Burrow is a free, open-source (MIT), native macOS app that combines junk cleanup, app management, maintenance, disk analysis, and live system status in one window, with a built-in MCP server so AI agents such as Claude Code, Codex, and Cursor can query and care for the same machine.

What it is

Burrow is an independent open-source project released under the MIT license and written in Swift with SwiftUI. It bundles its own engine, burrow-engine, a single source-available binary under the Functional Source License (FSL-1.1-ALv2) whose command surface is modelled on the Mole (mo) CLI by tw93. The app wraps that binary in a native desktop interface and is not affiliated with or endorsed by mole.fit, the official Mole for Mac app; Burrow's name, mark, palette, and copy are original.

The problem it solves is fragmentation. Instead of juggling a separate cleaner, uninstaller, disk analyzer, and status monitor, a user installs one Homebrew cask and gets the mo-style command surface behind a graphical app, with nothing else to install. On top of the engine, Burrow adds two things the CLI lacks: a long-running local history of machine metrics, and a built-in MCP server that exposes that history and the tooling to AI agents. The project lives in the macOS ecosystem and also carries a Windows preview under windows/.

Key capabilities

• Cleanup: preview what is reclaimable, then remove categorized caches, logs, and leftovers for real, mirroring mo clean.
• Purge: reclaim space from developer artifacts and sweep leftover installers.
• App uninstall with leftover removal, so removing an application also clears the files it left behind.
• Disk analysis: disk maps and duplicate finding; the Windows preview adds read-only duplicate detection.
• Status: a live dashboard with per-metric sparklines and a sortable, pinnable process table, mirroring mo status --json.
• Local history: months of machine metrics kept in a local store, queryable by the app and by agents.
• MCP server: any MCP-capable agent (Claude Code, Cursor, Codex) can query machine state; actions are consent-gated and audited, Trash-based removals stay recoverable until the Trash is emptied, and permanent deletion requires separate consent and cannot be undone.

Who uses it and how

• Mac users who want one free app for cleanup, app removal, disk maps, and monitoring instead of several separate utilities.
• Developers who accumulate build artifacts and stale installers; purge and installer sweep target those directly.
• AI-agent users who point Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, or a local model through LM Studio at the MCP server; agents can notice low disk space and run consent-gated cleanup without being asked.
• Privacy-conscious users who want months of metric history in a local store rather than a cloud service.
• Windows users on the preview path: native WinUI 3 / .NET 8 preview with telemetry, history, tray HUD, loopback HTTP, and MCP stdio bridge, plus an Electron + React rewrite in windows/typescript/ with live telemetry, local history, reviewed artifact/installer recycling, disk analysis, and read-only duplicate detection; gaps tracked in windows/typescript/MIGRATION.md.

Getting started

On macOS, install with brew install --cask caezium/tap/burrow. On Windows, download from the releases page. Full Disk Access permission is needed on macOS.

How it compares

Burrow is modelled on the Mole (mo) CLI by tw93 but ships as a graphical app with a bundled engine, local metric history, and an MCP server the CLI lacks. It is separate from mole.fit, the paid ($19) official Mole for Mac app, which the README recommends buying to fund mo's development; the app is MIT while the bundled burrow-engine binary is source-available under FSL-1.1-ALv2.

When to use it — and when not to

Self-hosters must grant Full Disk Access and accept that the engine binary is source-available FSL-1.1 rather than MIT, even though the app itself is MIT. Permanent deletion needs separate consent and cannot be undone, and Trash-based removals are recoverable only until the Trash is emptied. The Windows side is a preview with unsigned release packaging and documented capability gaps, so it is not yet at parity with the mature macOS flagship.

brew install --cask caezium/tap/burrow