An In-Depth Guide to Fixing the Full Startup Disk on Macbooks

If you are not careful, you could end up facing a problem of not having enough free space on your hard drive. A message appears the moment you run out of it, and it obviously happens because you have more files on a Macbook than you should.

The consequences should be clear. No computer is going to perform if it has a full hard drive.

The solution is obvious. You need to get rid of all the files that have accumulated in time, and return things to the way they should be. But while this may seem simple on the surface, the reality is quite different.

There are all kinds of files, and some of them are not accessible manually. Getting software that specializes in cleaning the hard drive is the safest option. On the other hand, you can always look to take care of the issue yourself. With all that said, this post is going to give you everything you need to understand what needs to be done when you see the message of “startup disk full on mac”.

Emptying the Trash

Plenty of individuals simply delete their files thinking that is all you need to do. Well, it just so happens that you need to empty the trash bin as well. Files that are there also take up space and since they are already in the bin, it means that these files serve no purpose.

Right-click on the trash bin icon and select “Empty Bin”. That is a great first step towards improving the situation.

Downloads

People download stuff all the time. Sometimes without even realizing it. Be it torrents, pictures from Messenger, etc. The default location for these files is in the Downloads folder.

Just use the search function and find that folder. Different people have different habits, but it would not be a stretch to suggest that everyone ought to find something in their Download folder.

Sure, there was a reason why you have downloaded these files in the first place, but is it highly likely that you no longer need them. Delete whatever you no longer need and move on to the next step.

Caches

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Cache files are created by apps, browsers, software, etc. Keep in mind, though, that simply deleting them will not solve anything. The next time you run an app they will appear again.

The point of this is to delete those caches that are of no further use. Moreover, it is recommended that you regularly perform cache cleaning as it will improve the overall performance as well. Finally, stay away from the files that have the word “apple” in it. Deleting that could crash the system.

Logs

Log files are located in the Library folder. It is also something that you will want to delete only if the applications or software are no longer something you have or use on your computer.

Language Resources

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Quite a few apps have files for languages other than English. In case you are going to need something very specific, there is hardly any need to keep them around. A good example is Spotify with its 50+ languages.

Look through your app list and see which of them come with different kinds of languages. Doing a thorough work will definitely open up more space. But keep in mind that most apps have English as its default language and you should never delete that one.

Unused Applications

Whenever you realize that an app is no longer of any use to you, delete it without any hesitation. In case you need it again, you can always reinstall it.

External Drives

Make more use of external hard drives or USB drives. Cloud software also helps if you have some stuff you want to have easy access to as well.

Anti-Virus

Malware is one of those things that hardly anyone expects to find on their computer, yet it happens all the same. Look for anti-virus software and use it to scan your computer.

Duplicate Files

Duplicate files are there even if you do not see them. And while there are very few instances when they take a sizeable amount of hard drive space, you should still look to get rid of them regardless. Information on how to do that can be found on such reputable websites like HuffPost.

Email Downloads

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Those that do most of their communication via emails will open a lot of attachments throughout the year. And every single one of those you double-click will end up in the mail download folder. There is no need to tell you what follows next, right?

In a word, freeing up space on a Macbook is something everyone can do, and this guide perfectly illustrates that by telling you what to do. And the more of these tasks you perform, the more space you will have on the hard drive. Not only will you not have to deal with those warning messages, but you will also get to enjoy a much better overall performance of your computer.