Macbook Storage Discrepancy

I am trying to clean up space on my Macbook Pro, because it has recently become sluggish, especially after I upgraded to OS X Mavericks and then OS X Yosemite. The problem I am facing is that when I go to About This Mac and check the Storage, I get a conflicting report. As is shown in the picture below, it is telling me that most of my hard drive is free space, yet it shows that my Apps, Movies, Photos, and Audio take up about 90% of the hard drive.
What does this mean?

Reindex Spotlight:
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2409
Ciao.

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Why MacBook Storage is almost full even without files, movies and music??

Anyone can help me with this???
My MacBook Storage is almost full even without files, movies and music... why is it so???
Thanks

Hi Avelyn,
Click on the Apple and then About this Mac>More Info. Click on the "Storage" tab to see what is using up all of your storage.
That might help you to determine what you need to clean up.
Cheers,
GB

My macbook storage keeps getting filled when i have not downloaded anything

In the last two days my macbook storage appears to be getting filled. I have no idea by what because i have noe downloaded anything. How do i fix this?

I have the same problem ever since I bought my new MBP Retina 13", 128GB SSD. Summed up I have 120GB that I can use for storage (I can see that for example in iStat Pro or in the Activity Screen). I don't know if that is normal in the first place, since the SSD is 128GB?
Further, I only installed: iWork '09, MS Office for Mac and Coconut Battery. Nothing else is on my MBP yet. It is 'empty'. Oh yes, my MBP is working on Mountain Lion.
Now when I check the storage free space it is saying 89GB . What happened to the other 39GB ! Oh well, minus the programmes I have installed (6,75GB). Let's say what happened to the 30GB?
Yesterday it was still saying that I had 90GB left for storage use. Today is has already decreased to 89GB. In the mean time I did nothing, except surfing around on this Apple Support Communities and tried to find information with Google search engine. So, Safari was the only programme that was on.
Maybe it has to do with something downloading or 'saving' data automatically? I have no idea.

Trying to understand my Macbook Storage Information

Hi
Apologies if this is a newbie question but just got my Macbook Pro a couple of days ago and still trying to get to grips with it.
Having switched over from windows, i reviewed the storage info tab to understand how much of my 500gb Harddrive i had used up and received the following info:
54.5gb Music
62.4gb Movies
33.08gb Photos
4.61gb Apps
44.43gb Backups
21.31gb Other
I suppose my questions are:
Why do i have 44.43gb of backup files as i have set up time capsule and my understanding was that all the backups would be stored there
Why has IMovie massively inflated the size of my video files (e.g. i imported a 16gb SD card and the file is showing as 32gb on my Macbook harddrive)
What consitutes 'Other'
Again, apologies if stupid questions but all help appreciated!
Billy

i have the same questions as yours. but i dot get your answer. can you help me? im also wondering if the backup files are essential, since i already have an external harddrive where i put all my files. thank you!

Why is my new macbook storage almost full?

I just got my macbook pro a few months ago and I don't really have that much on it. I mostly have photos and I bought photoshop and after effects. Why is my storage already full? It says I only have 29GB of storage left out of 120GB, and most of it is used by movies (22GB) and audio (11GB), of which to my knowledge I have none...
Has anyone else had this problem/do you know how to fix it?
Thanks

