How to clean up Mac with CleanMyMac X: Download CleanMyMac X (a link to a free edition of the app) Launch the program. Go to the Large and Old Files section on the menu. Review the details, select what to clean and then click Clean. Remove old iOS backups. Having your files backed up is a wonderful thing. Clean up cache files on your Mac Cache files are files that help your Mac run programs a bit more smoothly. Think of them like blueprints for a house: your Mac has the blueprints for how a program is supposed to load/run/look, so it loads it faster; without them, it’d be like building it from scratch.
Some days ago, I found one Reddit user’s post telling the “System” taking up a huge space on Mac. It was the first time I met the Mac “System” storage problem. And it was described as follow:
Hi Mac Users, System is taking an incredibly large amount of space. I mistakenly loaded heavy video files to Numbers and the hard disk immediately filled up. Any help accorded will be highly appreciated.
After I checked my computer storage usage and I was surprised to find my “System” is also taking an incredibly huge space – 43GB of the total 120GB on my MacBook Air.
As well known, the Mac operating system usually takes up from 8GB to 13GB. So I don’t think my Mac “System” storage could be that huge, so I searched to find how it defines “System” storage for a Mac, and how to free up that storage.
What is in the Mac “System” Storage?
The “System” on your Mac storage bar stands for that space your macOS operating system used, including the system itself and the caches and cookies it generated while driving on your computer hard drive.
Sometimes, your Mac may mistakenly put other sections into the “System” storage. For instance, my mac made the mistake of failing to exclude the “Music creations” and “iOS files” (iOS backups) from the “System” storage, so that I get a huge “System” on the storage bar.
And after I clicked the Manage. button on the top left of the bar, it showed the real system storage was taking only 29.3 GB. And there were two new categories named “iOS files” and “Music creations” being separated.
Sep 08, 2020. Jul 22, 2019. Wear os download music video.
And the sum of the storage size of these three parts (System, Music Creation, and iOS Files) is 43.38GB, equal to the size of the huge System storage I showed before on the storage bar.
4 Tips to Quickly Clean Storage on Your Mac
On the storage manager page, you’ll have a detailed view of all data types with the size it used. And you can choose any large category to have a clean. And below are some usual and free methods to free up your Mac storage.
- Delete useless iOS backup files, applications, and documents.
- Transfer media files like photos, video, music, and iBooks to external disk drive or cloud. And then delete them.
- Empty your Trash bin get more free space.
- Remove your iPhone or iPad software updates on your Mac.
Most of these methods aim to remove the larger files on your Mac to quickly free up your Mac storage. And if there is any question, please leave your comment below.
Just like any day-to-day item, your Mac needs a good cleaning once in a while. Getting rid of all the unnecessary files will help your Mac return to its factory excellence and speed up to match your needs. However, you might find yourself clueless as to where to start your Mac clean up: what can be deleted and what should be left on drive? Don’t worry. You might be a little bit lost right now but, as usual, we have some bulletproof tips and tools to help you clean your Mac and speed it up.
4 steps to Mac cleanup
The good news is that in four (or even less) steps you can get a cleaner Mac and boost your Mac’s performance.
If your Mac is out of storage space or starts running slow, you’re up for a cleaning game. And you don’t have to do it alone. We’ve prepared the smartest memory-boosting hacks and practices to speed of your Mac safely. Time for an easy Mac cleanup!
Clean up your Mac’s Desktop
This might seem like an obvious step to take, but you’d be surprised how many Mac users believe the Desktop is the perfect place to store files and docs, handy and always on tap. However, that’s a rookie mistake. Fortunately, you can fix it. That’s why you should clean your Mac starting from the Desktop before you go any deeper. Be honest, can you even see your desktop background clearly now or is it obscured because of the icon-riddled mess?
The fact is, that the Finder treats any folder or file on your desktop as a window. A couple of items on the desktop cause no problem, but if the clutter persists, your Finder will soon slow down and get on your nerves. So better sort it all out to separate folders and let us quickly take you to number two.
Free up your Mac’s hard drive
When it comes to storage, there are items you know about (like your photos and videos) and many hidden entities (like cache files, logs, and app junk). These deep-seated junk files may start off small, but over time they will begin to weigh your Mac down.
Tip: According to one test conducted by MacWorld, nearly full hard drives perform 17.5% slower than the cleaner ones. That’s why it’s so important to refresh your hard drive every now and then. Your system will convert the newly-released free space into virtual memory to ensure your apps are running smoothly. Otherwise, if you’re low on space, your Mac will slow down.
One folder you should regularly clean up for a faster Mac is the Downloads folder. This is where junk piles up little by little, resulting in a total mess. For a complete Mac clean up, make sure to also ditch any unnecessary widgets or apps. Wait, but you think you might need them one day? Truth is, if you haven’t used them so far, you won’t use them in the future. So gather all your courage and hit Delete.
