Convert a macOS Launch Agent Plist to JSON

Launch Agents and Daemons

macOS uses launchd to manage background services. Configuration is stored in plist files under ~/Library/LaunchAgents/ (per-user) or /Library/LaunchDaemons/ (system-wide). Converting these to JSON simplifies management in configuration-as-code workflows.

Plist Structure

<dict>
  <key>Label</key>
  <string>com.example.backup</string>
  <key>ProgramArguments</key>
  <array>
    <string>/usr/local/bin/backup.sh</string>
    <string>--verbose</string>
    <string>--compress</string>
  </array>
  <key>StartCalendarInterval</key>
  <dict>
    <key>Hour</key>
    <integer>3</integer>
    <key>Minute</key>
    <integer>0</integer>
  </dict>
  <key>RunAtLoad</key>
  <false/>
  <key>KeepAlive</key>
  <false/>
</dict>

JSON Output

{
  "Label": "com.example.backup",
  "ProgramArguments": ["/usr/local/bin/backup.sh", "--verbose", "--compress"],
  "StartCalendarInterval": {
    "Hour": 3,
    "Minute": 0
  },
  "RunAtLoad": false,
  "KeepAlive": false
}

Mixed Types

Launch Agent plists mix strings (Label, paths), arrays (ProgramArguments), dictionaries (StartCalendarInterval), integers (Hour, Minute), and booleans (RunAtLoad, KeepAlive). The converter handles all these types correctly and the tree view shows type badges for each value.

Scheduling vs Cron

StartCalendarInterval is launchd's equivalent of cron. The integer values for Hour, Minute, Day, Month, and Weekday are converted to JSON numbers, making it easy to programmatically generate or modify schedules.