For information about the Other category in the Storage display, see this support article. If the Storage display seems to be inaccurate, try rebuilding the Spotlight index.
Empty the Trash if you haven't already done so. If you use iPhoto, empty its internal Trash first:
iPhoto ▹ Empty Trash
Do the same in other applications, such as Aperture, that have an internal Trash feature. Then restart the computer. That will temporarily free up some space.
According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB of available space on the startup volume (as shown in the Finder Info window) for normal operation—not the mythical 10%, 15%, or any other percentage. You also need enough space left over to allow for growth of the data. There is little or no performance advantage to having more available space than the minimum Apple recommends. Available storage space that you'll never use is wasted space.
When Time Machine backs up a portable Mac, some of the free space will be used to make local snapshots, which are backup copies of recently deleted files. The space occupied by local snapshots is reported as available by the Finder, and should be considered as such. In the Storage display of System Information, local snapshots are shown as Backups. The snapshots are automatically deleted when they expire or when free space falls below a certain level. You ordinarily don't need to, and should not, delete local snapshots yourself. If you followed bad advice to disable local snapshots by running a shell command, you may have ended up with a lot of data in the Other category. Ask for instructions in that case.
See this support article for some simple ways to free up storage space.
You can more effectively use a tool such as OmniDiskSweeper (ODS) or GrandPerspective (GP) to explore the volume and find out what's taking up the space. You can also 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. Note that ODS only works with OS X 10.8 or later. If you're running an older OS version, use GP.
Deleting files inside a photo or iTunes library will corrupt the library. Changes to such a library must be made from within the application that created it. The same goes for Mail files.
Proceed further only if the problem isn't solved by the above steps.
ODS or GP 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.
If you have more than one user account, make sure you're logged in as an administrator. The administrator account is the one that was created automatically when you first set up the computer.
Install the app you downloaded in the Applications folder as usual. Quit it if it's running.
Triple-click anywhere in the corresponding line of text below on this page to select it, then copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C:
sudo /Applications/OmniDiskSweeper.app/Contents/MacOS/OmniDiskSweeper 2>&-
sudo /Applications/GrandPerspective.app/Contents/MacOS/GrandPerspective 2>&-
Launch the built-in 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 and start typing the name.
Paste into the Terminal window by pressing command-V. You'll be prompted for your login password, which won't be displayed when you type it. Type carefully and then press return. You may get a one-time warning to be careful. If you see a message that your username "is not in the sudoers file," then you're not logged in as an administrator. Ignore any other messages that appear in the Terminal window.
The application window will open, eventually showing all files in all folders, sorted by size. It may take a few minutes for the app to finish scanning.
I don't recommend that you make a habit of doing this. Don't delete anything 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 in doubt, leave it alone or ask for guidance.
When you're done with the app, quit it and also quit Terminal.

Macbook storage indicator discrepancies in Yosemite

Has anyone else compared the Macintosh HD storage available with the windows available in "About This Mac > Storage"?
Is this a bug with OS X Yosemite or does it need to refresh itself?
I have attached a photo for reference.

Reindex Spotlight:
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2409
Ciao.

My MacBook Storage is suddenly occupied by lots of unknown stuffs. What should I do?

So this is what happened to my MacBook only after a month usage. I didn't download any space-wasting applications.
Anyone please help me to figure out what happened here.
Thanks

Your startup volume is almost full. 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.

Macbook storage upgrade??

i wont to upgrade from 64 gb to something higher!! is it possible, how much would it cost, and how would i reinstall os x 10.7.2 (lion) thanks

Yes you can.
The type and size avaialble depends on the model of your MBA. I have here a link to a company that sells upgrade solutions for a the model MBA's.
The easiest way to transfer your existing installation is to clone the existing drive to the new one, using an app like Carbon Copy Cloner. You can also reinstall the OS from scratch Again the process depends on your model). The current edition MacBoo Airs can use Internet Recovery, not needing any external media.
If you already have Lion on your exsting machine, you would use Recovery Assistant to create a bootable drive to begin the reinstall of Lion.

TS1474 Every time I sync my iphone with Macbook, itunes is storing the same voice files multiple times which is eating away my storage. Please offer a solution, thanks !!

My macbook storage has almost been eaten up & has been slowed down considerably due to this problem.

Anyone?

Increase the hard disk drive capacity on a MacBook Air

is it possible to increase the hard disk drive capacity from 64 to 128 G? How do I do it?

It would appear Apple does not intend for you to do it.
It might be possible, if expensive.
I would consider an external drive.
increase flash storage on macbook air
Can one upgrade Flash Storage
Re: macbook storage upgrade??
increase flash storage on macbook air

How to store videos and photos in external storage

Hi,
May I know how do I store videos and photos into an external hard disk so that I can free up my Macbook storage?
Hope to receive advice on this.
Thanks
Stephen Lim

Hi Stephen
Yes there are problems with this
A. external Hard Disk - MUST BE - Mac OS Extended (hfs) formatted to be used for VIDEO as KLAUS1 writes.
B. a FireWire or Thunderbolt one is better than USB/USB2 as they performs badly to me especially when filling up.
C. DO NEVER - move or alter any folders named
• iMovie Event's - or -
• iMovie Project's
on DeskTop/Finder as this will break the connection to iMovie
ONLY move Event's and Project's from within iMovie Application !
D. Then the BIG problem - as I have no answer to - Video and Photos in iPhoto or Aperture.
Moving them to an external hard disk - and at least MY iMovie can not see them any more - resulting in broken Project's - most probably beyond repair.
and here I run into the wall of ignorance
Yours Bengt W

I was thinking of getting a MacBook however I'm a bit worried about it not having enough memory or hard drive space unlike other laptop?

oother laptops have 500gb or 250gb or 1tb so I was a bit worried about the macbook storage and if it will be enough?

