Mac – Generic DMG Installer – JumpCloud

November 13, 2025

5 min read

ByNetNXT

Purpose

Install macOS applications distributed as .dmg files using a single reusable script executed from JumpCloud → Commands. This is ideal for Chrome, Firefox, Slack, and similar DMG-based apps.

Prerequisites

Admin access to the JumpCloud Admin Portal
Target macOS devices enrolled in JumpCloud
A direct DMG download URL or a URL that redirects to a DMG (validated via headers)
Network egress allowed to the app vendor’s CDN

Tip: If you’re setting up new Macs, see our SOP on Automated macOS Device Enrollment via JumpCloud MDM (ADE + ABM + ZTE)

to make this part of your zero-touch flow.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Step 1 — Create the command

Log in to JumpCloud Admin Portal.
Go to Devices → Commands.
Click + to add a new command.
Select macOS (Shell).
Give the command a clear name (for example, Install – Chrome (DMG)).

Step 2 — Configure the script

In the script, set DownloadUrl="DOWNLOAD_URL" to the app’s DMG link.
The URL must either:
End with .dmg, or
Return a Location header that points to a DMG (the script checks this).

You can quickly verify with:

curl -s --head "<your URL>"

Look for a Location header ending in .dmg.

Step 3 — Scope and run

Assign the command to the target device(s) or device group.
Click Save, then Run (or schedule as needed).
Monitor the command logs for “Copied … to /Applications” and cleanup messages.

Command (use as-is; set the DownloadUrl)

#!/bin/bash
# *** USAGE *** Version: 1.2
# NOTE: Designed for DMG files only (not .pkg, .zip, or DMGs containing .pkg).
# Set the DMG download URL below.

DownloadUrl="DOWNLOAD_URL"

### Modify below this line at your own risk!
# Locate DMG Download Link From URL
regex='^https.*.dmg

if [[ $DownloadUrl =~ $regex ]]; then echo "URL points to direct DMG download" validLink="True" else echo "Searching headers for download links" urlHead=$(curl -s --head "$DownloadUrl") locationSearch=$(echo "$urlHead" | grep https:) if [ -n "$locationSearch" ]; then locationRaw=$(echo "$locationSearch" | awk '{print $2}') locationFormatted="$(echo "${locationRaw}" | tr -d '[:space:]')" regex='^https.*' if [[ $locationFormatted =~ $regex ]]; then echo "Download link found" DownloadUrl="$locationFormatted" else echo "No https location download link found in headers" exit 1 fi else echo "No location download link found in headers" exit 1 fi fi # Create Temp Folder DATE=$(date '+%Y-%m-%d-%H-%M-%S') TempFolder="Download-$DATE" mkdir -p "/tmp/$TempFolder" # Navigate to Temp Folder cd "/tmp/$TempFolder" || exit # Download File into Temp Folder curl -s -O "$DownloadUrl" # Capture name of Download File DownloadFile="$(ls)" echo "Downloaded $DownloadFile to /tmp/$TempFolder" # Verify DMG File regex='\.dmg

if [[ $DownloadFile =~ $regex ]]; then DMGFile="$DownloadFile" echo "DMG File Found: $DMGFile" else echo "File: $DownloadFile is not a DMG" rm -r "/tmp/$TempFolder" echo "Deleted /tmp/$TempFolder" exit 1 fi # Mount DMG File (-nobrowse prevents the volume from popping up in Finder) hdiutilAttach=$(hdiutil attach "/tmp/$TempFolder/$DMGFile" -nobrowse) echo "Used hdiutil to mount $DMGFile" err=$? if [ ${err} -ne 0 ]; then echo "Could not mount $DMGFile Error: ${err}" rm -r "/tmp/$TempFolder" echo "Deleted /tmp/$TempFolder" exit 1 fi regex='\/Volumes\/.*' if [[ $hdiutilAttach =~ $regex ]]; then DMGVolume="${BASH_REMATCH[0]}" echo "Located DMG Volume: $DMGVolume" else echo "DMG Volume not found" rm -r "/tmp/$TempFolder" echo "Deleted /tmp/$TempFolder" exit 1 fi # Identify the mount point for the DMG file DMGMountPoint=$(hdiutil info | grep "$DMGVolume" | awk '{ print $1 }') echo "Located DMG Mount Point: $DMGMountPoint" # Capture name of App file cd "$DMGVolume" || exit AppName=$(ls | grep '.app') cd ~ || exit echo "Located App: $AppName" # Test to ensure App is not already installed ExistingSearch=$(find "/Applications/" -name "$AppName" -depth 1) if [ -n "$ExistingSearch" ]; then echo "$AppName already present in /Applications folder" hdiutil detach "$DMGMountPoint" echo "Used hdiutil to detach $DMGFile from $DMGMountPoint" rm -r "/tmp/$TempFolder" echo "Deleted /tmp/$TempFolder" exit 1 else echo "$AppName not present in /Applications folder" fi DMGAppPath=$(find "$DMGVolume" -name "*.app" -depth 1) # Copy the contents of the DMG file to /Applications/ # Preserves all file attributes and ACLs cp -pPR "$DMGAppPath" /Applications/ err=$? if [ ${err} -ne 0 ]; then echo "Could not copy $DMGAppPath Error: ${err}" hdiutil detach "$DMGMountPoint" echo "Used hdiutil to detach $DMGFile from $DMGMountPoint" rm -r "/tmp/$TempFolder" echo "Deleted /tmp/$TempFolder" exit 1 fi echo "Copied $DMGAppPath to /Applications" # Unmount the DMG file hdiutil detach "$DMGMountPoint" echo "Used hdiutil to detach $DMGFile from $DMGMountPoint" err=$? if [ ${err} -ne 0 ]; then echo "Could not detach DMG: $DMGMountPoint Error: ${err}" fi # Remove Temp Folder and download rm -r "/tmp/$TempFolder" echo "Deleted /tmp/$TempFolder"

Validated DMG download URLs (examples)

Note: Some vendor links redirect; the script resolves the final DMG URL automatically.

Expected result / validation

Command output shows URL detection, DMG mount, copy to /Applications, detach, and temp cleanup.
The application appears in /Applications on target Macs and is ready to launch.
Re-running the command will safely exit if the app already exists.

FAQs

1) Does this support .pkg or .zip?

No. This template is DMG-only. For PKG deployments, use a dedicated PKG installer workflow in JumpCloud.

2) How do I ensure the URL is correct?

Run:

curl -s --head "<URL>"

Confirm the Location header ends in .dmg, or the original URL ends with .dmg.

3) What if the DMG contains a .pkg instead of an .app?

This script expects a top-level .app. If the DMG contains a .pkg, use a PKG install command.

4) Can I scope this per team or department?

Yes. Assign the command to specific device groups to align with your app catalog strategy.

Was this article helpful?