folders on Mac Terminal Tips and Tricks to Speed up Your Mac Personalize the Mac's Desktop Wallpaper With Your Own Pictures Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up Newsletter Sign Up By clicking “Accept All Cookies”, you agree to the storing of cookies on your device to enhance site navigation, analyze site usage, and assist in our marketing efforts. Cookies Settings Accept All Cookies