About Secure Empty Trash

A long time ago I had some files on my apple that I dident want anybody els to open. So then I put them into the trash. And then I clicked on Empty Trash. Well today I wanted to see what secure empty trash was. So then I clicked it and it said "are you sure you want to do this? You can never get these files back". So dose that mean that those files I only click on empty trash are still in my apple or somewhere? Please help! Thanks.

Emptying the trash only removes the files from the directory list. It does not overwrite them so they can still exist on your HD until that particular area of the drive is overwritten by some other file save. Secure empty actually overwrites the files with zeros which obliterates them.

Similar Messages

  • Hi, Question about secure empty trash. I moved some Time Machine backup files to the trash from an external hard drive. Now I can't secure empty trash. It starts, finds 74,003 files, and does nothing. The external hard drive shows it's empty, but it isn't

    I moved some time machine backup files from an external USB hard drive to the trash. Tried secure empty trash. It counts 74,003 items, then just sits there. The external hard drive window shows it's empty, but the info pane says it only has 50G of memory left. I left the secure empty trash on over night. It did nothing. Ideas?
    Thanks,
    Ron

    Relaunch the Finder, then from the Finder menu bar, select
    Finder ▹ Preferences ▹ Advanced
    and uncheck the box marked Empty Trash securely. Try again to empty the Trash.

  • I clicked on secure empty trash and just lost about 40GB of disk space...

    I had something in my trash that wouldnt delete when I clicked Empty Trash because it said it was in use.
    I looked up on here on noticed people said just to click on Secure Empty Trash when i did that.
    The Secure Empty Trash was starting to freeze up half way so I just clicked on cancel.
    I then looked at my Hard Drive space and noticed that I went from 180GB to 140GB.
    Can anyone help?

    Try this to find your missing space...
    OmniDiskSweeper...
    http://www.omnigroup.com/applications/omnidisksweeper/download/

  • Is it possible to create a secure empty trash shortcut in file menu?

    I have second finger click enabled so that I can quickly move files to the trash bin from the contextual menu. This is fine and dandy, however, for files containing sensitive informaton, I'd like to have a "Secure File Delete" option available (file bypasses the trash bin and is wiped after selecting said option).
    I've searched the threads and checked system prefs. Only options are to change "empty trash" to "secure empty trash". This wouldn't work as I have more files that are typically trashed and not wiped. It'd be nice to have it available as a convenience I suppose
    I know theres an app in the app store that offers this functionality. It's $3-4.
    So my question...is it possible to create such a contextual menu option on my own?
    heres an example of what I'm ltalking about...

    Create a new Service in Automator.
    Set it to receive files an folders in the Finder.
    Drag in an Ask for Confirmation action if you want it.
    Drag in a Run Shell Script action from the Utilities section of the Library.
    Set it to Pass Input as Arguments and Replace the code with:
    srm -r "$@"
    --That's ess-ar-em for Secure ReMove (just copy and paste)
    Save it and it will show up in the Services menu when you right-click on an item in the Finder.
    There are options you can add to it like -s for simple, -m for medium. The default (without options) is 35-pass Gutman.
    You can see what options are available by opening Terminal and typeing
    man srm
    Hit space to scroll down. Q to quit the man page.
    The Verbose and Interactive options won't work since you can respond.
    Note that depending on the algorithm chosen, it may take some time for the file/folder to disappear from the Finder view.

  • Hi guys, an empty folder is stuck in my trash & I get this message: "The Finder can't complete the operation because some data in the folder can't be read or written. (Error code -36). It won't shift no matter how I try to Secure Empty trash. Any ideas?

    Hi guys, an empty folder is stuck in my trash & I get this message: "The Finder can’t complete the operation because some data in the folder can’t be read or written. (Error code -36). It won't shift no matter how I try to Secure Empty trash. Any ideas?

