macOS Shortcuts Generator

Generate valid

.shortcut

files that can be signed and imported into Apple's Shortcuts app.

Quick Start

A shortcut is a binary plist with this structure:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<!DOCTYPE plist PUBLIC "-//Apple//DTD PLIST 1.0//EN" "http://www.apple.com/DTDs/PropertyList-1.0.dtd">
<plist version="1.0">
<dict>
    <key>WFWorkflowActions</key>
    <array>
        <!-- Actions go here -->
    </array>
    <key>WFWorkflowClientVersion</key>
    <string>2700.0.4</string>
    <key>WFWorkflowHasOutputFallback</key>
    <false/>
    <key>WFWorkflowIcon</key>
    <dict>
        <key>WFWorkflowIconGlyphNumber</key>
        <integer>59511</integer>
        <key>WFWorkflowIconStartColor</key>
        <integer>4282601983</integer>
    </dict>
    <key>WFWorkflowImportQuestions</key>
    <array/>
    <key>WFWorkflowMinimumClientVersion</key>
    <integer>900</integer>
    <key>WFWorkflowMinimumClientVersionString</key>
    <string>900</string>
    <key>WFWorkflowName</key>
    <string>My Shortcut</string>
    <key>WFWorkflowOutputContentItemClasses</key>
    <array/>
    <key>WFWorkflowTypes</key>
    <array/>
</dict>
</plist>

Minimal Hello World

<dict>
    <key>WFWorkflowActionIdentifier</key>
    <string>is.workflow.actions.gettext</string>
    <key>WFWorkflowActionParameters</key>
    <dict>
        <key>UUID</key>
        <string>A1B2C3D4-E5F6-7890-ABCD-EF1234567890</string>
        <key>WFTextActionText</key>
        <string>Hello World!</string>
    </dict>
</dict>
<dict>
    <key>WFWorkflowActionIdentifier</key>
    <string>is.workflow.actions.showresult</string>
    <key>WFWorkflowActionParameters</key>
    <dict>
        <key>Text</key>
        <dict>
            <key>Value</key>
            <dict>
                <key>attachmentsByRange</key>
                <dict>
                    <key>{0, 1}</key>
                    <dict>
                        <key>OutputName</key>
                        <string>Text</string>
                        <key>OutputUUID</key>
                        <string>A1B2C3D4-E5F6-7890-ABCD-EF1234567890</string>
                        <key>Type</key>
                        <string>ActionOutput</string>
                    </dict>
                </dict>
                <key>string</key>
                <string></string>
            </dict>
            <key>WFSerializationType</key>
            <string>WFTextTokenString</string>
        </dict>
    </dict>
</dict>

Core Concepts

1. Actions

Every action has:

Identifier:

is.workflow.actions.<name>

(e.g.,

is.workflow.actions.showresult

)

Parameters: Action-specific configuration in
```
WFWorkflowActionParameters
```
UUID: Unique identifier for referencing this action's output

2. Variable References

To use output from a previous action:

The source action needs a
```
UUID
```
parameter
Reference it using
```
OutputUUID
```
in an
```
attachmentsByRange
```
dictionary
Use
(U+FFFC) as placeholder in the string where the variable goes
Set
```
WFSerializationType
```
to
```
WFTextTokenString
```

3. Control Flow

Control flow actions (repeat, conditional, menu) use:

```
GroupingIdentifier
```
: UUID linking start/middle/end actions
```
WFControlFlowMode
```
: 0=start, 1=middle (else/case), 2=end

