Switchback

See and switch macOS network locations from the menu bar — without digging through System Settings.

Switchback is the open-source sibling to Crossbar. Crossbar toggles network services (Wi-Fi, Ethernet, VPN…). Switchback switches network locations — the named sets of network settings Apple buried so deep that most people think the feature was removed.

Why Switchback?

macOS locations still exist, but as of Sonoma/Sequoia/Tahoe the only way to reach them is System Settings → Network → "⋯" (More) → Locations → Edit Locations — several clicks deep — and a switch only commits when you quit System Settings. There's no longer a Location dropdown at the top of the Network pane like the old System Preferences had, so the feature feels gone.

Switchback puts every location one click away in the menu bar, with the current one marked. For anyone who moves between client sites — each needing a different service order or static-IP profile — that's a multi-step detour replaced by a single click.

What it does

• Lists your network locations, with the active one checked.
• One-click switch straight from the menu bar.
• Reflects changes made anywhere — if you switch locations in System Settings, the menu updates (it's event-driven, not polled).
• Guides you when you only have the default "Automatic" location and need to create more.

Requirements

• macOS 14 (Sonoma) or later to run.
• Xcode 16+ and XcodeGen only if you build from source (see below).

Install

Option 1 — Homebrew (recommended)

brew tap breed007/tap
brew trust breed007/tap          # one-time — Homebrew requires trusting third-party taps
brew install --cask switchback

Option 2 — Download the prebuilt app

Grab the latest Switchback-vX.Y.Z-universal.zip (or the .dmg) from Releases, unzip, and move Switchback.app to /Applications. The binary is universal (Apple Silicon + Intel) and notarized, so it opens with no Gatekeeper workaround.

Option 3 — Build from source

git clone https://github.com/breed007/switchback-macos.git
cd switchback-macos
brew install xcodegen        # one-time
xcodegen generate            # produces Switchback.xcodeproj from project.yml
open Switchback.xcodeproj     # press ▶ Run

See SETUP.md for the manual (no-XcodeGen) path.

How it works

Switchback is built around one fact: reading location state is unprivileged; changing it requires root. Those halves are cleanly separated.

• Read layer — a StatusMonitor backed by SCDynamicStore. Fully event-driven: it subscribes to network-configuration changes and refreshes only when state actually changes. It enumerates locations (SCNetworkSetCopyAll) and marks the current one (SCNetworkSetCopyCurrent).
• Write layer — a LocationSwitcher protocol (the seam). The default backend opens preferences with SCPreferencesCreateWithAuthorization and commits via SCNetworkSetSetCurrent + SCPreferencesApplyChanges. The commit triggers the native macOS auth panel — no sudoers rule, no setup step. Because the UI only knows the protocol, a future XPC/SMAppService backend could drop in unchanged.

Built natively in Swift + AppKit. No third-party dependencies.

Privacy

• No network calls, no telemetry, no analytics. Switchback only reads local system configuration and switches local locations.
• Privileged changes go through the system's own authorization panel; nothing is stored or transmitted. See PRIVACY.md.

Scope (and non-goals)

Switchback deliberately does one thing well. It intentionally does not toggle network services (that's Crossbar), edit per-service settings inside a location (defer to Apple's Network pane), or auto-switch by rules/SSID/geofence. See DESIGN.md for the reasoning behind each non-goal.

Contributing

Issues and PRs welcome. Switchback is intentionally small — please keep changes focused on its one job: seeing and switching network locations from the menu bar.

License

MIT © 2026 breed007