Help & User Guide
Tisc is a menu-bar app that watches folders on your Mac and automatically sorts files as soon as they arrive. You set up rules once — Tisc runs in the background and takes care of the rest. This guide explains how to add folders, build rules, and get Tisc working the way you want.
Quick Start
- Open the configuration window — click the Tisc icon in the menu bar, then choose Open Tisc.
- Add a watched folder — click the + button and choose a folder (e.g. your Downloads folder).
- Add a rule — click Add Rule, set a condition and an action.
- Save — rules save automatically. Tisc starts watching the folder immediately.
- Test it — drop a matching file into the watched folder and check the activity log to confirm the rule fired.
The Menu Bar Icon
Tisc has no Dock icon and doesn't appear in the App Switcher. It lives entirely in the menu bar. Click the icon to see a quick status summary and access the configuration window or activity log.
To make Tisc start automatically every time you log in, open the configuration window and enable Start at Login. Once enabled, Tisc will be running and watching your folders before you even open another app.
To pause all rules temporarily, click the menu bar icon and toggle Pause. Tisc stops processing new files until you resume.
Watched Folders
Each watched folder has its own set of rules. Rules in one folder don't affect other folders. You can add as many folders as you like.
For each watched folder you can also configure a scheduled scan: choose to run all rules on that folder every hour, once a day, or once a week. This catches files that were already in the folder before Tisc was running, or that arrived while your Mac was asleep.
To remove a watched folder, select it in the list and click the − button. Removing a folder only removes Tisc's monitoring — no files are moved or deleted.
Building Rules
Each rule has two parts: a condition (what files to match) and an action (what to do with them). When a file arrives in the watched folder and matches the condition, the action runs automatically.
Rules are checked in the order they appear. The first matching rule fires and the file is processed. You can reorder rules by dragging them.
Conditions
File Type
Matches by broad category: Image, Video, Audio, PDF, Document, Archive (ZIP, RAR, etc.), Spreadsheet, Presentation, or Code. Use this for general sorting without worrying about specific extensions.
File Name
Matches based on the filename. Options: contains, starts with, ends with, is (exact match), or is not. For example: "File Name starts with Screenshot" to catch all screenshots from your Mac.
File Extension
Matches a specific file extension, such as .pdf, .jpg, or .xlsx. Options: is or is not a specific extension.
File Size
Matches files larger or smaller than a threshold in megabytes. For example: "File Size larger than 50 MB" to route big downloads to an archive.
Date Modified
Matches files whose last modification date is older than a specified number of days. Useful in scheduled scans to archive old files automatically.
Date Created
Matches files created more than N days ago. Similar to Date Modified but uses the creation date.
Source
Matches files that were downloaded from the internet. macOS tags downloaded files with their source URL — this condition matches that tag. Useful for targeting browser downloads specifically without affecting files you dragged in manually.
Combining Conditions
Add multiple conditions to a single rule and combine them with AND, OR, or NOT:
- AND — the file must match all conditions
- OR — the file must match at least one condition
- NOT — the file must not match the condition
Example: File Type is Image AND File Name starts with "Screenshot" — matches only screenshot images, not other images.
Actions
Move to Folder
Moves the file from the watched folder to the destination you choose. The file disappears from the source and appears in the destination. If a file with the same name already exists at the destination, Tisc adds a number suffix to avoid overwriting.
Copy to Folder
Leaves the original file in the watched folder and places a copy at the destination. Useful for backup workflows.
Move to Trash
Sends the file to the macOS Trash immediately. Use with a specific condition — for example, automatically trash ZIP files older than 7 days after you've extracted them.
Add Finder Tag
Applies a coloured Finder tag to the file. Tagged files are easy to find using Finder's sidebar tag filter or Spotlight. You can apply multiple tags by adding multiple Add Finder Tag actions to the same rule.
Rename
Prepends or appends text to the filename. For example, prepend "ARCHIVE-" to files older than 30 days. This is a simple rename — for complex renaming logic, consider using Umbe on the folder instead.
Open With
Opens the file in a specified app. Useful for automating processing workflows — for example, automatically open new RAW files in Lightroom or new PDFs in a review app.
