BUG: Moped converts RTF file to "app from unidentified developer" without "saving" it. about moped HOT 15 CLOSED

The new version seems to work fine on Catalina and I was not able to get it to fail, so we're good. Thanks for following up.

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Thanks. Glad to help. I document thoroughly because it helps avoid the embarrassment of reporting my user error as a bug. At first I found the difference in the before and after xattr output was that one was twice the size of the other. Wow. Turned out I'd made a backup and the * in my xattr command found the backup the second time but not the first, so the output was for two files, and I nearly reported that as a symptom. By making sure the report was actually clear enough for you to follow, I caught that.

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A few questions:

1. Did you install Moped through the App Store or downloaded the binary from a website?
2. Was the RTF file downloaded from the web or locally created?
3. Could you send me the RTF's files extended attributes prior and after opening with Moped?

xattr -l path/to/file.rtf

Moped itself didn't change your file, the operating system (macOS) sometimes does. I'm suspecting that because Moped is Sandboxed, it is adding an extended attribute which is making something else freak out. This has been known to happen. I'm assuming that you downloaded MacVim from the web and gave full permissions to your drive?

Thanks!

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@AugustM One more thing, I don't want to rule out an auto-save from Moped (which would not be ok), so: Could you please check the time stamp before loading with Moped and then after? Do they differ? Thanks!

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I did not build it with Xcode (although I would like to be able to do that). Is there an easy way to tell whether I have the web or AppStore version?

If you open up the AppStore, you would see Open if you downloaded from there:

2. The RTF file was locally created.

Could you create a test file for me and upload here? I could try to reproduce the issue.

6. Thanks for getting back to me so quickly and I hope to be able to provide you with test results soon.

Thank you!

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Hi Roberto, here are some answers:

1. I installed Moped through the App Store.

2. The RTF was locally created. I have attached before and after copies of the file used in the following testing.

3. The output of xattr -l is pretty ungainly:

   MohrBook-Pro-151202:DeskSpaceIDs amohr$ xattr -l *Research* > xttr_-l_output.txt
   MohrBook-Pro-151202:DeskSpaceIDs amohr$ wc xttr_-l_output.txt
     112447 2030718 8770023 xttr_-l_output.txt
   

   I suspect the huge size is that I used a screenshot for the file icon. Are there other options besides -l that I could use to get you the information you need? I'll attach the before and after versions anyway.

4. Here's the timestamp before opening it in Moped:

   MohrBook:DeskSpaceIDs:$ ls -l *Research*
   -rw-r--r--@ 1 amohr  staff  4354 Nov 24 18:56 [R] Research ⌥⌘R  .rtf
   

   Here's the RTF file open in Moped:
   
   And here's the timestamp after closing Moped:

   MohrBook:DeskSpaceIDs:$ ls -l *Research*
   -rw-r--r--@ 1 amohr  staff  4354 Nov 24 18:56 [R] Research ⌥⌘R  .rtf
   

   No difference that I can see.

Here is what pops up when I attempt to open it again in my default app, DeskSpaceID.app, which is a straight clone of the public version of TextEdit v1.8.301.

macOS cannot verify the developer of "[R]
Research TR .rtf" Are you sure you want
to open it?
By opening this app, you will be overriding system
security which can expose your computer and
personal information to malware that may harm your
Mac or compromise yout privacy.
Moped created this file today at 8:13 PM.

Interestingly, while the timestamp on the file has not changed, the xattr -l output is different, off by a few bytes:

MohrBook:DeskSpaceIDs:$ xattr -l *Research* > xttr_-l_output2.txt
MohrBook:DeskSpaceIDs:$ wc xttr_-l_output2.txt
112448 2030720 8770066 xttr_-l_output2.txt
MohrBook:DeskSpaceIDs:$ ls -l xttr*
-rw-r--r--@ 1 amohr  staff  8770023 Jan 17 23:11 xttr_-l_output.txt
-rw-r--r--@ 1 amohr  staff  8770066 Jan 18 00:26 xttr_-l_output2.txt

Given the small difference, I thought diff or some other file comparison tool might help. Here's what I got with diff:

MohrBook-Pro-151202:DeskSpaceIDs amohr$ diff xttr*
112426c112426
< 00000000  AA 5E A8 65 00 00 00 00 0E AA A2 36 00 00 00 00  |.^.e.......6....|
---
> 00000000  54 E0 A8 65 00 00 00 00 F3 F0 03 11 00 00 00 00  |T..e............|
112447a112448
> com.apple.quarantine: 00e2;65a8cfec;Moped;

I don't know whether the change that makes the OS think it's an app is those six bytes on line 112426 or in the data on the quarantine line but clearly the latter is what says that Moped had something to do with it. The little bit of data on that line probably includes the "creation" date by Moped but I don't know what else.

I'll attach the two RTF files and the two xattr output files. GitHub doesn't support attaching RTF files, so I'll put all four in a Zip.

I hope this helps,

August

MopedTestFiles.zip

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Thanks for sharing this and your thorough documentation of the issue. I've reached out to Apple, since I truly believe that this is an issue with macOS. I've experience the same with Shell scripts or any file that contains execute permissions. Will keep you posted.

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Thanks. At least there is a workaround in the sense that the error goes away after the first time you open the file.

Unfortunately, I've been working on automating the opening of multiple Moped windows and having to allow for this error propagating to the next time I open a file, not with Moped, is an unhappy thought. Theoretically, Moped should only open TXT files and RTF files should only ever be opened by TextEdit or my DeskSpaceID.app. But user error happens so I'll have to be careful.

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Apple Case Follow-up: 792551585
Support Case: 102210152552

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My note above that the problem goes away after you open the file was a bit shortsighted. I had trouble even opening files, that is, switching to an already open file, via Keyboard Maestro, even though I could open the same file from the Moped Windows menu. I persistently got a slightly different "app from an unidentified developer" error:

[Filename] cannot be opened because it is from an unidentified developer.
macOS cannot verify that this app is free from malware.

That error message did not allow me to open the file anyway, it only had an OK button to acknowledge the warning. (And again the error message is describing a .TXT file as being an app.)

What cleared the error for me was to have System Preferences > Security and Privacy open and then when I got the error message, click OK. The Security and Privacy window changed to include the report about the file in that window was an "Open Anyway" button. I clicked that and another window asked me to confirm that really wanted to open the file. When I clicked OK there, the file opened and I had no further problems with that file.

I had to do that for 31 open Moped files when I tried to access each of them with Keyboard Maestro. Fortunately that's done and does not appear to be reoccurring (until I add more files to this set, of course).

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v1.8.6 is now in review with a suggestion from Apple to fix the problem. Keeping this issue open until fixed verified.

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Update: Moped v1.8.6 hit the AppStore yesterday afternoon. Please give it a try, it should resolve the problem. At my end I can open up RTFs and even shell scripts without them being flagged for quarantine.

If this still doesn't work for you, please make sure you are using the latest macOS and try with a fresh file (not previously flagged for quarantine). If it still fails, there are few more things to try.

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Thanks, I'll give it a try this evening. As for "latest OS", my hardware only supports Catalina. I'll see how this version works.

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@AugustM any luck? are we good to close this issue?

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