awdlkiller

This app monitors for the macOS awdl0 interface and instantly put that interface down the very moment it is detected up. awdl0 is often the cause of ping spikes in macOS.

When this app is running, all macOS that depends on AWDL such as some Handoff and Continuity features (e.g. Universal Control, AirPlay, etc.) as well as AirDrop will not work.

Installation (Automatic)

Run the included installer.py in the misc folder. The installer will do the following:

• Copy the awdlkiller to /usr/local/bin, setting it to be owned by root:wheel, and assigns setuid flag to it.
• Copy the jamestut.awdlkiller.plist to /Library/LaunchDaemons and activate automatic start.
• Copy the manager.py to /usr/local/bin/awdl, and setting it to be owned by root:wheel.

Note

• Both the installer and the manager script requires Python 3. Install Python 3 using xcode-select --install.
• The installer cannot do uninstallation at the moment. You have to reverse the above steps manually to uninstall.

Installation (Manual)

1. Copy the binary to /usr/local/bin (or any other preferred path).

2. Make the binary executable (sudo chmod +x awdlkiller).

3. This app requires root.

   • Set the binary ownership to root (sudo chown root awdlkiller).
   • Set the setuid bit (sudo chmod u+s awdlkiller).

4. Copy jamestut.awdlkiller.plist to /Library/LaunchDaemons.

   • If the path of awdlkiller is not in /usr/local/bin, please adjust contents of this plist accordingly.
   • Ensure that the /Library/LaunchDaemons/jamestut.awdlkiller.plist is owned by root:wheel and has the permission of 0644.

5. (Optional) Copy manager.py to your $PATH for easy management. This file can be renamed to anything.

   • Note that python3 is required. Install macOS' built-in Python using the xcode-select --install command.

To set the service to start automatically, run:

sudo launchctl load -w /Library/LaunchDaemons/jamestut.awdlkiller.plist

Replace load with unload to disable the service.

The included manager.py script provides an easy way to enable and disable the awdlkiller. It does so via launchctl.