# Manual Installation

This document explains the process of installing the Nightfall agent manually.

## Prerequisites

1. Ensure that you have root level access to the target macOS device.
2. On your Nightfall console, navigate to <https://app.nightfall.ai/endpoint> and click the **Download Package** button on the top right corner of the page. Click **Download Package for macOS** and unpack the contents of the downloaded file.
3. Create a default policy for web browser uploads and cloud storage application sync.

{% hint style="info" %}
To install the Nightfall agent in stealth mode (to hide UI elements), see [#stealth-installation](https://help.nightfall.ai/data-exfiltration-prevention/exfiltration_endpoint/installation_mac/..#stealth-installation "mention").
{% endhint %}

## Installing the Package

1. Locate the `mdm_pre_installation_script.sh` in the payload downloaded from Nightfall.
2. Open a Terminal window.
3. Run the `mdm_pre_installation_script.sh`script on your local machine as a root user, by executing the following command.&#x20;

```sh
sudo ./mdm_pre_installation_script.sh
```

4. Double click the provided `nightfall-ai-agent_<version>.pkg`.
5. Click **Continue**.

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FqaWyBdpGKbhdkUQdLPJM%2F12.png?alt=media&#x26;token=1f93e9bb-f85c-48ce-95a6-d7a97346b94b" alt="" width="188"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FdZ1KJ8DE4ESXPD929m1K%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=4ae4222b-4901-474b-bd3a-d9dc83229441" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

6. Click **Install**.

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FVteOpGQalGf5D1RH0kNd%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=71ff60aa-23f3-400e-9395-ba6c5fecba84" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

7. Click **Use Password** to enter your device password and start the installation process.&#x20;

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FK7Sr48GHgbYi4QFUdRnM%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=7994e49a-1856-4939-9864-1c9a4ee18f05" alt="" width="188"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

Once the installation is completed, you get a completion message as shown in the following image.

8. Click **Close**.

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2F6c9C7CV7yhYqdi5vyYUM%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=117dfa9a-7f9a-41de-809f-cd1137727194" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

At the top right corner of your screen, you can view the Nightfall AI agent icon which looks as follows.

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FbMQbAmNx96YdAUHvoDUj%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=89d99617-323b-4411-9a1d-a41e57c67ba2" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

When you click this icon, you can view the details of the agent.

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FpUlHKLQm9fgvbccK8bO0%2Fimageedit_5_9323922658.jpg?alt=media&#x26;token=3bff85ba-f146-41e3-a1c3-34b54650a565" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

## Grant System Permissions

These system permissions and handled automatically through MDM profiles. For manual install, enabling these permissions manually is required.

### Grant Full Disk Access

To monitor your MAC device, you must grant access to the hard disk. This section explains the process of granting disk access.&#x20;

1. Navigate to **System Settings** > **Privacy & Security** > **Full Disk Access.**

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2F3ZRrNhrVJaFKrfzIoii4%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=dabbdbc1-97f8-4b2f-b162-fc08cebb4430" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

2. If Nightfall is listed, make sure to toggle the permission to ON
3. \[Optional] Should Nightfall not be listed in the primary list
   1. Click the **+** icon at the bottom of the list (you may be prompted to enter your macOS password)

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FCS7KCOr0JcFTDTNP9Xa3%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=35a9732b-f37f-4b63-9a81-514d979499da" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

3. Select **NightfallAIAgent** (under Applications) and click **Open**.

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FKrjap7fIMWaUqU9Aa7aE%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=1b57b742-cd19-4d83-9469-f016701a87a1" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

4. Click **Quit & Reopen.**&#x20;

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FSVPvdm5CWJyjxGLxfLY2%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=659ccfd6-ada1-4e96-9779-756c3bf5c53b" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

On the **Full Disk Access** page, ensure that the toggle switch is turned on for the **NightfallAIAgent**. This ensures that the full disk access is granted.&#x20;

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FLOwU7xYRWSts0oSzPFGY%2Fdcdcdf.png?alt=media&#x26;token=ae456750-5b3e-4fa7-981a-2a45b986864d" alt="" width="375"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

### Grant Accessibility Permissions

For clipboard monitoring, you must grant the Nightfall agent accessibility permissions. This section explains the process.&#x20;