    The Time Machines Backup is formated as Mac OS Extended (Case Sensitive, Journaled), my mac is formated as Mac OS Extended (Journaled).
    The names on the file are all Uppercase
    When I try to copy the Aperture file, it copies about 70% of the file (it's about 33GB in size), and halfway through I get this error.
    I'm able to copy 99.99% of all of the images if I open the Aperture Folder using the "show package contents" under the backups using finder (Time Machine Backups>Backups.backupdb>CQ Macbook Air>2012-04-30-070933>HD.....>Pictures>Aperture Library). The only file I can't copy is that picture, which I'm totally ok with deleting, but Finder won't delete it for me. If nothing else works, I could copy the individual masters and re-create the folders, however I'd hate to do this as I would have to go through 10,000+ pics

  • Secure Empty Trash & Trash Cache

    Am old Mac addict home user with Apple from day one but not a guru. Still have Apple IIE that runs like a clock. With 17 Macs in between, years ago when G3 would slow down, get sluggish and tired, I discovered that setting trash cache and deleting many thousands of cached files would invigorate the machine and restore it's original speed using Preferences in TechTool Pro V 3.
    Currently have TTP V4 in both G5 Pro Mac OS 10.5.6 and G5 Power Mac OS 10.4.11. Cleaning out old manuals got rid of TTP V2 and V3 manuals. Still have CDs but unfortunately no serial numbers. So, unable to open those programs. Micromat archives couldn't help. Also, unable to use TTP V4 preferences to set trash cache as there's no Preferences capability. Apparently it can be assumed there's no trash cache in current versions of TTP.
    Queried Micromat about trash cache who said to "Go into "System Preferences" --> "TechTool Protection". In the "Volume Usage" tab, you can set how many days you want TechTool Pro to save the "Trash History"." No joy as I couldn't figure out what that meant about "System Preferences" or how to do what they recommended.
    No problem as both G5s are operating fine. But, I'm curious.
    I use "Secure Empty Trash" exclusively shutting down my G5s. My questions: Does that shut down feature remove all data from the HD thereby eliminating the need for a trash cache? If there's still a trash cache, is there any way to set it? Thank you and regards. Ol' Jim.

    Did you get a response to this? There is no solution listed, but it’s marked Solved.
    I think you are right that there is no longer a Trash Cache. I did a search and it came up with two files called Trash Cache, both were dated 2002, obviously many systems ago which probably came over with Migration Assistant from previous computers.
    The TechTool Protection is new with TTP 5. You won’t see it in System Preferences with TTP 4. That’s probably why you couldn’t figure out what they meant.
    Secure Empty Trash writes over those files which makes them nearly impossible to recover, so I don’t think you need to worry about them.

  • What exactly does "Secure Empty Trash" do?

    There's very little technical detail on the web about this. I'd like to understand exactly what secure empty trash does.
    What method does it use to overwrite?
    How does it deal with temp files?
    Why does it take so long?
    Why, when there's only one file in the trash, does it always claim it's erasing 9 files?
    What other files is it erasing in addition to the visible trash contents?
    Can it work across network connections and external drives?
    Has the method changed in Leopard?
    etc.. etc..
    Feel free to get all technical, if you know the answers!
    Thanks!

    What method does it use to overwrite?
    It writes over the files with 0's.
    How does it deal with temp files?
    Not sure what you mean. It treats any file in the trash the same. Could you elaborate?
    Why does it take so long?
    Because it has to first write over the item with 0's, then delete the item.
    Why, when there's only one file in the trash, does it always claim it's erasing 9 files?
    What other files is it erasing in addition to the visible trash contents?
    It's a bug.
    Can it work across network connections and external drives?
    Yes.
    Has the method changed in Leopard?
    Not that I know of.

  • Huge number of files in 'Secure Empty Trash'

    I'm not sure if this is that noteworthy or not, but I went to go and 'Secure Empty Trash' recently, and I had 2.1 million files. It has been deleting for about 4 days now, and I'm about halfway through it. I perform this function monthly to keep things clear, but I'm used to 2,000 - not 2 million. The only thing I can think of is that I installed FCS upgrade recently but I don't know why I'd have that many files to get rid of.
    Thoughts..

    I've called the big guys to help you. Good luck.
    BTW, did you post this from the wife's computer?
    Type '''about:support''' in the address bar and press '''Enter.'''
    Under the main banner, press the button; '''Copy Text To Clipboard.'''.
    Then in the reply box at the bottom of this page,
    do a right click in the box and select '''Paste.'''
    This will show us your system details.
    '''No Personal Information Is Collected.'''

  • Does secure empty trash save disk space?

    Secure empty trash takes so much longer than just emptying the trash. Is secure empty trash just used to prevent files from being recovered, or does it actually save disk space on the iMac?

    I am aware that everyone said that it doesn't save any disk space, because I read through the thread.
    HOWEVER.
    I had gotten down to 500 mb of disk space and was going crazy trying to delete photos and movies.
    Finally I read about the secure delete, tried it. It took 24 hours, and then i hat 36 free gigabites.
    THIRTY SIX GIGS OF MEMORY THAT I DIDNT HAVE BEFORE.
    Only thing is I have no idea why, because everyone else says that it doesnt clear space.

