Free-NTFS-for-Mac

# Nigate

**Language / 言語 / 语言**: [English](README.md) | [日本語](README.ja.md) | [简体中文](README.zh-CN.md)

Nigate is a native macOS application for mounting NTFS volumes with read/write support.

Download the latest version from the [release tags](https://github.com/hoochanlon/Free-NTFS-for-Mac/tags).

![](https://cdn.jsdelivr.net/gh/hoochanlon/Free-NTFS-for-Mac@main/src/imgs/example/demo.gif)

The demo shows a version older than 1.5.4. The interface may change as features are added.

## Features

- **Modern interface**: A clean SwiftUI interface with dark-mode support
- **Live monitoring**: Detects connected NTFS devices automatically
- **Dependency checks**: Checks for and helps install the required system dependencies
- **One-click mounting**: Mounts NTFS volumes in read/write mode when supported
- **Automatic read/write mounting**: Newly connected NTFS devices can be mounted automatically; devices explicitly set to read-only are respected
- **Status display**: Shows device state and operation logs clearly
- **Prevent sleep**: Keeps the Mac awake during long-running operations
- **Safety protection**: Hold the protection control for three seconds to disable automatic mounting, tray mode, and sleep prevention and avoid accidental operations
- **Multilingual interface**: Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Japanese, English, German, and more

## Important notes

> [!CAUTION]
> Stability and data integrity depend on the storage device. Use reliable USB storage with high-quality flash memory and stable read/write performance to reduce the risk of I/O errors, interrupted transfers, or device detection failures.

> [!IMPORTANT]
> **Read/write behavior:**
> - **Basic operations**: Copying, moving, deleting, and renaming files are supported as metadata-level operations.
> - **Editing and saving**: The GUI mounts NTFS volumes in read/write mode and maps file ownership to the current macOS user's `uid` / `gid`. Text and image files can be edited and saved in tested configurations, but compatibility depends on the editor and its save strategy.
> - **When saving fails**: Back up important data first. Edit a copy on the Mac and copy it back to the device when necessary. Editors that create a temporary file and rename it into place may work in some cases, but no workaround is guaranteed.

- **Administrator privileges**: Mounting requires administrator privileges and macOS will request a password.
- **Windows Fast Startup**: Mounting may fail if the device was used by Windows with Fast Startup enabled. Fully shut down Windows, or disable Fast Startup, before reconnecting the device.
- **Device names**: USB storage device names must not contain spaces or unsupported characters.
- **Gatekeeper**: macOS may block an unsigned application on first launch. Prefer the per-application approval in System Settings > Privacy & Security. Avoid disabling Gatekeeper globally unless you understand the security consequences.
- **Bootable USB devices**: A device previously