Any home cook will tell you that finally getting their hands on a KitchenAid stand mixer changed their life. Out of the box, these heritage lifelong mixers can do so much to revolutionize daily prep work — especially for bakers, who can easily elevate their finished baked goods thanks to KitchenAid’s deft precision.
However, thanks to its highly precise line of attachments, a KitchenAid can do much more than simply whip through wet and dry ingredients with ease.
Almost all attachments and accessories are compatible with any Kitchenaid. The gadgets that are specifically designed to fit into your stand mixer’s attachment socket (which is covered by the silver cap at the very top of your mixer’s tilting head) can allegedly be used with any model dating back to 1937.
Recently, KitchenAid’s most popular mixer models have been in the Artisan series, and all of the attachments on this list are compatible with any Artisan stand mixer. These attachments can assist cooks in preparing savory recipes and whizzing through fresh homemade pasta. All kinds of ingredients can be ground and sifted, and a vegetable spiralizer can be eliminated, freeing up space elsewhere.
The following attachments are recommended by the editors of the Good Housekeeping Institute’s Test Kitchen as a way to transform an ordinary mixer into a “all-around workhorse for cooking” in any kitchen. All of these products have been thoroughly tested in our Kitchen Appliances Lab. We’ve compiled a list of the best KitchenAid attachments based on their usability and versatility in the kitchen, as well as their price and likelihood of making cooking complicated dishes at home easier.
Editor’s Pick: Top 5 Best KitchenAid Attachments
Things To Consider While Buying KitchenAid Attachments
Any home cook will tell you that finally getting their hands on a KitchenAid stand mixer changed their life. Out of the box, these heritage lifelong mixers can do so much to revolutionize daily prep work — especially for bakers, who can easily elevate their finished baked goods thanks to KitchenAid’s deft precision.
However, thanks to its highly precise line of attachments, a KitchenAid can do much more than simply whip through wet and dry ingredients with ease.
Almost all attachments and accessories are compatible with any Kitchenaid. The gadgets that are specifically designed to fit into your stand mixer’s attachment socket (which is covered by the silver cap at the very top of your mixer’s tilting head) can allegedly be used with any model dating back to 1937.
Recently, KitchenAid’s most popular mixer models have been in the Artisan series, and all of the attachments on this list are compatible with any Artisan stand mixer. These attachments can assist cooks in preparing savory recipes and whizzing through fresh homemade pasta. All kinds of ingredients can be ground and sifted, and a vegetable spiralizer can be eliminated, freeing up space elsewhere.
The following attachments are recommended by the editors of the Good Housekeeping Institute’s Test Kitchen as a way to transform an ordinary mixer into a “all-around workhorse for cooking” in any kitchen. All of these products have been thoroughly tested in our Kitchen Appliances Lab.
We’ve compiled a list of the best KitchenAid attachments based on their usability and versatility in the kitchen, as well as their price and likelihood of making cooking complicated dishes at home easier.
- Price
The majority of KitchenAid attachments are not cheap. If cost is a major factor in your decision to purchase a new piece of equipment, compare the attachment you’re considering to other stand-alone machines that do the same job.
Many times, a separate machine will cost less than the attachment, but you will forego convenience, craftsmanship, or possibly storage space—all of which are important factors to consider when determining the overall value of your equipment.
Throughout the year, several major retailers offer discounts and special coupons on KitchenAid products, including attachments.
- Warranty Specifications
All KitchenAid attachments are covered by a one-year hassle-free warranty. The warranty covers any out-of-the-box defects (which do occur—keep your receipts) as well as malfunctions that occur during normal use. The warranties will not cover your machine if it has been used outside of the home or shows signs of misuse; in some cases, they will not cover additional parts for repairs.
Consider the vendor’s return policy when shopping for an attachment. Some stores have a flexible return policy and will replace an attachment if it is not functioning properly without involving the manufacturer directly.