  • Secure emptying trash when getting privilges message

    Hi folks,
    Any help much appreciated.
    I decided the other day to use my Iomega Screenplay HD as a backup for my mac. Because it is NSCF (or whatever it is) I knew I'd have to re-format it in Fat32. I copied the contents of the HD to my Mac with the intention of writing it all back once the HD had been formatted.
    However when I read up about formatting this HD I discovered that once it had been formatted to Fat32 I would not be able to use the screenplay function any more (it comes in handy). So I decided not to format it and pick up a different HD to use as a backup.
    So anyway here's my problem. I copied 48gb of data to the Mac that I no longer want there (as I already have on the screenplay HD). So I moved it to the trash. I then hit the secure empty trash button (Im under the impression this is better as it completely clears valuable space on the mac's HD). However it will not delete. I keep getting the message "The operation cannot be completed because you do not have sufficient priviliges for some of the items".
    As I said, I would like to completely delete all these files as they are 48gb and are taking up room I can really do with. From what I can gather holding command and hitting delete will get rid of the files from the trash but they will still be on the computer taking up space.
    I've tried googling but am not getting anywhere. If someone can help I'd be much appreciated.
    Cheers.

    Just emptying the trash does only delete directory paths, but that is all that is required to completely release the disk space. As far as the system is concerned that space is empty and available.
    It is theoretically possible, under some conditions, to scan the empty space on a disk and reconstruct files that were once there. The purpose of Secure Empty Trash is to make that impossible by scribbling over the empty space. But if nobody goes to the trouble and expense of scanning for deleted files, then it makes no difference whether empty blocks contain random bit patterns or the remnants of old files. With ordinary Empty Trash, the space is as free and available as it will ever be.

  • Secure empty trash very slow

    Are there suggestions for speeding up Secure Empty Trash?

    I got a tip from a Genius at the Green Hills (Nashville) Apple Support Bar today on how to instantly empty the Trash folder.  This comes with a big warning/disclaimer:  you will not be prompted about any of the action to delete the contents of your Trash as this sequence of steps force deletes all trash.  In other words, there's no turning back.  I did this after facing 8 hours of a trash emptying cycle to get rid of 280,000 files... 
    Here it is:  while simultaneosly holding down Command + Option keys, press Shift and then press Delete (all four, in that order).
    It works - it's instant!  But be sure you want to take this action.

  • Why does SECURE EMPTY TRASH take so long (several days)?

    I am using OS 10.3.9. I didn't empty the trash for quite a while, and several days ago clicked SECURE EMPTY TRASH. The emptying process began but has not finished even now! Does it take THAT much longer when one uses SECURE EMPTY TRASH? I see that the little message window for Trash says:
    Item to delete: 114,158 This number hasn't gone down now for several minutes.
    Several times I have stopped the Empty Trash process to shut the computer down or just because I wanted to stop it, but it seem to me that after "Emptying the Trash" has been going on for so long, it ought to be finished by now. I welcome any sunlight you can shed on this. Thank you.
    — Lorna in Southern California

    When you choose to Secure Empty Trash, the system
    must overwrite the area where those items area a
    minimum of 7 times for it to be considered secure.
    When you have that many files in the Trash, this can
    take quite some time.
    So, unless you have something that is confidential in
    the Trash, your best option is to Empty Trash
    normally.
    Mulder
    If my answer helped solve your problem, please
    consider awarding some points. Why
    Reward Points?
    OK, and thank you. You have answered my question; I now won't be worrying that something is awfy. The Secure Empty Trash is still emptying and it is down to about 77,000 items. I have clicked the YES, MY QUESTION HAS BEEN ANSWERED button and I appreciate your reassurance.
    — Lorna in Southern California

  • Secure Empty Trash doesn't work

    Working in Mavericks on an iMac 27. Secure Empty Trash starts but disappears and nothing is deleted. Is it safe to use Erase Free Space in Disk Utility?

