'About This Mac' in the filesystem?

Does anyone know how to determine the OS based on files, rather than going into Apple > About This Mac ?
I have an external disk that I've gotten back from a data recovery service, and I'm trying to determine what OS the drive was running under. 10.5/10.5 Server or 10.6/10.6 Server? I was thinking some differences between the OS's could be found in:
- Library > Preferences?
- Kernel Version?
- Error logs?
Message was edited by: Psilocybe

Say I gave you a system folder and asked you to tell me what OS version it was. How would you be able to determine based on the files / data inside the system folder what system the data was generated from? Or would you be able to?

Similar Messages

How do I Choose About This Mac from the Apple Menu.

I installed Maverick. Appears to have been a big mistake. So I went to Phone help and the want my serial number before they will talk to me. So their site says that I should "Choose About This Mac from the Apple Menu." I don't know where the Apple Menu is. Help.

The Apple menu is at the top left hand corner of your screen, click on it and about this Mac is the first choice.
Click twice on Version to get serial number.

In About this Mac, Storage, the Backups takes up about 49gb, do I need this and if not how do I get rid of it?

In About this Mac, Storage, the Backups takes about 49gb, do I need this and if not how do I get rid of it?

Yes, I used TM for the first time about a month or two ago, using an external HDD to backup my Mac and my daughters Mac's as well. The exHDD has not been regularly connected to my Mac Air and I've seen a couple of warnings come up stating- Time Machine was unable to backup your computer because..... (I forget ).
Correct me if I'm wrong but if this disc space is being used for the snapshots, then as I continue to use my computer then the space used for snapshots will submit? to the other apps requiring more space. So this probably isn't something that I need to worry about?

My "About this mac" lists the processor as a 3.4GHz Intel Core i7. Is this a quad core i7 processor?

under "About this Mac" it says that the processor is a 3.4 GHz Intel Core i7. Is this a quad core processor? If so, why is it not stated as such?

Click "System Report"
Under "Hardware Overview" it will list "Total number of Cores". You can check that way. Cores are not listed in About this Mac on my machine either.

Why is there a difference of 17GB in storage remaining between 'about this mac' and the hdd in finder?

I am running Mavericks on my macbook air. I had approx 17gb of movies which I transfered to my external drive and then deleted them. When i checked my storage space in 'about my mac' it says i have 17.5gb remainin which should read around 35gb. When i open up finder and click the 'i' tab on my hdd it says there is 35gb remaining which is as it should be. Please help, it's doing my head in. I never had any dramas running mountain lion!

If you have Time Machine turned on, the difference could be the Local Backups the system is storing temporarily until you sync to your Time Machine backup drive. Sice those files are "low priority" and will be overwritten by the user if required, the Finder does not acknowledge them as "used". However, the profiler will count them as used.
See if syncing yoru Time Machine "resets" for the one showing less space available.

In OSX Mountain Lion, In "About This Mac", On the "Storage" Tab: What types of files (e.g. file extensions) are grouped as "Backup" type files?

There's about 60Gb of "Backup" type files shown on my hard drive, but I don't beleive that I have created any such files. Can anyone tell me the types of files I should be searching for on my drive? (I'm trying to reduce clutter on my drive and eradicate any unnecessary files).
TIA
ScottO

If you see "Backups" category on the internal drive, it means that Time Machine is creating local snapshots. Read > http://pondini.org/TM/30.html
Local snapshots are deleted when the internal drive is getting full, so you don't have to worry about local snapshots

Mac Air 11" - how do I find out what files are showing up in "About this MAC" Storage "other" category?

Hi - I am having storage trouble with my storage. When I go into About this Mac, Storage, the category "Other" has a very large amount of gigs stored. I have already dumped my email, downloads when in to Trahs, emptied secure trash, etc. How do I find out what is included in the "other" category?