Best KitchenAid Attachments Reviews
1. Pasta Cutter and Roller
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Simply put, I adore the KitchenAid pasta roller—it gives you that giddy, “I can make anything!” feeling. It’s simple to use, even meditative, and because it attaches to the KitchenAid, you have both hands free to feed and catch the pasta (this is harder with analog countertop models, which are powered by a hand crank). I used the attachments, which come in sets of three and five, to roll and cut eggless semolina spaghetti and fettuccine.
If you want to make capellini (very thin noodles, similar to angel hair) or lasagnette (wider noodles, similar to pappardelle), or if you’re content with pasta sheets, spaghetti, and fettuccine, the 3- or 5-piece set is better for you. Whatever you choose, they’re all perfectly streamlined and fit neatly into a small, tidy box.
Rating for Versatility: Multitasker
Good for: Pasta lovers and anyone looking to learn a new skill will enjoy this class.
2. Gourmet Pasta Press
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KitchenAid, however, did not stop with pasta-related attachments. This pasta press combines all of the different pasta cutting tools into a single compact(ish) attachment. It’s almost identical to the Play-Do presses I grew up with, complete with six interchangeable discs for making fusilli, bucatini, rigatoni, spaghetti, and large and small macaroni.
In comparison to the first model I tested, this machine produces more complex shapes suitable for true pasta enthusiasts.
I went with the rigatoni shape. To make them, I began with a batch of egg dough made with equal parts all-purpose flour and farro flour (fresh-ground using the grain mill attachment). To use, feed dough balls through a tube.
It comes into contact with an auger, which drives the dough through the shaping disc. The whole thing is simple, and it’s entertaining to use the little attached wire to cut the pasta as it’s extruded. The one drawback is that, while the press itself is easy to clean, the extrusion discs are difficult to remove—I ended up using a metal cake tester to fish out sticky bits of dough.
Rating for Versatility: Special Interest
Good for: Pasta connoisseurs will enjoy this.
3. Ice Cream Machine
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This one couldn’t be simpler: Freeze the ice cream canister for 15 hours (this is fairly standard for canister ice cream makers), then insert the plastic dasher and attach a small gadget to the part of the stand mixer where you normally screw on the beater.
The bowl has a large capacity—more there’s than enough room to make two quarts of ice cream at once. At the same time, it takes up a significant amount of freezer space. And it was quick! My mint chip ice cream (which I made) was ready in about 15 minutes.
Rating for Versatility: Special Interest
Good for: Ice cream connoisseurs and do-it-yourselfers will enjoy this.
4. Meat Grinder
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First and foremost, I am a vegetarian. If you’re a vegetarian, there’s really no reason to have this (explicitly named—we all know it’s really for meat) food grinder, though KitchenAid’s helpful online guide for this attachment included a very solid recipe for lentil-mushroom burgers, which I made with the attachment.
It’s fast, consistent, and simple to clean and assemble, and it does a great job of grinding meat at home (and even incorporating seasonings like garlic and fresh herbs into the mix alongside hunks of chuck or chicken). It also comes with two sausage stuffing tools (one small one for lamb casings and one larger one for pork).
Rating for Versatility: Special Interest
Good for: Meatheads, would-be sausage stuffers, and anyone looking to up their burger game with freshly ground beef should try this.
5. Juicer of citrus fruits
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This citrus juicer is fast, simple to clean, and versatile. I used it to juice a pound of tiny Key limes; it was difficult at first to grip the limes against the reamer because it’s really designed for citrus with a diameter of more than an inch.
It would make making homemade orange or grapefruit juice a breeze, transforming it from a once-in-a-while store-bought treat into a daily ritual.
Rating for Versatility: Multitasker
Suitable for: Fans of freshly squeezed orange juice
6. Peel, Core, and Slice Spiralizer Plus
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Okay, this one is a lot of fun. I’m not a big fan of zoodles (or sweet pot-oodles, etc.) as pasta substitutes (See also: how much I liked the pasta attachments), but as a way to, ahem, noodle around with vegetables, this attachment gets my approval.
There’s something enchanting about watching a hunk of zucchini spiral off like a firecracker. The kit comes with seven blades: extra-fine, fine, and medium spiralizers; a thin slicer for small-cored vegetables, a medium slicer for small-cored vegetables, and a medium slicer for large-cored vegetables; and a peeler that can be used with any of the other blades.
