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Sensible Side Buttons

Alexei Baboulevitch · Turns third-party mouse side buttons into back and forward navigation controls in macOS.

CaskUtilitiesApple silicon · Intel
Homepage
From homebrew/cask
30-day installs51#951 in App
1-year installs771Last 365 days
Latest version1.0.7Sep 13 · Sep 13
Download size2.1MBarm64 / x86_64 · dmg
Release cadenceIrregular1 release in 30 days

Sensible Side Buttons is a Utilities app for Mac.

About

Sensible Side Buttons changes the behavior of the M4 and M5 side buttons on third-party mice, making them act as back and forward navigation controls in macOS. It sends navigation events to the view beneath the cursor, so buttons can work in applications with navigation history even when those apps have no back/forward keyboard shortcuts.

The app resides in the menu bar. While it is running, its menu lets you enable or disable the behavior; quitting the app stops it. The developer describes the approach as using macOS event handling rather than polling.

Install with Homebrew Cask:

brew install --cask sensiblesidebuttons

The supplied package installs SensibleSideButtons.app in /Applications. The official site lists macOS 10.13 or later as the requirement. This is a macOS menu bar app for mouse-button navigation, not a general mouse configuration utility.

Sources: Official website · Homebrew Cask

New What’s new in 1.0.7 Sep 13 · OpenNavo editorial

  • BuildRecompiled for Apple Silicon and Intel.
  • OtherIncludes minor touch-ups.
See all 1 release

Install and uninstall

Homebrew installs the app in your Applications folder.

Install without Homebrew

Download the same file Homebrew uses: github.com/archagon/sensible-side-buttons/releases/download/1.0.7/SensibleSideButtons-1.0.7.dmg

SHA-256 only checks that the download is complete; it is not a security certification. See the SHA-256 and download address

Uninstall command
$ brew uninstall --cask \      sensiblesidebuttons

A regular uninstall removes the app and keeps its settings and caches.

Deep clean (optional)
$ brew uninstall --zap --cask \      sensiblesidebuttons

--zap also deletes the settings, caches and other files listed in the Homebrew definition. They can include data shared with other apps and cannot be restored, and it does not guarantee that nothing is left.See which files are removed

Facts and sources

Version 1.0.7
Recorded by Homebrew on Sep 13Released by the vendor on Sep 13

Questions

How do I update Sensible Side Buttons?

Run brew upgrade --cask sensiblesidebuttons to get the latest version Homebrew records.

Can I install Sensible Side Buttons without Homebrew?

Yes, download it from the official website, sensible-side-buttons.archagon.net.