First, empty the Trash if you haven't already done so.
Use a tool such as OmniDiskSweeper (ODS) to explore your volume and find out what's taking up the space. You can delete files with it, but don't do that unless you're sure that you know what you're deleting and that all data is safely backed up. That means you have multiple backups, not just one.
Proceed further only if the problem hasn't been solved.
ODS can't see the whole filesystem when you run it just by double-clicking; it only sees files that you have permission to read. To see everything, you have to run it as root.
Back up all data now.
Install ODS in the Applications folder as usual.
Triple-click the line of text below to select it, then copy the selected text to the Clipboard (command-C):sudo /Applications/OmniDiskSweeper.app/Contents/MacOS/OmniDiskSweeper
Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways:
☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid.
Paste (command-V) into the Terminal window. You'll be prompted for your login password, which won't be displayed when you type it. You may get a one-time warning not to screw up. If you see a message that your username "is not in the sudoers file," then you're not logged in as an administrator.
I don't recommend that you make a habit of doing this. Don't delete anything while running ODS as root. If something needs to be deleted, make sure you know what it is and how it got there, and then delete it by other, safer, means.
When you're done with ODS, quit it and also quit Terminal.

About This Mac screen in Lion still that of Snow Leopard

I recently wiped my MBP's drive, installed Lion and migrate all my apps and data manually.
After I got settled in I remebererd Lion was supposed to have this fancy new "About This Mac" screen.
I was very disappointed to find my system does not have it. Screen shot features my About This Mac on the left and a screenshot of what it should be on the right. What's going on?

You've downloaded the istaller only. Check your Applications folder, you should find within the program Install Lion. There's no custom install. At the end, your Mac restart, deleting the installer.

About this mac storage backups is growing over time

I have a Timecapsule that I use time machine to backup 2 macs to. One of the macs concerns me because when I go to "about this mac", "storage" the value for "backups" is increasing over time. each mac has its own unique account one of them has zero for the length of backups, both appear to backup ok with time machine. Is the value for backups as indicated in the mac a sign that it's not being backed up to the time capsule? do i have a configuration problem?

The sparsebundle can be checked on the TC for each machine.. mount the backup and make sure it is working.
0 for length of backup isn't right.. there is always something to backup.

Why is my MBP serial number and model year no longer displayed in "about this mac" (have NOT replaced logic board)?

I have not replaced or manipulated the logic board (or any other hardware) on my mid-2012 13 inch MBP. Under the "about this mac" tab, the serial number is no longer displayed (it now states "unavailable") and the model year is also no longer displayed. I understand that I can find the serial number and model year several other ways, I am seeking to determine why this happened and if it could indicate further problems.
Has anyone else experienced this?
Thank you in advance for any help or insight.
JB

Man oh man. What a day. New symptoms again!
Lets start with the MBP dying in its sleep. I closed my MBP and left it for a few hours to come back to find it completely dead. Looked into this issue and with the help of the activity monitor cleaned up some things, turned off some sharing settings, got rid of some extensions, etc. Seems to have solved this issue.
Later on, I picked up my MBP while it was on with my left hand and the same display (horizontal lines), freeze, auto shutdown happened. Out of curiosity I tried to recreate the symptom. Sure enough, pressing (with little force) on the left side of the bottom case caused it to happen again. I researched this a bit and found several possible culprits (bad logic board, metallic sticker may cause shorts, bad RAM bank, google drive). The google drive one really surprised me, I removed google drive (worked for many people) and it did not fix the issue. A buddy had some good RAM for me to use today so I swapped it out and had the same issue. Decided to test the individual RAM banks and it turns out that the deepest bank must be faulty. Running with only one 4 gig stick in the outermost bank and the freeze, shutdown, beep issue is gone!
So, it seems I have fixed the dying in sleep problem and have a temporary work-around for the bad RAM bank. The SN issue remains.
I am going to try to find out what could make a RAM bank be faulty and if there is a way to repair it.
What are the chances that all this happens as soon as I try to find out why the SN is unavailable??
Below is the thread that I found interesting and useful.
2011 Macbook Pro 3 Beeps/Freeze

I Have Mac OS Z 10.5.8 and I;m trying to upgrade to 10.7.5. Do I have to purchase this upgrade? "About this Mac" says software is up to date

I tunes wont let me update without 10.7.5

Choose About this Mac from the Apple menu and check the processor.
If it's a Core Duo Mac, click here, install the DVD, and run Software Update.
If it's a Core 2 Duo or better Mac, upgrade it as if it was a Core Duo Mac, and once done, if desired, open the Mac App Store and try downloading Yosemite. If you get told it's incompatible, go to the online Apple Store and order a download code for Lion 10.7.
Mac OS X 10.7 and newer don't support PowerPC software such as Microsoft Office 2004. If you upgrade the OS, back up the computer first.
A Core Duo Mac can't run the current version of iTunes.
(115662)

10.10.3 supplemental update confused About this Mac

After the supplemental update my mac book pro has incorrect information in About This Mac. The storage tab shows that I have 223.86GB free of 249.77GB. That is correct. The graphic shows the entire disk consumed by Backup(140.74TB yes TB). This is obviously incorrect. IStat menu also has incorrect disk usage information as well and is reporting 140.96TB free.

