How much SSD free space you need to have in order for Retina iMac to run smoothly

seasurfer · Oct 30, 2014

I only have the 256gb SSD. I feel regretted and should have it upgraded to at least 512gb. I don't use a lot of space but I am constantly worrying about running out of space.

At this time I have only used about 32gb. I don't expect to use more than 100gb in the near future.

My question now is how much free space do I need to have in order to ensure that the retina 5k will runs smoothly or at its best?

simon48 · Oct 30, 2014

The standard guideline is no less than 10-15% of your drive should be free space.

wmy5 · Oct 30, 2014

seasurfer said:
I only have the 256gb SSD. I feel regretted and should have it upgraded to at least 512gb. I don't use a lot of space but I am constantly worrying about running out of space.

At this time I have only used about 32gb. I don't expect to use more than 100gb in the near future.

My question now is how much free space do I need to have in order to ensure that the retina 5k will runs smoothly or at its best?

You don't need to worry this. There is a reserved space already allocated (over provisioning). As you can see in your system report, you only get 251GB available, that is because the OP. So in short, you will always get (nearly) full speed.

macmee · Oct 30, 2014

seasurfer said:
I only have the 256gb SSD. I feel regretted and should have it upgraded to at least 512gb. I don't use a lot of space but I am constantly worrying about running out of space.

At this time I have only used about 32gb. I don't expect to use more than 100gb in the near future.

My question now is how much free space do I need to have in order to ensure that the retina 5k will runs smoothly or at its best?

If you need more space why not get an external?

seasurfer · Oct 30, 2014

macmee said:
If you need more space why not get an external?

I have a 2TB external. I just want to make sure the main hard disk will always has enough space for the Retina iMac to run at its best.

Kritzmire · Oct 30, 2014

I guess i have a similiar ish question
I have about 500g used on my internal imac currently
when i buy my retina imac im debating between 1tb fusion or 3tb
i probably only need the 1tb but will the computer be any faster if i get the 3tb?

macmee · Oct 30, 2014

Kritzmire said:
I guess i have a similiar ish question
I have about 500g used on my internal imac currently
when i buy my retina imac im debating between 1tb fusion or 3tb
i probably only need the 1tb but will the computer be any faster if i get the 3tb?

no, you need to get the higher end GPU and/or CPU if you want it to be "faster".

Kritzmire · Nov 5, 2014

macmee said:
no, you need to get the higher end GPU and/or CPU if you want it to be "faster".

Okay thank you, that's what I figured.
I plan on getting the i7 and 295x.

robgendreau · Nov 5, 2014

And with Thunderbolt and USB 3 it's easy to just move stuff off the flash drive and onto an external. You are going to have to have an external for backup anyway. Using a NAS would be slower, but even then most people overestimate how often they access much of that data stored on the flash. Unless your job is video editing. It's a question of proper management.

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How much SSD free space you need to have in order for Retina iMac to run smoothly

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