MacOS – Download large file to selected location

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I was given the http://some_url/file.rar address of a very large file (8 GB). I want to download it directly to my external HDD. I haven't found any way to do this other than opening a terminal and typing these commands:

cd /Volumes/ExternalDisk
curl http://some_url/file.rar > file.rar

So the good old Unix solved my problem. But is it possible that OS X hasn't got such a capability?

I know I can type the URL in Safari and then option-click, but I need to change the default download directory. Similar approach with Firefox.

Another possibility I found is to create an Automator script made of two steps:

  1. select URL
  2. download to…

It works, but is not a built-in solution as requires the user make the script and package it in an app.

Is there a better a more Mac-style way to do this (without using external applications)? To see such a feature in the Finder would be nice.

Best Answer

According to Apple Support, you can change the default Download directory in Safari:

If you like, you can change the default folder for storing downloads by using your browser’s preferences. To specify a different folder in Safari, choose Safari > Preferences, and then click General.

You should then be able to switch to use your external HDD by default.

As other posters have noted, Firefox and Chrome can also be configured to use a different download directory.

It might be possible to directly save a file (if a link is provided) by right clicking and selecting the Download Linked File As... option. Select your desired location and save the file.

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