I do not have any programs like App Zapper. I may have deleted one or two apps by dragging them to the trash. Is there a program that seeks out unused files that may have been associated with those apps. I do not remember which apps they were though. Thanks in advance for any help.
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Removing unused files.
- Thread starter DismantleDesign
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The most common file associated with a program is it's preference file. They'll be located in ~/Library/Preferences/. Programs can place files in any number of spots on your hard drive though so I can't give an exhaustive list of places to look. Programs like AppCleaner generally look for the preference file and a couple other things, but it can leave other stuff behind. One good way I found is to search for the name of the app using Finder and making sure the search includes system files. This isn't a 100% method either though.
Thank you for your responses. But they did not answer my question completely.. sorry.
Thank you angelwatt. I have taken another stroll through my preferences, but there are still some files in there I do not recognize so I do not want to delete them and screw it all up.
I started using AppCleaner a while ago due to AppZapper costing money. Previous to using AppCleaner I deleted some apps inappropriately, leaving associated files behind. I do NOT remember the names of those programs so I can't find them using finder. I am looking for a program that seeks out individual files that are not associated with any programs or files. A program that knows which files are just there for no reason. Thanks in advance for any more responses.
Thank you angelwatt. I have taken another stroll through my preferences, but there are still some files in there I do not recognize so I do not want to delete them and screw it all up.
I started using AppCleaner a while ago due to AppZapper costing money. Previous to using AppCleaner I deleted some apps inappropriately, leaving associated files behind. I do NOT remember the names of those programs so I can't find them using finder. I am looking for a program that seeks out individual files that are not associated with any programs or files. A program that knows which files are just there for no reason. Thanks in advance for any more responses.
There's no program that can decide which files are "necessary" or "unnecessary." You could try a disk inventory visualizer to see if you notice anything that is associated with a non-existent program, or go through your preference lists and applications files to see if you notice anything.