Installing

Installing a prebuilt ASFireWire build (testers)

Note

These instructions track the latest release. If you are installing an older build and something here does not match, check the release notes for that tag — the procedure can change between versions.

Tagged releases attach an unsigned ASFW-<version>.zip. It contains ASFW.app, install.sh, and the entitlement resources used by the installer. Signing happens on your Mac, not in GitHub Actions. The build is intended for experimental testing only — not general use.

To build and sign it yourself instead, see Building and Signing.

Warning

These steps disable SIP, which lowers your Mac's security system-wide. Only do this on a machine you are comfortable using for testing, and re-enable SIP (csrutil enable) when you are done. The build is unsigned/un-notarized and provided as-is; run it only if you understand and accept that.

Requirements

• An Apple Silicon Mac running macOS 26 (Tahoe)
• An Apple Thunderbolt-to-FireWire adapter
• A release ZIP extracted on the Mac where the driver will be installed

Installation Steps

1. Disable SIP. install.sh refuses to run with SIP on, so this comes first. Shut down, boot into Recovery (hold the power button until "Loading startup options" appears → Options → open Terminal), and run:

   csrutil disable

   Reboot back into macOS and confirm with csrutil status. See Apple's guide on disabling and enabling System Integrity Protection.

2. Download ASFW-<version>.zip from the Releases page and extract it.

3. Run the installer from the extracted folder:

   cd ASFW-<version>
   chmod +x install.sh
   ./install.sh

   It checks SIP, enables system-extension developer mode, removes the download quarantine, ad-hoc signs the dext first and the app second, verifies the embedded entitlements, copies the signed app to /Applications, and opens it. No Apple Developer account or provisioning profile is needed. The script asks before replacing an existing ASFW.app.

4. Click Install in the app and approve the extension in System Settings → General → Login Items & Extensions when prompted.

5. Verify the driver is active:

   systemextensionsctl list

   Look for net.mrmidi.ASFW.ASFWDriver marked [activated enabled].

Uninstall / revert

Remove the extension via the app, or manually:

systemextensionsctl uninstall - net.mrmidi.ASFW.ASFWDriver

Then re-enable SIP from Recovery with csrutil enable.

Note

Deleting ASFW.app is not a substitute for uninstalling the extension. Uninstall first, confirm with systemextensionsctl list, and only then remove the app and re-enable SIP.

Troubleshooting

More symptoms and workarounds on Troubleshooting.

Missing entitlement com.apple.developer.system-extension.install The app was not signed with the checked-in app entitlement file, or it was not installed through install.sh. Run the installer again from the complete extracted release bundle. Do not work around this with boot-args.

The extension does not appear in systemextensionsctl list Confirm csrutil status reports disabled and that systemextensionsctl developer on was run after SIP was disabled. Both are required.

The app was not moved to /Applications Run install.sh from the extracted release directory. Running the unsigned app directly from ~/Downloads is not a supported layout.