But if you’re not, it just means you’ll need to set everything back the way you like it. It lets you remove customizations that might be causing trouble. If you’re having trouble with an application, that can actually be a huge help. However, you’ll be starting from the “out-of-the-box” settings, like a brand new user. The program that relied on that hidden file will typically recreate it. When you remove a hidden file from the home directory, you’ll typically lose the settings for the application associated with it. The applications that rely on those hidden files, however, might not be as flexible. In general files from your own home directory can be removed and changed without damaging the operating system. That’s why they’re hidden from the user’s normal view. They’re not intended to be edited by the user, only the application. Most commonly, hidden files and directories in the home directory contain settings or data that’s accessed by that user’s programs. What do these hidden files do anyway? What are hidden files in the macOS home directory for? A common. If you run ls -a on your home directory, you’ll discover a pile of hidden files and directories with dot prefixes. But there are some secrets lurking just below the surface. The home directory is a familiar place for macOS users.

Mac hidden files