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My Stream Deck Setup for macOS Automation
I get a lot of use out of my Elgato Stream Deck. It’s one of the best hardware purchases I’ve made in a long time.
It didn’t start that way.
Shortly after I bought it, I discovered that the device falls under the privacy policy of its parent company, Corsair. The policy reads like it was written by lawyers trying to cover every possible future use case.
According to the policy, potential data categories include:
- identity information (name, account ID, email)
- device identifiers and serial numbers
- IP address and network data
- usage data and clickstream behavior
- crash diagnostics and performance metrics
- location information
- audio/visual content uploaded through services
- inferred behavioral profiles based on collected data
That’s a lot of potential data collection for what is essentially a programmable USB button panel.
The Stream Deck itself doesn’t need the internet to do its core job. At its heart, it’s a USB device that sends keyboard shortcuts, launches apps, and runs scripts. None of that requires a network connection.
However, the official Elgato software integrates a plugin marketplace and update system. Plugins can call APIs, communicate with remote servers, and run Node.js components. That’s where the network traffic starts.
The Practical Privacy Fix
The simplest solution is to block the Stream Deck software from accessing the internet.
A Mac firewall utility like Radio Silence, Lulu or Little Snitch can block outbound connections for:
Stream Deck.appcom.elgato.StreamDeck
Once that’s done, the device works exactly the same for local automation.
Two additional precautions:
- Avoid marketplace plugins
- Consider replacing the official software with BetterTouchTool, which can control the Stream Deck directly
With that out of the way, you can focus on what the hardware is actually good at: triggering useful automation.
Here are the ways I use mine.
How I Actually Use My Stream Deck
Buttons that create new things
One press creates a new working object in the app where I need it:
- email message
- text message
- Things task
- calendar appointment
- BBEdit document
- Drafts note
- Obsidian note
- Dropover shelf
- Apple Shortcuts
- Keyboard Maestro macros
- new Finder window
This removes the friction of navigating menus or remembering shortcuts.
Window layouts
One tap moves the current window to a specific layout:
- left half
- right half
- top half
- bottom half
- full screen
- quadrant layouts
It’s faster than dragging windows or remembering a dozen keyboard shortcuts.
Morning checklist
One page of buttons is dedicated to my daily startup routine.
Each button jumps directly to the next task:
- messages
- social feeds
- backups
- updates
- Obsidian daily note
It sounds simple, but it prevents the usual morning “where should I start?” drift.
System and shell scripts
The Stream Deck is also a convenient launcher for scripts I run regularly:
- Topgrade updates
- SSH into machines in my home lab
- Homebrew backup
- restart Finder
- mount network drives
- move downloaded media to backup locations
For repetitive maintenance tasks, a physical button beats digging around in Terminal history.
Clipboard tools
Several buttons interact with the clipboard:
- convert text to title case
- lower case
- upper case
- open Raycast clipboard history
- display clipboard contents onscreen
- create a Markdown link from the current URL
These are tiny actions that happen constantly during writing.
Quick links
I keep a page of buttons for frequently visited sites and tools.
Another page opens my favorite YouTube channels directly in the external viewer I use instead of the browser.
Screenshot tools
The Stream Deck is also a control surface for CleanShot X:
- region capture
- window capture
- OCR
- scrolling capture
- screen recording
- open screenshot history
This turns screenshot workflows into one-tap actions.
Spaces navigation
Dedicated buttons jump directly to specific macOS Spaces.
That’s faster than swiping or using Mission Control when switching between focused workspaces.
System control panel
One page acts as a control menu for system actions:
- quit all apps
- Mission Control
- toggle desktop widgets
- screen share to other Macs on my network
- Raycast “Kill Extension”
- log out
- restart
Think of it as a customizable hardware control panel for macOS.
The iOS Companion
I also use the Stream Deck iOS app.
It’s subscription-based, but it gives me a second Stream Deck surface on an iPhone or iPad. That’s useful when the physical device is already full or when I want a secondary control panel on another screen. You have to own a physical Stream Deck in order to use it.
For something that started out looking like an overengineered YouTuber gadget, the Stream Deck has quietly become one of the most practical automation tools on my desk.