1. Navigate to **System Settings** > **Privacy & Security** > **Accessibility.**

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FEetl3mEVQH8an4G0DM4e%2FScreenshot%202025-06-10%20at%2011.15.26%E2%80%AFAM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=ada4f076-b83f-44d1-9e2d-d445c36ea21e" alt="" width="348"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

2. If Nightfall is listed, make sure to toggle the permission to ON

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2F67VPFsmTsTAwwetlKPak%2FScreenshot%202025-06-10%20at%2011.19.54%E2%80%AFAM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=104eaaa3-323f-4b82-bd33-334b7958145b" alt="" width="534"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

3. \[Optional] If Nightfall is not listed in the primary list
   1. Click the **+** icon at the bottom of the list (you may be prompted to enter your macOS password)

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FfTV7nnwByG3bB1nyhl8c%2FScreenshot%202025-06-10%20at%2011.16.14%E2%80%AFAM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=7f18d24e-1e36-40fb-bb2c-8562255be186" alt="" width="521"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

&#x20;b. Select **NightfallAIAgent** (under Applications) and click **Open**.

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FPtmuBjTzWTzLZPbJM5tl%2FScreenshot%202025-06-10%20at%2011.17.08%E2%80%AFAM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=b67f6655-1b0a-4e50-a738-2b165e106921" alt="" width="563"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

c. On the **Accessibility** settings page, ensure that the toggle switch is turned on for the **NightfallAIAgent**. This ensures that the full disk access is granted.&#x20;

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2Fdkwf1XqKS8LxHHpwJfq5%2Fimage.png?alt=media&#x26;token=3c7410ea-250f-4567-b306-63ee283ee992" alt="" width="356"><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

## Reboot The Agent

To ensure changes are picked up by the agent:

1. Open Activity Monitor > Search of Nightfall > you should see two Nightfall processes running

   1. If you do not see two Nightfall processes, make sure to expand your view to all processes

   <figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2FcA62ZohPWhPL0TkAT6sY%2FScreenshot%202025-06-10%20at%2011.29.45%E2%80%AFAM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=50f4b351-9b3a-4307-b905-499c719d8d7b" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>
2. Select both process and click Quit, the agent will restart instantly.

<figure><img src="https://3764378997-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2FZeqNSdo8J8cLJPU3Gs5M%2Fuploads%2Fu8VfHMyjt0jx790K1OJl%2FScreenshot%202025-06-10%20at%2011.36.38%E2%80%AFAM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=c68de905-9aa1-4818-9d16-b8eafd88588a" alt=""><figcaption></figcaption></figure>

## Grant Browser Permissions

Apart from the disk access and accessibility permissions, you must also grant permission to the Nightfall AI agent to monitor browser uploads. This section explains the process.

To grant access to browser uploads:

1. Open a browser instance and upload a test file to any destination.
2. When prompted, grant the Nightfall AI agent permissions.

{% hint style="success" %}
At this stage, your manual installation is complete.  Your machines should start showing up on you Nightfall AI management console under <https://app.nightfall.ai/endpoint>
{% endhint %}

Nightfall delivers broad browser coverage with full data exfiltration protection across modern AI browsers and traditional browsers. Customers can confidently deploy Nightfall across supported environments without compromising on security or feature depth.

#### Supported Browsers

**AI Browsers**

* Perplexity Comet (macOS only)
* ChatGPT Atlas (macOS only)

**Chromium-Based Browsers**

* Google Chrome
* Microsoft Edge
* Arc
* Brave
* Vivaldi

**Other Browsers**

* Firefox

**Operating System Support**

1. **macOS** - The following browsers are supported on macOS:
   1. Chrome
   2. Edge
   3. Firefox
   4. Arc
   5. Brave
   6. Vivaldi
   7. Perplexity Comet
   8. ChatGPT Atlas
2. **Windows** - The following browsers are supported on Windows:
   1. Chrome
   2. Edge
   3. Firefox
   4. Arc
   5. Brave
   6. Vivaldi
   7. Not supported on Windows:
      1. ChatGPT Atlas (not available on Windows)
      2. Perplexity Comet (Windows version does not allow installation of browser extensions)

## Uninstalling the Nightfall AI Agent&#x20;

To uninstall the Nightfall AI agent, locate the uninstallation script provided as part of the deployment bundle. You must execute the following command on your MAC device, as a root user.

```sh
mdm_nightfall_ai_agent_uninstall.sh
```