Organize by Date
Moves the file into date-organised subfolders at the destination. Three levels of organisation:
- Year — moves into a folder named by year (e.g. 2026/)
- Year/Month — moves into year/month subfolders (e.g. 2026/06/)
- Year/Month Name — moves into named month subfolders (e.g. 2026/June/)
Subfolders are created automatically if they don't exist.
Natural Language Rules (Apple Intelligence)
On Apple Silicon Macs with Apple Intelligence enabled, you can describe a rule in plain English instead of filling in the condition and action forms. Type something like:
- "Move PDFs older than 30 days to my Archive folder"
- "Tag ZIP files with the blue tag"
- "Move screenshots to Pictures/Screenshots"
Tisc converts the description into a rule with the appropriate condition and action filled in. Review the result before saving — natural language interpretation isn't perfect, and you may want to adjust a detail.
Built-In Templates
Six ready-made templates let you get started in seconds:
- Move PDFs to Documents/PDFs
- Move screenshots to Pictures/Screenshots
- Move videos to Movies
- Move music to Music
- Trash ZIP files older than 7 days
- Archive Desktop files older than 30 days
Load a template, set the destination folder, and you're done. You can modify the generated rule at any time.
Activity Log & Undo
Tisc keeps a rolling log of the last 100 actions it has taken. Open the activity log from the menu bar icon to see exactly what was moved where and when. Each entry shows the filename, the action taken, the source, and the destination.
To undo the most recent action, click the Undo button in the activity log. Tisc immediately reverses the file-system operation — if a file was moved, it is moved back to its original location. Undo only covers the single most recent action.
Tips & Tricks
- Start with templates. The six built-in templates cover the most common use cases. Load one and see how it works before building custom rules from scratch.
- Watch Downloads, not your whole home folder. Adding a highly-nested folder with thousands of files is fine, but watching a folder with a huge number of simultaneous file changes can slow processing. Start with focused folders like Downloads, Desktop, or specific inbox folders.
- Use Source = Downloaded for browser downloads. This matches only files your browser put in Downloads — not files you manually moved there.
- Add scheduled scans for cleanup rules. Real-time triggers fire when files arrive. A "trash ZIPs older than 7 days" rule works better as a daily scheduled scan so it catches files that have been sitting there for a while.
- Review the activity log after setting up a new rule. Check what Tisc has processed in the first hour to make sure it's matching the right files.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Tisc move files automatically without asking?
Yes — that's the point. Rules fire automatically when a matching file arrives. If you want to review files before Tisc acts on them, add a Finder Tag action instead of Move, then review the tagged files at your own pace.
What if a file matches more than one rule?
Only the first matching rule fires. Rules are checked in the order they appear in the list. Reorder rules by dragging them to control priority.
Tisc isn't processing files in a folder — what's wrong?
Check that Tisc is not paused (look for a pause indicator in the menu bar icon). Also confirm that the watched folder still exists at the same path — if a folder was renamed or moved, Tisc loses track of it and you'll need to re-add it.
Can Tisc watch folders on external drives or NAS?
Tisc works with any folder that macOS can access, including external drives and network volumes. However, if the drive is disconnected or the network volume is unavailable, Tisc will pause monitoring that folder until it reconnects.
Does Tisc process files already in the folder when I add it?
Real-time monitoring only fires for new files. To process existing files, use a scheduled scan. Enable "Scan now" after adding the folder to trigger an immediate one-time scan of existing contents.
Troubleshooting
A file was moved somewhere unexpected
Open the activity log to see exactly which rule matched and where the file went. Use Undo if the action was recent. Then review your rule conditions to tighten the match — the condition may be broader than intended.
Tisc isn't starting at login even though I enabled it
Check System Settings → General → Login Items and make sure Tisc is listed there. If it isn't, disable and re-enable Start at Login in Tisc's configuration window.
The menu bar icon is gone
The icon may be hidden if your menu bar is full. On macOS Sonoma and later, use the Control Centre overflow area — hold Command and drag menu bar icons to rearrange them and free up space.