You could also use them to make homemade curly fries (possibly the best use for a spiralizer) or one of those spiral-cut potatoes fried on a skewer that you get at street fairs—or just to jazz up salads.
Versatility rating: Special Interest
Good for: Zoodle fans, kids, and play-with-your-food-ers
7. Slicer/Shredder for Fresh Preparation
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This attachment is essentially a box grater that doesn’t require you to risk your knuckles (or arm strength) for, making it ideal for latke marathons, homemade mac and cheese, and muesli prep.
Alternatively, for grated carrot salad. If you already have a food processor with shredding discs, you can skip this step. One complaint: the pound of carrots I grated turned the white interior of the attachment a bright orange color.
Rating for Versatility: Multitasker
Good for: If you find yourself reaching for the box grater on a daily basis, this is the tool for you.
8. Juicer and Sauce Attachment
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I think this was the attachment I was most excited to try—I love a good juice, and there’s something appealing about making one at home. The juicer attachment (which can also be used to make apple or tomato sauce) comes in a large box, and unpacking it reveals a slew of extras: basket inserts for your preferred pulp level, a two-in-one plunger system for pushing your fruit down the feed tube, an auger/blade combo that breaks up fruit and grinds it against your chosen basket insert, pitchers for catching juice and pulp…
It was a little intimidating when it first came out of the box, but it assembled quickly and compactly.
Unfortunately, that’s where the efficiency ended: The combination of textures I fed it—leafy, fibrous, and long celery; dense and fibrous ginger; juicy, skin-on apple; and super-ripe, pulpy pineapple—seemed to challenge the blade.
The quick-start manual instructs you to pull the juicer’s pulp spout out before juicing; this is the “closed” position (pushing the spout in is “open”). I did this, and it caused such a major clog that I had to stop juicing in the middle and disassemble, clean, and reassemble before continuing.
Looking through the manual for help, I discovered a note recommending that the spout be pushed in (“open”) for low-pulp juices; this helped, but the juice was still quite pulpy. Was it my fault or the fault of the machine? I’m not certain.
With all of the pieces, I’m not convinced that this is more space-efficient than a separate appliance, and it’s certainly not as powerful as a dedicated juicer. If you’re a big juice fan, you should probably get one of these.
Rating for Versatility: Multitasker
Ideal for: The occasional juicer
9. Vegetable Sheet Cutter
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This was the least appealing attachment to me—what do you do with long sheets of vegetables? According to the KitchenAid website, the sheets can be used as a substitute for pasta, wraps, or even as a type of “flatbread.”
The attachment itself was simple to use and clean. It is made up of only a few parts that can be easily assembled and disassembled. I cut a beet into a long ribbon, then cut the ribbon into small pieces and baked them into beet chips, which worked perfectly.
If you’re avoiding grains for health reasons and looking for alternatives to lasagna noodles, rice-paper wraps, crusts, and the like, this could be the recipe for you.
Versatility rating: Single Use
Good for: Extra-creative types and those avoiding grains
10. Grain Mill
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I decided to use the grain mill to grind some farro for pasta making with the pasta-maker attachments. The mill is very stylish and modern. There is only one component: a hopper screwed to a burr with a knob that allows you to adjust the setting based on how fine you want your flour to be. (It also includes a small brush for cleaning.)
Because I was going to use this flour to make pasta, I started the mill on the finest setting, poured my farro into the hopper (which held about a pound of it), and let it rip (you run it at the highest speed of the stand mixer).
It took about ten minutes to grind about a half cup of farro, dear reader. I turned off the machine to give it a rest and prevent it from overheating. (Admittedly, farro is a fairly hard grain; I suspect oats would have ground up more quickly.)
Having said that, the flour was stunning: uniform and incredibly fine. But I didn’t have all night, so I turned the knob to the third-finest setting and let it run once more. This seemingly minor change made a significant difference in speed, but it still took about 40 minutes to grind 1 1/2 pounds of farro flour.
