Native macOS action launcher

The right actions,
right where you work.

Open a compact dock under the pointer, unfold nested tools, or pin several independent docks to the Mac Desktops where they belong.

Set up Action DockLearn the interface ↓
  • macOS 26.4+
  • Native SwiftUI
  • Open source
Action Dock 1.2: tilted Circle and Compact S glass docks on a dark background
Give your workspace a new shape. Sculptable layouts, 3D tilt, and glass that moves with your dock. Explore Action Dock 1.2 →

What Action Dock is for

A visual control strip for repetitive Mac work.

Action Dock turns shortcuts, applications, files, links, media controls and multi-step automations into a menu that appears near your hand. Use one temporary dock or keep several permanent control surfaces.

⌁

Near the pointer

Call the dock where you are working instead of travelling to the Dock, menu bar or another launcher.

◎

Context aware

Show a Global Menu, an app-specific menu, or a menu assigned to a particular macOS Desktop.

⌖

Persistent by choice

Pin independent docks. Their position, orientation, context and owning Desktop survive a restart.

Start here

Install first. Grant access second.

Action Dock is currently built from source. The order matters: sign the app, place it in Applications, and only then grant Accessibility access to that installed copy.

1

Get the project

  1. Install Xcode with the macOS 26.4 SDK or newer.
  2. Clone Action Dock and open the project.
git clone https://github.com/Smoep/action-dock.git
cd action-dock
open action_dock.xcodeproj
2

Select your signing team

  1. Choose the action_dock target.
  2. Open Signing & Capabilities.
  3. Keep Automatically manage signing enabled and select your Apple Development team.
3

Build a Release copy

  1. Select the action_dock scheme and My Mac.
  2. Use Product → Scheme → Edit Scheme… and set Run’s Build Configuration to Release.
  3. Choose Product → Build, then reveal the built ActionDock.app in Finder.
4

Install the stable copy

  1. Rename the product to Action Dock.app if needed.
  2. Move it to /Applications.
  3. Launch that copy. Action Dock runs as a menu-bar app and does not keep a normal Dock icon.
5

Allow Accessibility

  1. Open System Settings → Privacy & Security → Accessibility.
  2. Enable Action Dock.
  3. If macOS does not apply the change immediately, quit and reopen Action Dock from Applications.
6

Confirm the installation

  1. Find the low three-dot Action Dock glyph in the menu bar.
  2. Open it and choose Settings….
  3. Return to the menu and choose Show Action Dock for the first visual test.
Do not grant permission to a temporary Xcode build. Move the signed app to Applications first. macOS ties Accessibility approval to the app’s identity and location.
Action Dock menu-bar menu showing Pause Tracking, Show Action Dock, Settings and Quit
1 This is the complete menu-bar menu. Use Show Action Dock before configuring a gesture.

Build your first useful dock

Create a category, add an action, then choose one trigger.

Start with the Global Menu. A small working menu is easier to learn than a large menu copied from someone else.

1

Open the Menu editor

  1. Click the menu-bar glyph and choose Settings….
  2. Stay on the Menu tab.
  3. Use Add Category for a group such as Productivity, Browser or Media.
  4. Give it a short name, SF Symbol icon and colour, then save.

Keep names short. The dock always shows the icon; the name appears as a nearby label or submenu row.

Action Dock Menu settings with the Global Menu editor and Context Menus section1234
1 Menu tab · 2 Add Action · 3 Add Category · 4 Context Menus
2

Add a first action

  1. Expand the category with its chevron.
  2. Use its add control, or choose Add Action for a top-level action.
  3. Name the action and choose a type for its first step. Open Application is the clearest first test.
  4. Use Add Step above or below to run more operations before or after it.
  5. Choose an icon and colour, then save. Drag rows by their grip to put frequent items first.

A sensible first menu

▦Productivity
▰Notes
▣Microsoft Word
⌘Screenshot shortcut

One category, two obvious app actions and one shortcut are enough to test navigation.

3

Enable one opening method

  1. Open Triggers.
  2. Start with the keyboard shortcut, or enable a trackpad or mouse hold.
  3. Leave Lift to Select on if you want release-to-run interaction.
  4. Leave Number Shortcuts on to navigate with 1–9 and 0.

Use one trigger until it feels predictable. You can enable several later.

Action Dock Triggers settings showing keyboard, trackpad, selection and mouse controls123
1 Keyboard · 2 Lift to Select · 3 Number Shortcuts

Everyday use

Open. Hover. Continue outward. Run.

The root dock stays compact. A category opens a labelled submenu beside it; another category can open a further level.

  1. 1
    Open

    Use your trigger or choose Show Action Dock. It appears near the pointer without activating itself.

  2. 2
    Unfold

    Hover a category. Its chevron points toward the side where the submenu will open.

  3. 3
    Run

    Click a leaf action, release the activating gesture, or press its number.

  4. 4
    Back out

    Move inward, use the Back arrow, or press Esc to dismiss an active temporary dock.

Vertical Action Dock on black with the Productivity submenu visible
A category label appears outside the dock; the submenu aligns with the selected category.
01

Icons are categories

A chevron means the item unfolds. Hover is enough; no extra click is required.

02

Rows are actions

A labelled row without a chevron executes immediately when selected.

