If you want to see non-Apple extensions, you can pipe the list to the "grep -v" command. There will be lot from Apple, and those are all okay. (The terminal app is found in /Applications/Utilities.) kextstat -l
![mac os yosemite kernel mac os yosemite kernel](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/17/OS_X_Yosemite_Desktop.png)
In a terminal window, the following command will show you all the kernel extensions that are active. (No matter where they reside in the OS X file system.) Apple has its own kernel extensions, and the file name starts with "com.apple." Third party extensions will start with, for example, "com.logitech." Next, I discovered a nifty command line utility called kextstat that can be used to show which kernel extensions have been actually loaded by OS X at bootup.
![mac os yosemite kernel mac os yosemite kernel](https://wallpapershome.com/images/wallpapers/yosemite-3840x2160-5k-4k-wallpaper-8k-forest-osx-apple-mountains-3949.jpg)
I'll be showing a very simple UNIX command, and then we're done.įirst, you may be wondering: "What is a kernel extension?" This is code that extends the capability of the base kernel of an operating system. It's easy to identify them with just a simple command in the terminal.ĭon't worry, I don't know enough yet to make this how-to very complex.
MAC OS YOSEMITE KERNEL INSTALL
If you've been continuously upgrading OS X instead of doing a clean install at each release, you may be wondering what kernel extensions are still lingering in place.