I turned off the stand mixer for the rest of the night. The grinder is relatively quiet—similar to a food processor and quieter than a coffee grinder—but it was still loud enough to annoy my cat.
Rating for Versatility: Single Use
Good for: Serious bakers and pasta makers who are patient.
11. Dicing Kit for Food Processor
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This attachment comes in a large box with numerous pieces and blades, each packaged in its own case. If you’re thinking about using this attachment to consolidate appliances, a standalone food processor might actually take up less space.
I used the julienne disc to grate potatoes for rösti, but I was missing my food processor, which I found in the cabinet below: Potato slivers kept getting stuck in the crawl space between the blade and the plunger.
Furthermore, I was hesitant to use as much force to push the potatoes down the feed tube because the entire thing is only connected to the stand mixer by the stainless steel shaft. It does come with a “commercial-style dicing kit” for easy, perfect dicing—if you want a visually perfect mirepoix without the chopping, this could be the tool for you.
Rating for Versatility: Multitasker
Good for: Avoid it in favor of a stand-alone food processor!
12. Ravioli Creator
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I used the same farro egg dough that I used to test the ravioli maker, as well as a batch of minty pea-and-parmesan filling. I was completely perplexed right away. To begin, you must begin with pre-rolled pasta sheets (which must be made using a pasta roller—not included here—or by hand rolling your dough very thinly).
Second, even though you attach the attachment to the dock of a KitchenAid stand mixer, it does not use the mixer’s power: it is a hand crank. To use it, place a dough sheet between two cylindrical ravioli stamps.
Then, in the container that sits on top between the two cylinders, spread a dollop of filling. The machine is then slowly turned on. The attachment should fold the pasta dough while sandwiching the filling inside, resulting in perforated sheets of filled ravioli.
I couldn’t make this work—I’m not sure what happened, but the machine clogged, the dough mashed and tore, and that was the end of it. It was all very sloppy. I believe it would be quicker to use the tried-and-true methods of cutting ravioli with a handheld ravioli stamp, a pastry wheel, or a sharp knife.
Rating for Versatility: Single Use
It is suitable for: Ignore it!
13. Sifter+Scale
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The reviews on KitchenAid’s website for this attachment are overwhelmingly positive—many claim that it is the best one available and that it has improved and consistent their baking. But I do have a few gripes:
First, the attachment (which is made up of three stackable pieces: a sifter with a chute that directs your flour and sugar into the mixing bowl, a digital scale, and a vessel for the dry ingredients to sit in while pre-weighing and sifting) can only be used with dry ingredients.
That means no eggs, sour cream, milk, or water, which is inconvenient when making any kind of dough. It would be less inconvenient if the scale could be used without the sifter (the manual claims it can, but I couldn’t figure out how).
A digital scale (which costs a tenth of the price of a traditional scale) will help you bake more consistently, and a whisk and fine-mesh sieve will keep your batters light and fluffy.
Rating for Versatility: Single Use
Good for: Skip it in favor of a regular old digital scale.
Types of KitchenAid Attachment
#Pasta rollers, cutters, and presses are all available.
- Roller for pasta sheets:
Unless you’ve had decades of practice under the tutelage of an experienced Italian nonna, you’re unlikely to be able to roll out perfectly thin and even sheets of pasta with ease. This is why the pasta sheet roller is such a popular mixer attachment among both home and professional cooks.
The pasta sheet roller attachment, which has eight thickness settings, accommodates your roughly rolled dough and sheets it to the desired thickness. The pasta sheets, with a maximum width of 6 inches, are ideal for lasagna sheets or for cutting into noodles or ravioli.
While some people prefer to cut their pasta dough by hand, KitchenAid offers pasta cutter attachments in four different widths to make slicing pasta more consistent and efficient. The cutters operate in the same manner as the sheeter (and require pre-sheeted dough).
The disadvantage is that the various widths are not sold individually, but rather as part of various sets—which can get expensive if you don’t plan ahead of time which pieces you’d like to use.
A medium-large-width lasagnette and a very small capellini cutter are included in this two-piece set.
Three-piece set includes a pasta sheet roller, a small spaghetti cutter, and a medium-width fettuccine cutter.