The MacBook Air has an SSD, not a mechanical hard drive and since SSDs are more expensive drive sizes tend to be smaller. When I first installed an SSD in my previous notebook I went from having a 750GB mechanical drive to a 256GB SSD. That forced me to rethink how I used the drive since I was using about 600GB of that hard drive. I moved all my music, video, and photos to an external drive since I really didn’t need to keep all that stuff on my notebook which reduced my usage down to well below 300GB. I then began taking a look at the programs, utilities, templates, etc to see what I’d pack ratted away ‘just in case’. Removing most of that stuff took me down to just above 200GB.
The 13” MBA has an SD RAM slot and there are several different products that let you put a card in that doesn’t stick out like a normal SD card would. I have a 64GB card that I keep a selection of music, video, and photos. There are also mini USB cards that have just a little nob sticking out when inserted into the computer that can provide additional space.
Only you can determine if the trade-off for hard drive speed vs lost space (and longer battery life) is worth it.

Weird Problem in New MacBook

Just transferred my system from Ibook to MacBook. Used Migration, for files and settings, not applications.
"Space Used" info in Hard Drive states 30G. Total of all folders in Hard Drive listed in Finder states only 20G when they are totaled. Big difference!
Took it it to Genius Bar, no answer after he carefully went thru the system, no duplicate files, HD verifies fine, permissions fine etc.. On my own, I looked thru "Invisible Files", nothing to account for discrepancy. I forced emptied the Trashes, still no answer. Advice was to leave it, as the computer works fine and I will. But it's a puzzle. 10G is a LOT of unaccounted space.
Only thing I can think of: in Ibook I used Shredit a few times to shred empty space in HD. Last time I stopped it in mid-stream. It noted a file was left on root of HD that I could delete or return to. Around the same period. When it transferred to the MacBook I deleted it. In ibook around the same period, I could no longer do a HD Repair in Disk Utility, errors were shown. However, system functioned fine, so it was odd but did not effect anything. I thought this had some bearing on the MacBook space discrepancy. On the other hand, there never was such a discrepancy on the Ibook. So, maybe not.
Only other point of note: it took 3 Migrations to get all my data transferred. With a support tech, I deleted all folders listed as "Old Mac 2", "Old Mac", etc., from the multiple migrations.
Two migrations were mostly 0 size anyway.
Any ideas on this odd situation?

You can get rid of any extra printer drivers in those folders, just make sure you keep the ones for the printer(s) you use.
And yes, the sleep image is supposed to be the same size as your RAM--and you don't want to go deleting that! Also, don't go deleting the swapfiles.
If you have items in the Private>var>log folder, those can be deleted without causing issues.
Hopefully that helps clear things up!
~Lyssa

HT204053 iCloud photo storage

MY primary iPhoto and video library is stored on external drive as MacBook storage is too small. For additional storage and access, I recently copied all the photos (45 GB) to iCloud Drive. the storage use for photos on the macbook is now 44GB, leaving little room on the MacBook harddrive. Does iCloud Drive keep a local copy on my harddrive? How can I save photos in an addition place, cloud, any cloud, and leave off my MacBook Air?

Does iCloud Drive keep a local copy on my harddrive? How can I save photos in an addition place, cloud, any cloud, and leave off my MacBook Air?
Yes, iCloud drive is keeping local shadow copies of all documents you store there. So you will not save space on your device.
If you want to save space by moving photos to iCloud, store them iCloud Photo Library and not on iCloud Drive. The new Photos.app supports iCloud Photo Library.
See: Apple - OS X - Photos Preview
Fill your library, not your device.
iCloud Photo Library can help you make the most of the space on your Mac. When you choose “Optimize Mac Storage,” all your full-resolution photos and videos are stored in iCloud in their original formats, with storage-saving versions kept on your Mac as space is needed. You can also optimize storage on your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, so you can access more photos and videos than ever before. You get 5GB of free storage in iCloud — and as your library grows, you have the option to choose a plan for up to 1TB.

Is it possible to use an external Hard disk to install Windows OS (7 or 8) for bootcamp?

I have recently got a Macbook Pro with Retina Display 13" late 2013, with 120 GB of memory. I want to install a Windows OS on my macbook but i dont want to take up the sace on it, so instead i got an external Hard Drive with 500 GB with the Mac OS Extended (journaled) format and i was wondering if i can use that for installing Windows and access it using BootCamp.
I dont want to use my macbook storage for windows... so any ideas?

Macologist250,
to use Boot Camp, Windows must be on your MacBook Pro’s internal disk. You could try a virtualizer such as VirtualBox or Parallels Desktop if you’d rather have Windows on an external disk.

Macbook Storage Discrepancy

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