RedshiftMenuBar

Native macOS menu bar app (SwiftUI) for controlling redshift from the top bar.

Features

• Enable/disable redshift directly from the menu bar.
• Timing modes:
  • Sunrise/Sunset (uses latitude/longitude)
  • Manual schedule (custom start/end time)
• Color temperature controls (day/night, depending on mode).
• Gamma controls (R/G/B).
• Brightness controls (day/night).
• Live preview swatches (approximate).
• Start-at-login support via LaunchAgent.

Why Use This Over Night Shift?

• More control: separate day/night temperature, gamma, and brightness.
• Faster workflow: all controls are in the menu bar, with one-click apply/reset.

Requirements

• macOS 13+
• redshift installed (default path: /opt/homebrew/bin/redshift)
• Xcode 15+ (recommended)
• xcodegen if regenerating the Xcode project (brew install xcodegen)

Install

Option A: Install from release zip

1. Download RedshiftMenuBar-macOS-Release.zip from Releases.
2. Unzip and move RedshiftMenuBar.app to /Applications.
3. Launch once (right-click -> Open if Gatekeeper prompts).
4. The app runs from the menu bar (no Dock icon by design).

Option B: Build and install from source

1. Generate project: xcodegen generate
2. Build: xcodebuild -project RedshiftMenuBar.xcodeproj -scheme RedshiftMenuBar -configuration Release build
3. Copy app to Applications:
   • cp -R .xcodebuild/Build/Products/Release/RedshiftMenuBar.app /Applications/
4. Launch from /Applications/RedshiftMenuBar.app.

Quick Start

1. Build with SwiftPM:
   • swift build
2. Run from Xcode:
   • xcodegen generate
   • Open RedshiftMenuBar.xcodeproj
   • Select the RedshiftMenuBar scheme
   • Run

App Configuration

• Bundle identifier: com.bowlerr.RedshiftMenuBar
• Location permission usage key is in Config/Info.plist.
• If Start at Login is enabled, app manages:
  • ~/Library/LaunchAgents/com.user.redshift-menubar.plist

Notes

• Uses redshift -m quartz on macOS.
• In manual schedule mode, fixed night temperature is applied while active.
• If location is not needed, use manual schedule mode.

Repository Layout

• Sources/RedshiftMenuBar/RedshiftMenuBarApp.swift - main menu bar UI.
• Sources/RedshiftMenuBar/RedshiftController.swift - process control, scheduling, settings persistence.
• Sources/RedshiftMenuBar/LocationService.swift - current location lookup.
• Config/Info.plist - app metadata and permission strings.
• project.yml - XcodeGen project spec.

Troubleshooting

• redshift not found: verify Binary Path in Advanced settings.
• Location button not working: run as bundled app target with valid Info.plist.
• Settings not applying: click Apply; if needed, disable/enable once to restart process.