The pasta sheet roller and all four pasta cutters are included in this five-piece deluxe set.
- 1-inch ravioli maker:
The ravioli maker is a hand-cranked machine that plugs into the hub of your KitchenAid for stability. The ravioli maker attachment creates pockets of whatever filling you place in the filling hopper using pre-sheeted pasta dough, pressing and scoring the dough around the pockets to form consistent ravioli shapes.
The ravioli maker has received mixed reviews, with some praising the ease with which the machine fills the pasta and others pointing out that traditional ravioli presses are just as convenient for a fraction of the price.
- Gourmet pasta press attachment:
Extruded pasta is a whole different animal. Instead of sheeted pasta cut into noodles, noodle shapes are created by pressing pasta dough through a patterned die (similar to spritz cookie presses).
The gourmet pasta press attachment includes six discs for extruding pasta into round spaghetti, bucatini, rigatoni, fusilli, and large and small macaroni shapes. Pasta dough is pushed through the top feeder and then cut at the base with a wirecutter when it reaches the desired length. If you’ve never made extruded pasta before, you’ll quickly learn how to feed and cut the dough.
#Attachments for Grinder
- KitchenAid manufactures two grinder attachments:
A heavy-duty all-metal set with extras and a mostly plastic grinder designed for light- to medium-duty home use. Grinders are ideal for those who want to make their own sausages, chorizo, or hard cheeses, vegetables for salsa, and breadcrumbs.
This kit includes three sizes of grinding plates, a larger detachable food tray, a plunger, two sizes of sausage stuffer attachments, and a cleaning brush. For cleaner grinding, the metal grinder attachment should be refrigerated before and between meat-grinding projects.
This plastic food grinder comes with two grinder plates and is mostly dishwasher safe. Separately, a sausage stuffer kit and a larger food tray are available.
- Fruit and vegetable strainer set with food grinder:
The same plastic food grinder set with two grinding plates as listed above, but with an additional fruit and vegetable strainer attached to the front to aid in the processing of ingredients for soups, sauces, chutneys, and jams.
#Attachment for Juicers
- Citrus juicer attachment:
KitchenAid offers two types of juicers to suit a variety of juicing needs and budgets. Juicing a quart of fresh orange juice for breakfast with a classic reamer-style citrus juicer attachment on the lower end of the price spectrum is a breeze compared to a hand juicer.
Masticating juicer and sauce attachment:
The masticating juicer is an impressive KitchenAid attachment for those who want to take advantage of the powerful juicing options without purchasing a separate juicer. Its price is comparable to low-end standalone juicer models, but it requires less storage space overall. According to some reviewers, your juice will need to be strained again to remove more pulp.
#Food Processors Attachment
- Food processor attachments:
KitchenAid makes two stand mixer food processor attachments, but these aren’t your typical single-blade food processors for chopping nuts. These are miniature versions of commercial food processors with disks for slicing, julienning, and shredding.
The upgraded model comes with a dicing kit as well as a carrying case for the discs. If you begin with the base model attachment and discover that you need the dicing kit and disc case, KitchenAid sells them separately to round out your collection.
While it is not as powerful as other standalone food processors on the market, most users appreciate its convenience and versatility while taking up so little space.
#Attachments for Peelers and Spiralizers
- Peeler for vegetable sheets:
Consider a pasta sheeter attachment for vegetables and apples. If you want to make a veggie sheet lasagna, veggie wraps, or creative pastry applications, the vegetable sheet peeler will produce smooth sheets that would be difficult to make by hand.
- Noodle blade accessory:
The noodle blade accessory, like the pasta cutter attachments, is here to slice your beautifully sheeted vegetables into noodle shapes. It must be used alongside the vegetable sheet peeler attachment.
- Spiralizer attachments with five and seven blades:
These spiralizer attachments will produce the long vegetable tendrils you love for veggie pasta and fresh salads, and they include a peeler blade to quickly remove those apple and potato skins that would otherwise slow down your cooking. For quick prep, use the peeler attachment in conjunction with the slicing blades.
