Open PKG files in your browser
A Mac installer, the kind Installer opens. Open one right here to see what it installs, the scripts it runs and who signed it, without running it. Nothing leaves your device.
Or drop it anywhere on this page
What you'll see
Your app opens like a folder, its files listed on the left, with a page beside them on what it is, who signed it and what it asks for.
- Its signature • Checked inside your browser
- SHA-256 • Compare it or look it up on VirusTotal
- Heads-ups • What it asks for and what runs
- Its files • Manifests open as text
About PKG
A PKG is a xar archive: Distribution says what Installer shows and checks, and each component package holds a Bom listing every file it installs, a Payload of the files and the scripts that run before and after, as root. MPKG was the older bundle that held several packages.
Packages are signed with a Developer ID Installer certificate Apple issues, a signature over the archive's table of contents, which holds a hash of every part. Apple notarizes packages it has scanned, and a stapled ticket lets a Mac know that without asking Apple.
Filepeek checks the signature and the certificate chain to Apple's roots, and Check now asks Apple whether it revoked the certificate. It lists every file each Bom installs, with where it goes, opens each script as text, and reads the checks Distribution makes before it installs.
Mac installer package
.pkg • .mpkg
Format
- MIME type
- application/x-newton-compatible-pkg
- Made by
- Apple
- Released
- 2007
Inside the file
- Container
- xar
- Installs
- Each component, with its Bom and Payload
- Scripts
- preinstall and postinstall, as root
- Signature
- Developer ID Installer, over the table of contents
Opens in every browser
No browser opens a PKG: they download it. Filepeek opens it as a folder in Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Safari.
- YouChromeOpens through Filepeek
- YouEdgeOpens through Filepeek
- YouFirefoxOpens through Filepeek
- YouSafariOpens through Filepeek
Questions
How do I see what a PKG installs without running it?
Drop it on this page or choose Peek a PKG. A page lists what each component installs and where, the scripts it runs as root and the checks it makes first, and its files are listed like a folder.
Can I check a PKG's signature?
Yes. Filepeek checks its signature and the certificate chain to Apple's roots, and says whether it carries a stapled notarization ticket. Check now asks Apple whether it revoked the certificate.
How do I look up a PKG on VirusTotal?
Filepeek works out its SHA-256 inside your browser. Look up on VirusTotal opens VirusTotal's page for that hash, and only the hash goes, never the file. Compare checks it against a SHA-256, SHA-1 or MD5 you paste.
Does opening a PKG install it?
No. Filepeek only reads it: nothing in it runs, nothing is installed and it never leaves your device.
Can I get files out of a PKG?
Yes. Pick any file on the left to open it. Its scripts and Distribution open as text. Export saves them all as a ZIP, or, in Chrome and Edge on a computer, extracts them into a folder.