Shortcut/CC/menu switch for turning off/on ethernet?

[Unhyper]

I would like to find a convenient way to turn Ethernet on only when I need web access. I'd prefer not to set up a WiFi for this.

I'd like to find a way to either have a menu icon upon pressing on which I could select On or Off for Ethernet. Other than that, a Control Center switch would be nice. As a last resort, a Shortcut for switching between the two states or even a different one for ON and OFF. I assume those could be managed with a shell script of some kind.

I tried to google to see if there already exists an app for this but I didn't find any.

Alternatively I'd settle for a way to block all connections when VPN is off, and simply use the VPN as a switch for this, but my impression is that some applications (system ones in particular) can simply bypass it.

 

[bogdanw]

There are multiple ways, here’s a simple AppleScript that can be saved as an app:

set question to display dialog "Turn Ethernet:" buttons {"Off", "On", "Cancel"} default button 1
set answer to button returned of question
if answer is equal to "Off" then
    do shell script "networksetup -setnetworkserviceenabled Ethernet off"
end if
if answer is equal to "On" then
    do shell script "networksetup -setnetworkserviceenabled Ethernet on"
end if
return

 

[Bigwaff]

Alternatively I'd settle for a way to block all connections when VPN is off, and simply use the VPN as a switch for this, but my impression is that some applications (system ones in particular) can simply bypass it.

Some VPN service clients include a "kill switch" feature. The "kill switch" will disable networking if the VPN is not active.

 

[Unhyper]

Some VPN service clients include a "kill switch" feature. The "kill switch" will disable networking if the VPN is not active.

That is a good tip. Unfortunately my VPN's kill switch does not disable connections on macOS if the VPN connection is closed by the user. It supposedly works on Windows or Linux. Still, a useful feature.

There are multiple ways, here’s a simple AppleScript that can be saved as an app:

set question to display dialog "Turn Ethernet:" buttons {"Off", "On", "Cancel"} default button 1
set answer to button returned of question
if answer is equal to "Off" then
    do shell script "networksetup -setnetworkserviceenabled Ethernet off"
end if
if answer is equal to "On" then
    do shell script "networksetup -setnetworkserviceenabled Ethernet on"
end if
return

I saved this as an app and made a menu shortcut for it. Works perfectly! Thank you for taking the time to write it.