If you dual-boot or keep multiple macOS installations on one Mac, it’s handy to give each startup entry a clear, human-friendly name. Below is a simple guide to rename what appears in the macOS Startup Manager (the screen you get by holding Option/⌥ at boot).
You’ll set a visible label for a macOS system folder using bless, and (optionally) edit the detailed disk label file used by macOS.
⚠️ You’ll need administrator rights. Be careful with commands that usesudo.
The bless tool can assign a label that shows up in the startup picker.
sudo bless --folder "/Volumes/<VolumeName>/System/Library/CoreServices" --label "<Name you want to show>"Notes
- Replace
<VolumeName>with the mounted volume’s name. - The path must point to that volume’s System/Library/CoreServices folder.
- The quoted
--labeltext is exactly what you’ll see at boot.
OpenCore reads a small text file for display details. You can edit it with a terminal editor like nano.
sudo nano /System/Volumes/Preboot/<macOS-GUID>/System/Library/CoreServices/.disk_label.contentDetailsWhat is <macOS-GUID>?
It’s the GUID (UUID) of the APFS system volume. If you’re unsure, list your APFS volumes:
diskutil apfs listFind the Volume Disk (Role: System) you want to rename, note its Volume UUID, and substitute that in the path above. In nano, enter the label text you want (e.g., macOS Ventura (Work)) and save:
- Press Ctrl+O → Enter to write
- Press Ctrl+X to exit
Restart your Mac and hold Option/⌥ (or keep Power pressed on Apple Silicon) to open the Startup Manager. You should now see your custom name.
- If your label doesn’t show, confirm the CoreServices path is correct and the volume is the one you actually boot.
- On Apple Silicon, you can also view bootable volumes via System Settings → General → Startup Disk after setting labels.
- If you change the volume name later, you may need to re-run
blessor re-edit the label file.
That’s it! Clear names make multi-boot macOS life much easier.