If your Mac is still running slow, then it could be due to old hardware. A new SSD or more RAM is the easiest way to boost your hardware performance without having to spend too much.
How do I know what to delete?
What’s really annoying is that some massive folders on your Mac remain invisible. Each app or website visit leaves behind its own archive of data, which keeps growing over time. To hack this, you can use CleanMyMac X app by MacPaw. It uncovers large redundant files you can delete. And this application is notarized by Apple.
You can delete:
- broken downloads
- remains of old apps
- outdated cache
It found 5.81 GB on our computer, but it may detect even more on your Mac.
Download Free VersionTake control of startup and login items
When your Mac boots up, the macOS will launch various startup items. Some you do need, but nearly half of them can be safely switched off. Otherwise, they’ll sit in the background using up your system resources and slowing your Mac down.
To remove startup and login items manually, go to System Preferences > Users & Groups and click on your username. Next up, click on “Login Items” and select all the apps you don’t need running at startup. Then click the “-” button below and you’re done. By disabling the startup programs, you’ll have a speedier Mac next time you boot up.
Repair disk permissions
Disk permissions act like doorkeepers preventing third-party apps from meddling with your system. But disk permissions can get broken, which limits your Mac ability to find the right files.
If you’re on El Capitan or older OS X versions, you can repair disk permissions using the following command in the Terminal window:
sudo /usr/libexec/repair_packages --verify --standard-pkgs /
It will now check the validity of your disk permissions. If you get anything saying “permissions differ”, then you can fix it with this command:
sudo /usr/libexec/repair_packages --repair --standard-pkgs -- volume /
If you are a mere mortal, uneasy with using Terminal, a Mac cleaning utility like CleanMyMac X, can do a better, risk-free job. A single click in Maintenance > Repair Disk Permissions solves it without fuss. With your disk permissions fixed and verified you can enjoy a smoother overall Mac experience.
The free version of this tool is available for download here.
Once you’ve finished to clean up your Mac, make sure to reboot your machine for a fresh start.
Delete System Junk and browser cache
System Junk can account for significant amount of disk space. It’s a broad term that describes temporary files created by your OS itself and all your apps. Since we mostly use our Macs to go online, the internet-related junk takes up the most space.
How to clean up your browser cache:
- Download tunes. For Safari, click Develop in the top menu
- Then, click Empty caches
- For Chrome, click the “hamburger” icon in the top right corner
- Then click More tools > Clear browsing data
Find hidden files on your drive
You probably know that a lot of files are purposely made invisible on your Mac. Not necessarily with bad intentions. Such files could be crucial system components and thus protected from accidental deletion. Quite often, however, you’ll encounter remains of old apps, invisible adware, and extensions.
There is a shortcut key combination to reveal the unseen files.
- Go to your Documents, or any other directory
- Click Shift +Command + Period key
Do you see any grayed out files? Check what these files are and delete them if they look suspicious.
Remove old backups (and Time Machine backups)
How To Clean Up My Mac
There are several layers of backups built in your macOS. Local Time Machine snapshots, iOS, and iCloud backups, etc. If we’re talking about a clean Mac, that’s free from old baggage, you should look into removing them too.
Here is how to remove local Time Machine backups (a.k.a snapshots)
Click Launchpad and type in Time Machine
Your backups will be broken by locations, like Desktop. You can use arrows to the right to navigate between past states of that location.
Now, click on the gear icon in the menu above.
Select “Delete All Backups” in the menu.
Delete the iCloud backups stored on your Mac
Open System Preferences > iCloud.
Click Manage.. at the bottom the pane.
Look through the list of iCloud backups in the sidebar.
iCloud photos will probably occupy the most space. If you’re ready to say goodbye to them, click Delete.Build the map of your storage
Any computer is ultimately a tree of folders. What if you could draw the map of all folders you have on your Mac and see how large these folders are?
Apparently, there is an ultra simple way to do it. Some applications like Daisy Disk or CleanMyMac will build such “folder tree” for you and it’s really fascinating to look at.
For example, this is the Space Lens tool from CleanMyMac X:
Download Free VersionThe blue bubbles stand represent my folders big and small. You can dive into each folder exploring your drive in a completely new way, much more informative than using the Finder. You can find your long lost folders and locate your biggest space wasters.
- To use this tool, download the app (see the button above)
- Click the Space Lens tab in the sidebar
Clean your Mac the smart way, all the way
How Do I Clean My Mac
If you’ve been following the steps above (and read some extra tips), you are fully equipped to clean up your Mac. Because you don’t need to be a bearded IT guy to do it. Let alone spend extra cash to improve your Mac’s performance. Simply cleaning your system as steps above suggest or using a dedicated app like CleanMyMac will help you out. By the way. CleanMyMac is free to download, so give it a try. And see your Mac’s capabilities now, when it it’s not weighed down by junk.