Two slicing blades, two spiralizing blades, and a peeling blade are included in the five-blade set. If you start with the five-blade model, the seven-blade set includes an extra slicing and spiralizing blade, which can be purchased separately.
- Slicer/shredder for fresh prep:
Carrots shredded for carrot cake? Is that enough cheese for a Super Bowl’s worth of nachos? Or a pound of potatoes to feed the entire family latkes? Allow your arm to rest, put away the box grater and mandolin, and let the slicer/shredder do the work. The large and small grating attachments, as well as the slicer attachment, perform the same function with minimal effort.
#Attachment for Grain Mill
- Grain mill:
This is for the serious bread bakers and pastry chefs out there. The KitchenAid grain mill attachment is easier to use than a hand-cranked grain mill and significantly less expensive than other standalone grain mills, which can easily cost twice as much as this attachment. The grain mill, according to KitchenAid, will process grains such as wheat, oats, corn, and rice in textures ranging from “cracked” to extra-fine.
- Scale and sifter:
This attachment simplifies the baking process by scaling and sifting dry ingredients such as flour, granulated sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda directly into your KitchenAid mixing bowl. Most reviewers enjoyed using it, but some were put off by the high price—and others found it more difficult to use than standard scaling.
#Attachments for Bowls
These attachments aren’t intended for use with the power hub, but rather are specialty mixing bowls that heat or freeze while using your stand mixer to keep the contents of the bowl moving.
- Ice cream maker bowl:
The ice cream maker bowl, which can spin up to 2 quarts of ice cream or sorbet in under 30 minutes, is a convenient and space-saving ice cream making solution for those who enjoy making ice cream at home on a regular basis.
The bowl freezes for 24 hours and can be attached to either head-tilt or bowl-lift style machines (but not the Artisan Mini mixer). The special paddle attachment spins your ice cream base until it’s soft, aerated, and chilled after it’s been assembled. You may need to finish chilling your ice cream in the freezer for an hour or two to completely freeze it.
Because the bowl must be completely frozen before churning, you can only spin one ice cream at a time, allowing the bowl to refreeze after washing and in between uses. Depending on how frequently you use the ice cream bowl, you might want to keep it in the freezer so it’s ready whenever you are.
- Precise heat mixing bowl:
This incredibly precise heated bowl can be attached to your KitchenAid mixer or used as a stand-alone heating bowl. You might think that’s a little fancy for fondue, but this bowl was designed and engineered for more complex and precise tasks like proofing bread and tempering chocolate. With a maximum temperature of 222 degrees, you can also slow-cook foods for several hours and heat delicate sauces such as Béarnaise without risk of scorching them on the stovetop.
#Additional Attachments
Because of the popularity of KitchenAid attachments, several compatible off-brand products have emerged, including a slew of pasta sheeters and cutters, grinders, slicers, and shredders. KitchenAid makes the most comprehensive and dependable stand mixer attachments, but other brands have created attachments that are occasionally less expensive or have slightly different features than the name-brand attachments.
Why Should You Believe Us?
Donna Currie is the author of the cookbook Make Ahead Bread and a product reviewer who specializes in kitchen gadgets, so she knows a thing or two about KitchenAid attachments. Donna has written numerous roundups and reviews for The Spruce Eats, including the best instant-read thermometers, espresso machines, spiralizers, and other kitchen gadgets.
Jenny Kellerhals, a professional pastry chef in NYC kitchens for over a decade, updated this piece. She understands the value of dependable kitchen tools because only the most dependable equipment makes it into her small apartment kitchen.
Final Verdict
The KitchenAid stand mixer is well known for its primary function – mixing and blending.
However, the numerous accessories and attachments available can transform your stand mixer into a multi-purpose, multi-functional, entertaining, and useful kitchen gadget.
It can be the focal point of your kitchen, allowing you, your family, and your guests to enjoy culinary delights.
With the right attachments, you could be using your stand mixer on a daily basis.
When looking at the various attachments and accessories available, make sure to select the ones you will use the most. You don’t want to be irritated by a seldom-used item taking up space in your cabinets.
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