    danimal303 wrote:
    So it won't help me at all. I don't quite see any use for it, a good reason not to use it. But I have some 560 000 files in Trash and they won't budge.
    When you delete a file (without Secure Empty Trash), all the data of the file still exists on the file system free list.  It will remain there until the file system reuses the space.  Erase Free Space is a way to address this, after files have been deleted.
    It is only really useful as a once in a while event, such as someone forgot to use Secure Empty Trash for a file with sensitive data.  And Secure Empty Trash is very time consuming, and worse it is if you have an SSD, this wears out the SSD faster.
    A better approach is to use FileVault so that a deleted file is instantly securely deleted because it was always encrypted.
    Since you are attempting to use Secure Empty Trash, then I would try this from the command line using the 'srm' command.  "man srm"
    srm -f -r -v ~/.Trash/*
    The srm command will perform a secure erase.  The -f will keep it from prompting for approval.  The -r will recurse through and directories of files in the trash.  The -v will display the progress while deleting so you can see how things are going, and have an idea of how much progress you are making.
    Be very careful with srm, as if you point it at the wrong directory it could delete something you care about, or a lot of somethings.
    If there are files that srm -f will not delete, then you bring out the sudo command.  But be VERY CAREFUL with sudo, as you can delete a lot more than just a few files you care about.
    sudo srm -f -r -v ~/.Trash/*
    Password: you enter your account's password here, assuming you are the admin of the Mac.

  • Secure Empty Trash difficulty

    Recently I reinstalled Panther (10.3.9) using the Archive and Install method. This created a folder called Previous System.
    Since this folder was using up hard drive space without apparently contributing anything to the workings of the new system I trashed it.
    Since the Trash already contained a number of small files that I needed to wipe securely, I clicked on Secure Empty Trash.
    With Secure Empty Trash chugging along at a snail’s pace (about one item per second) the Trash was still not emptied some ten hours later. I dragged what remained of the Previous System Folder out of Trash and Secure Emptied the remaining Trash contents.
    Parts of this Previous System could not be trashed, securely or not. This was mainly the old Library. So I still have a GB or more wasting space on the hard drive.
    I have two questions arising out this little exercise:
    1. The Secure Empty Trash is a good feature. Why was it not designed to selectively deal with trashed files? Trashed files are often quite large and may not be particularly sensitive. They may not require the Secure Empty Trash treatment, but Secure Empty Trash lumps them in with other files that DO need to be securely wiped. So time is wasted.
    It indicates perhaps that two trash bins are needed. One for everyday stuff that empties normally, and one for stuff that needs to be securely wiped.
    2. Why can’t I totally trash the Previous System Folder?
    Maybe there’s ways around both of these problems?
    eMac   Mac OS X (10.3.9)  

    Jack,
    Your thoughtful questions deserve some expert answers, but all I have to offer you is a link to Solving Trash Problems, by Dr. Smoke.
    ;~)

  • "Secure Empty Trash" Didn't Clear Space on HD

    How can I reallly clear the space formerly occupied by BackUp files?
    When I used "Secure Empty Trash" after putting lots of BackUp files in the Trash, there was no change in the amount of available HD space. I have about 10GB of applications and files on a 60GB HD, so there should be about 45 GB of free space, but there's only 4 GB available.
    FWIW, I've Repaired Permissions (only a few were necessary) and Restarted to no avail. I've used "Secure Empty Trash" to remove another file, and it worked just fine!
    So how can I clear the part of my HD that I asssume is written with random 0s and 1s left by "Secure Empty Trash", not real files?

    John:
    Thanks for hanging in there with me! As you knew it would, WhatSize worked.
    It identified the old Backup files (that the Finder didn't) and transferred them to the Trash. I used Secure Empty Trash delete them. This time it worked correctly and I have space for Backups again, thank-you very much!
    If you have any idea why it didn't work the first time, I'd appreciate knowing it. I've never used it before, so I don't know if it has a repuitation for being buggy or otherwise problematic.
    The name "WhatSize" was a little misleading.... I initially thought it would just do what the Finder's View > Show View Options > Calculate all sizes command does. Some of the comments on the Version Tracker site supported that idea, so as the stubborn Dutchman that I am was reluctant to do something that might make matters worse.
    I also never considered the possibility that using Secure Empty Trash (as I had) would convert files into hidden files..... especially since I've never had such an experience in uising standard Empty Trash in 25+ years of Apple II and Mac use.
    As you expected, I have learned that lots of HD space is devoted to hidden files (that once were visible in the "old days", if I'm not mistaken).
    In any case, I very much appreciate your wisdom and willingness to keep replying when I didn't take your suggestion! Thanks!
    Cheers!!
    Dick

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