Hi, I have an older MBA with 128G SSD. As you all know this isn't much space and it fills up very quickly. I have a lot of work related applications and files. I dislike the idea to have to carry an external USB drive with me where ever I go. Kinda defeat the purpose of having a MBA don't you think? To free up space, I am wondering if it's a good idea to delete some or all of these useless applications that bundled with OSX such as iTunes, Mail, Calendar... since I have no use and never use any of them. If I remove them will it cause any problems for the OS itself?
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Remove unused applications from OSX
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If things are that tight where you literally have to start deleting parts that came with OSX I'd say it's time for a machine upgrade.
If you had a cMBP that wouldn't be a problem.
If you had a cMBP that wouldn't be a problem.
You could start by running Monolingual and have it delete unnecessary language files, which usually ends up taking nearly 2 GB of space.
Then you should download and run OmniDiskSweeper to get a clearer idea of what takes up space.
Otherwise OWC has SSDs that are compatible with every generation of MacBook Airs.
Then you should download and run OmniDiskSweeper to get a clearer idea of what takes up space.
Otherwise OWC has SSDs that are compatible with every generation of MacBook Airs.
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I also strongly recommend against deleting standard Apple apps which may have dependencies with other apps or the OS itself. As others have suggested, you may start with third-party apps, unused documents and unused media (especially movies), which may easily go in an external HD.
A second stage would be to use Monolingual with care, deleting extra languages etc.
Other than that, replace your SSD with a bigger one.
A second stage would be to use Monolingual with care, deleting extra languages etc.
Other than that, replace your SSD with a bigger one.
Monolingual is the first space-saving recommendation in the link I posted. I agree that care should be taken, so as not to delete the wrong architectures or languages.
You can remove many of these applications without problems (i. e. Chess, iMovie, iPhoto, Garage Band). Some are essential - i. e. Font Book, System Preferences, Time Machine, and probably some more. I guess alltogether you might be able to save three or four gigabytes.
If that's worth it it's probably a good idea to copy everything onto a dedicated USB stick before deleting it from your computer. You probably will also get some of these applications back next time you run Software Update.
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I've done it, accidentally and on purpose; usually things still work. Some stuff, like the contact database that goes with Address Book, for example, can throw a wrench into your OS because other applications rely on it.
I'd proceed carefully, and get a copy of Pacifist just in case.
I'd proceed carefully, and get a copy of Pacifist just in case.
This largely isn't necessary on Lion/Mountain Lion. Most of the cruft was already removed. In fact, I remember hearing quite a bit about the languages and printer drivers Apple removed to make Lion quicker to download and install.
That said, I just ran Monolingual with the default settings. I saved a grand total of 88MB. There must be more effective things to do.
That said, I just ran Monolingual with the default settings. I saved a grand total of 88MB. There must be more effective things to do.
The space saved by Monolingual will vary between users, based on what apps are installed, which OS version they're running, etc. If you have a large number of apps (such as MS Office) with multiple languages in each, the savings could be greater. Earlier versions of the OS had PowerPC architectures which could be removed for additional savings. Those architectures are no longer supported in Lion and ML, so you won't save on that score, but languages could still represent more than you found on yours.
Just by deleting unnecessary languages in the OS ITSELF saves at least a couple of Gigabytes...
some of those apps don't really use up much space. garageband isn't the problem, it's support files are. for example, check the garageband folder in HD>Library>Application Support; lots of sounds, audio files. delete THAT.
in the same library, go to Speech: the voices folder; perhaps back it up somewhere THEN delete it (as long as you're ok with your mac not talking TO you).
delete the files in the User>Home>Library>Cache folder periodically; reboot, THEN empty the trash.
look around; if you're not sure about something, back it up first.
btw monolingual's a good one, as mentioned above.
i've cleared out a LOT of stuff from my mac, and usually keep older or inactive projects on an external drive. it's great to travel light, and have lots of breathing room...
in the same library, go to Speech: the voices folder; perhaps back it up somewhere THEN delete it (as long as you're ok with your mac not talking TO you).
delete the files in the User>Home>Library>Cache folder periodically; reboot, THEN empty the trash.
look around; if you're not sure about something, back it up first.
btw monolingual's a good one, as mentioned above.
i've cleared out a LOT of stuff from my mac, and usually keep older or inactive projects on an external drive. it's great to travel light, and have lots of breathing room...
All good points except this one. As caches exist to improve performance, deleting them will impede performance while they're being rebuilt, and any space saving is temporary, since the cache will grow again. Unless there's a specific problem you're troubleshooting that involves a particular cache, it's best to leave them alone and look elsewhere for space savings.
you and i have had this discussion before.
altho i've been deleting that folder's contents for YEARS (except for the audiounits file) without issue, i will agree it's not necessary, as it does in fact rebuild pretty quickly...
Thanks all for the replies.
I think this weekend I will make a clone of the Hd with CCC first, then I will delete them one by one see what happens. Cross my fingers http://cdn.macrumors.com/vb/images/smilies/eek.gif
I think this weekend I will make a clone of the Hd with CCC first, then I will delete them one by one see what happens. Cross my fingers http://cdn.macrumors.com/vb/images/smilies/eek.gif
I strongly agree with the statement above, especially for those new to Mac.
There's no quicker way to ruin the fun of a new Mac then to remove mission critical system files.
Leave the apps it came with in place, you'll be so glad you did
Extraneous Printer files
I was checking to see if I had the latest drivers for my Epson photo printer and after doing a Search for Epson, I found I had well over a GB of files that seem to be for every Epson printer known.
Should I not be able to send all of them to Trash, except for the one I am using?
I was checking to see if I had the latest drivers for my Epson photo printer and after doing a Search for Epson, I found I had well over a GB of files that seem to be for every Epson printer known.
Should I not be able to send all of them to Trash, except for the one I am using?
Getting rid of chess?
Actually I just wanted to move Chess out of my Applications folder.
cmd+click let's you move it... without a trace...
Actually I just wanted to move Chess out of my Applications folder.
cmd+click let's you move it... without a trace...