Common Actions Quick Reference

Action	Identifier	Key Parameters
Text	`is.workflow.actions.gettext`	`WFTextActionText`
Show Result	`is.workflow.actions.showresult`	`Text`
Ask for Input	`is.workflow.actions.ask`	`WFAskActionPrompt` , `WFInputType`
Use AI Model	`is.workflow.actions.askllm`	`WFLLMPrompt` , `WFLLMModel` , `WFGenerativeResultType`
Comment	`is.workflow.actions.comment`	`WFCommentActionText`
URL	`is.workflow.actions.url`	`WFURLActionURL`
Get Contents of URL	`is.workflow.actions.downloadurl`	`WFURL` , `WFHTTPMethod`
Get Weather	`is.workflow.actions.weather.currentconditions`	(none required)
Open App	`is.workflow.actions.openapp`	`WFAppIdentifier`
Open URL	`is.workflow.actions.openurl`	`WFInput`
Alert	`is.workflow.actions.alert`	`WFAlertActionTitle` , `WFAlertActionMessage`
Notification	`is.workflow.actions.notification`	`WFNotificationActionTitle` , `WFNotificationActionBody`
Set Variable	`is.workflow.actions.setvariable`	`WFVariableName` , `WFInput`
Get Variable	`is.workflow.actions.getvariable`	`WFVariable`
Number	`is.workflow.actions.number`	`WFNumberActionNumber`
List	`is.workflow.actions.list`	`WFItems`
Dictionary	`is.workflow.actions.dictionary`	`WFItems`
Repeat (count)	`is.workflow.actions.repeat.count`	`WFRepeatCount` , `GroupingIdentifier` , `WFControlFlowMode`
Repeat (each)	`is.workflow.actions.repeat.each`	`WFInput` , `GroupingIdentifier` , `WFControlFlowMode`
If/Otherwise	`is.workflow.actions.conditional`	`WFInput` , `WFCondition` , `GroupingIdentifier` , `WFControlFlowMode`
Choose from Menu	`is.workflow.actions.choosefrommenu`	`WFMenuPrompt` , `WFMenuItems` , `GroupingIdentifier` , `WFControlFlowMode`
Find Photos	`is.workflow.actions.filter.photos`	`WFContentItemFilter` (see FILTERS.md)
Delete Photos	`is.workflow.actions.deletephotos`	`photos` (NOT `WFInput` !)

Detailed Reference Files

For complete documentation, see:

PLIST_FORMAT.md - Complete plist structure
ACTIONS.md - All 427 WF*Action identifiers and parameters
APPINTENTS.md - All 728 AppIntent actions
PARAMETER_TYPES.md - All parameter value types and serialization formats
VARIABLES.md - Variable reference system
CONTROL_FLOW.md - Repeat, Conditional, Menu patterns
FILTERS.md - Content filters for Find/Filter actions (photos, files, etc.)
EXAMPLES.md - Complete working examples

Signing Shortcuts

Shortcuts MUST be signed before they can be imported. Use the macOS

shortcuts

CLI:

# Sign for anyone to use
shortcuts sign --mode anyone --input MyShortcut.shortcut --output MyShortcut_signed.shortcut
Sign for people who know you

shortcuts sign --mode people-who-know-me --input MyShortcut.shortcut --output MyShortcut_signed.shortcut

The signing process:

Write your plist as XML to a
```
.shortcut
```
file
Run
```
shortcuts sign
```
to add cryptographic signature (~19KB added)
The signed file can be opened/imported into Shortcuts.app

Workflow for Creating Shortcuts

Define actions - List what the shortcut should do
Generate UUIDs - Each action that produces output needs a unique UUID
Build action array - Create each action dictionary with identifier and parameters
Wire variable references - Connect outputs to inputs using
```
OutputUUID
```
Wrap in plist - Add the root structure with icon, name, version
Write to file - Save as
```
.shortcut
```
(XML plist format is fine)
Sign - Run
```
shortcuts sign
```
to make it importable

Key Rules

UUIDs must be uppercase:
```
A1B2C3D4-E5F6-7890-ABCD-EF1234567890
```
WFControlFlowMode is an integer: Use
```
<integer>0</integer>
```
not
```
<string>0</string>
```
Range keys use format:
```
{position, length}
```
- e.g.,
```
{0, 1}
```
for first character
The placeholder character:
(U+FFFC) marks where variables are inserted
Control flow needs matching ends: Every repeat/if/menu start needs an end action with same
```
GroupingIdentifier
```

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macOS Shortcuts Generator

Quick Start

Minimal Hello World

Core Concepts

1. Actions

2. Variable References

3. Control Flow

Common Actions Quick Reference

Detailed Reference Files

Signing Shortcuts

Sign for people who know you

Workflow for Creating Shortcuts

Key Rules

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