03

Back means Global

On an app or Desktop context, Back returns that dock to the Global Menu.

04

The grip moves it

Drag the dotted grip. The rest of the dock remains dedicated to actions.

Power features

Turn one launcher into a workspace.

Pinned docks are independent. Each one owns its placement, orientation, selected context and macOS Desktop.

01

Pin more than one dock

  1. Open Action Dock and click the pin at its leading edge.
  2. Move it with the dotted grip.
  3. Trigger Action Dock again. A new temporary dock appears while the first stays pinned.
  4. Pin the new dock and assign a different context if useful.

Clicking a filled pin unpins that dock. It becomes temporary again; it does not delete your menu.

Pinned Global Menu dock on a dark blue Desktop
Global tools
Five categories, always available.
Second pinned context dock on the same dark blue Desktop
Focused tools
A separate two-action context.
Horizontal Action Dock flush with the top edge over a dark application, with a submenu open
The root dock is flush with the physical top edge; its submenu remains below the menu bar.
02

Use empty menu-bar space

  1. Pin the dock first.
  2. Drag the dotted grip upward until the dock sits flush with the physical screen edge.
  3. Keep it in genuinely unused space—do not cover Apple menus or status items you need.
  4. Right-click the dock and choose Show Horizontally or Show Vertically.

Labels stay level. Child menus are placed inside the usable screen even when the root dock occupies the menu-bar strip.

03

Desktop-specific and restored after restart

A pinned dock belongs to the macOS Desktop where it was created. It stays behind when you leave that Space and returns when you come back.

  1. Switch to the Desktop that should own the dock.
  2. Open, pin and position it there.
  3. Quit and reopen Action Dock normally.
  4. Visit that Desktop. The dock restores its position, orientation and menu scope.
Mission Control can reorder Desktops. Action Dock tracks the stable Space and updates the displayed Desktop number to match its new order.
QUIT → REOPEN
Pinned vertical Action Dock restored after the application was reopened
Captured after relaunch. The same vertical dock returned at its saved position.

Context menus

Choose whether a dock follows everything, one app, or one Desktop.

Contexts change the action tree, not the dock itself. Select one automatically by opening over its app or Desktop, or choose it explicitly from a dock’s right-click menu.

G

Global Menu

The dependable default, available anywhere for universal shortcuts.

A

App Menu

Appears when Action Dock opens over the configured application’s window.

D

Desktop Menu

Appears over the background of the assigned numbered macOS Desktop.

1

Create a context menu

  1. Open Settings → Menu → Context Menus.
  2. Choose Add App… or Add Desktop….
  3. Select it in Choose a context….
  4. Add at least one action. An empty context falls back to Global Menu.
2

Use or change it

  1. Open over the matching app window or Desktop background.
  2. Pin it if you want the choice to persist.
  3. Right-click the dock and open Context to choose a configured context directly.
  4. Use Back or the Switch Menu Key to return to Global Menu.
Action Dock Menu settings with Context Menus controls visible below Global Menu
2 Context creation lives directly under the Global Menu editor. App and Desktop menus use the same action editor.

Action types

From one keystroke to a complete workflow.

⌘

Keyboard Shortcut

Record a key combination and send it to the active app.

A

Open Application

Launch or focus a chosen macOS application.

⌂

Open Folder

Open a chosen local folder in Finder.

▤

Open File

Open a chosen file in its default application.

↗

Open URL

Open web links, mail links and application URL schemes.

◈

Shortcuts App

Run a named workflow from Apple’s Shortcuts app.

>_

Shell Command

Run a command in the background. Only use commands you trust.

♪

Media Control

Play, pause, skip, change volume or mute.

▣

Window Action

Place the focused window into a half or quarter, maximize it, or center it.

⋯

Action Sequence

Every action can chain ordered steps with a configurable delay between them.

Settings map

Know where to change what.

Menu

What appears

Build Global, app and Desktop trees. Add, nest, duplicate, colour and reorder actions.

Triggers

How it opens and confirms

Configure keyboard, trackpad and mouse activation, release selection, number navigation and context switching.

Behavior

How the app operates

Start at login, pause while typing, practise in Test Mode, collect diagnostics, and export or import a backup.

Action Dock Behavior settings with startup, Test Mode, diagnostics and Backup and Restore controls
Backup & Restore saves the menu and supported settings for a reinstall or another Mac.
Practise safely: turn on Test Mode while reorganising shell commands or automations. The real dock still opens and navigates, but actions are suppressed.

Troubleshooting

Four checks solve most first-run problems.

The trigger does nothing

Confirm Accessibility is enabled for the copy in Applications, then quit and reopen Action Dock. Also check that tracking is not paused.

The dock opens but an action does not run

Turn off Test Mode. For keyboard actions, make sure Accessibility is still granted and the intended target app remains active.

A pinned dock seems missing

Visit the Desktop where it was pinned. Pinned docks intentionally remain with their owning Space.

A context shows Global Menu

Open Settings, select that context and add at least one action. Empty contexts deliberately fall back to Global Menu.

Before a major reorganisation

Export a backup.

Open Settings → Behavior → Backup & Restore. Keep a dated export once the dock layout has become muscle memory.

Report an issue ↗