I have 10.7.3
I am wanting to find out if I have the Mac OS X 10.7.3 Supplemental Update installed ?
Because I am unable to see it in the Installed Software section of Software Update.
I am also unable to install the Mac OS X 10.7.3Supp.dmg file.
I click on the file and it opens a dialog box saying it is Verifying.
It then opens up a window in the background.
The window contains this icon:
When I Double Click the the icon, it comes up with the dialog window to install the update.
When I get to the step where I select where I want the file to be installed, this domes up:
What does this mean ?
Do I already have the Update installed ?
How do I install the Update ?

Can't get info from "about This Mac"

I want to purchase a replacement battery for my Powerbook g4 15". For this I need the model #, which normally I can obtain by clicking on "About this mac" from the apple logo at the top of the screen. But not today.Absolutely nothing happens when I click it besides that it's highlighted in blue. I can get "Software Update", "System Preferences", "Dock", "Recent Items." I can surf the internet with Safari.
What is going on?
Is there another way to access this information?
Thank you....

Try logging out and back in.
If no joy, log out and back in as a different user, creating one if need be.
Joe

Using OS10.7, my hard disc is full. When I go to "About this Mac - Storage" almost all of the HD is occupied by "Other". Does anyone know what "Other" is so that I can remove some of it?

Using OS10.7, my hard disc is full. When I go to "About this Mac - Storage", it shows that it is entirely filled with "Other". Does anyone know what "Other" is so that I can delete some of it?

First, reboot. That will temporarily free up some space. According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB free for normal operation. You also need enough space left over to allow for growth of your data.
Use a tool such as OmniDiskSweeper to explore your volume and find out what's taking up the space.
Proceed further only if the problem hasn't been solved.
ODS can't see the whole filesystem when you run it just by double-clicking; it only sees files that you have permission to read. To really see everything, you have to run it as root.
First, back up all data if you haven't already done so. No matter what happens, you should be able to restore your system to the state it was in at the time of that backup.
Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways:
☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
☞ If you’re running Mac OS X 10.7 or later, open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the page that opens.
After installing ODS in the Applications folder, drag or copy — do not type — the following line into the Terminal window, then press return:
sudo /Applications/OmniDiskSweeper.app/Contents/MacOS/OmniDiskSweeper
You'll be prompted for your login password, which won't be displayed when you type it. You may get a one-time warning not to screw up.
I don't recommend that you make a habit of this. Don't delete anything while running ODS as root. When you're done with it, quit it and also quit Terminal.

When looking at my "About This Mac" it says that I have 60gb of space left on my hard drive, but when I go into finder to find all of these files there is not 300gb worth in anything I search, even searching, "All files on the Mac". Help!?

When looking at my "About This Mac" it says that I have 60gb of space left on my hard drive, but when I go into finder to find all of these files there is not 300gb worth in anything I search, even searching, "All files on the Mac". Help!?
It says I have over 150 gigs of video on my hard drive. But I have gone through and deleted almost all of what shows up, still it says there is roughly the same amount on the hard drive. Where are these files? I want to delete them so I can have my hard drive clear.
Thanks for your help guys!

Quote from the article.
Time Machine in OS X Lion includes a new feature called "local snapshots" that keeps copies of files you create, modify or delete on your internal disk. Local snapshots compliment regular Time Machine backups (that are stored on your external disk or Time Capsule) giving you a "safety net" for times when you might be away from your external backup disk or Time Capsule and accidentally delete a file.
So what makes a notebook any different then a desktop, other then with a desktop you might have your tm backup drive connected all the time.
The object here is to not indiscriminately delete files you need or want to keep. I personally have never deleted a file I wanted to keep.
In essence a backup is for catastrophic failure of your system. So it can be restored once that failure has been fixed. Not because you go in willy nilly and start deleting files.

'About This Mac' in the filesystem?

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