Your storage drive has a finite amount of space. There are many advantages of upgrading to an SSD, but storage space is a big one. Some of that space is taken up by internal processes, some by the operating system, and the rest is reserved for programs, music, photos, files, movies, and anything else you’ve saved. Storage is usually measured in gigabytes (GB). Show To see how much space you have on your storage drive, follow these instructions:
The total size of the disk will be listed, along with how much free space remains on the disk. We recommend 20% of free space to give the system plenty of room to exchange files with the memory module. How to free up space on a MacThere are several steps to clearing up space on a Mac. Step 1: Clear your desktopCheck your desktop and remove the shortcuts for any apps and files that you no longer use. Go to Software Update to permanently remove any apps from your storage disk. To use Software Update, click the apple icon, then select App Store, where you can update or uninstall programs. Step 2: Go through your foldersCheck the Downloads folder for redundant files. Make sure things you want are saved to the appropriate place on the storage disk, then delete the copy in the Downloads folder. Go through your storage disk to delete files, programs, games, and music you no longer want. You can also move items you want to keep but rarely use to the cloud or to an external storage drive. Delete any downloaded movies or TV shows that you’ve already watched. If you want to watch them again, they’re waiting for you on iTunes®. Step 3: Remove duplicate itemsUse the instructions below to remove duplicates of photos, documents, and music.
If you have OS X® Sierra on your Mac, you can configure items to automatically move some items to iCloud. Select the Apple menu, then About this Mac, select Manage, then Storage Tools. Then select Store in iCloud. This option moves items off your storage drive and into your Apple account in the cloud. Step 4: Use automatic toolsThere are other options in this area that will allow you to automatically clear space on your storage disk:
If you’ve accomplished these things and still don’t have enough room, consider upgrading your storage disk to a larger solid state drive. Use our System Scanner to find out exactly what upgrade you require. Step 5: Final cleanupBe sure to clear your browser’s cache files. If you’re using Safari:
Items you put in the trash stay there, taking up space until you empty the trash. Right-click on the trash icon and select Empty Trash. Some applications, such as iPhoto®, iMovie®, and Mail have their own trash cans, be sure to empty those as well by going into each program and selecting Empty Trash. All done
When you’ve completed all the tasks, restart or turn off your computer to clear the memory. You’ve just completed your Mac clean-up! If your Mac is still performing slowly, you may have to do some further digging. Our guide on speeding up your Mac system can help. ©2020 Micron Technology, Inc. All rights reserved. Information, products, and/or specifications are subject to change without notice. Neither Crucial nor Micron Technology, Inc. is responsible for omissions or errors in typography or photography. Micron, the Micron logo, Crucial, and the Crucial logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Micron Technology, Inc. Mac, Apple, iTunes, OS X, iPhoto, and iMovie are trademarks of Apple, Inc., registered in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners. |