Clawbridge

A small Swift CLI, wrapped in a proper macOS .app bundle, that gives scheduled automation reliable access to local macOS services behind TCC (Transparency, Consent & Control).

Built because invoking CLI tools like icalBuddy from launchd on modern macOS is flaky: TCC gates EventKit per-binary and unbundled CLIs can't get stable grants. Wrapping the tool in an .app with proper Info.plist usage descriptions solves that — the grant sticks and scheduled jobs can depend on it.

Currently implements calendar (today / range). Designed to grow into other TCC-gated areas (Reminders, Contacts, Mail automation, etc.) by adding subcommands to the same bundle.

Install

bash build.sh

This:

• builds the release binary with swift build -c release
• renders the app icon from Resources/make-icon.swift
• assembles Clawbridge.app with Info.plist
• ad-hoc signs with codesign -s -
• installs to ~/Applications/Clawbridge.app
• symlinks ~/.local/bin/clawbridge → the inner binary

Requirements: macOS 14+, Xcode Command Line Tools (Swift 6 toolchain).

First-run permissions

After install, grant Calendar access:

clawbridge permissions

If macOS doesn't prompt (it may silently inherit your terminal's grant), force a clean attribution:

tccutil reset Calendar nl.thimo.clawbridge
open -a Clawbridge --args permissions

Watch for the system dialog, click Allow Full Access.

Usage

All commands emit JSON arrays. Use with jq.

# Today's events across all calendars
clawbridge calendar today

# Today's events from a specific calendar (repeatable)
clawbridge calendar today --calendar "Work"

# An inclusive date range
clawbridge calendar range --from 2026-04-10 --to 2026-04-16 --calendar "Work"

# Write JSON to a file instead of stdout (see "The scheduled-job gotcha" below)
clawbridge calendar today --output /tmp/events.json

Event schema:

{
  "title": "Team standup",
  "calendar": "Work",
  "allDay": false,
  "start": "2026-04-10T09:00:00+02:00",
  "end":   "2026-04-10T09:15:00+02:00",
  "location": "optional",
  "notes":    "optional",
  "url":      "optional",
  "attendees": ["optional", "list"]
}

On failure the output is a single object with an error key instead of an array — consumers can branch with jq 'type == "object" and has("error")'.

The scheduled-job gotcha

Calling clawbridge directly from a scheduled job (launchd → shell → clawbridge) works. Calling it from a scheduled job that wraps another unsigned CLI tool (launchd → shell → claude → shell → clawbridge) does not — TCC attributes the request to the outer CLI as "responsible process", not to clawbridge, and denies access.

Fix: launch clawbridge through LaunchServices so it becomes a top-level process, not a child of the outer CLI:

tmpf=$(mktemp).json
open -W -a ~/Applications/Clawbridge.app --args calendar today --output "$tmpf"
cat "$tmpf"
rm "$tmpf"

open -W waits for the app to exit; --args forwards CLI flags; --output is needed because open -a detaches stdout.

The author uses clawbridge from Claude Code automations via a wrapper like the one above, kept at ~/.claude/scripts/clawbridge.sh. It's not shipped in this repo because the path is specific to that setup — copy the snippet above into your own automations.

Extending

Add a new subcommand by:

1. Create a new *Command.swift file in Sources/Clawbridge/.
2. Register it in Clawbridge.swift's subcommands array (or nested under an existing parent command).
3. Add the matching TCC usage description key to Resources/Info.plist if the new feature touches a new privacy category (NSRemindersFullAccessUsageDescription, NSContactsUsageDescription, etc.).
4. Make sure the command supports --output FILE for parity with existing subcommands, so the open -W -a pattern can consume it.
5. Rebuild with bash build.sh and re-grant any new TCC categories with clawbridge permissions.

Layout

.
├── Package.swift            # Swift Package manifest
├── Sources/Clawbridge/
│   ├── Clawbridge.swift     # @main entry, top-level command, subcommand registration
│   ├── CalendarCommand.swift
│   └── PermissionsCommand.swift
├── Resources/
│   ├── Info.plist           # Bundle identity + TCC usage descriptions
│   └── make-icon.swift      # Renders the app iconset from Core Graphics
├── build.sh                 # swift build → bundle → sign → install
└── build/                   # Build artifacts (gitignored)