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Uninstall apps on your Mac

Q

q3anon

macrumors regular
Original poster
May 8, 2020
110
26
I was told by someone that uninstalling apps on macOS according to Apple that the files associated to the uninstalled apps were automatically deleted by the operating system after about a month. Can anyone confirm if this happens? Thanks
 
Download & Install the free app AppCleaner: https://nektony.com/mac-app-cleaner

Once it's installed follow Apple's method(s) on an app you want to delete. What will happen is AppCleaner will launch shortly after and show you all the files that were left behind by following Apple's method(s). It then gives you the option to delete all those orphaned files. Just as an aside if the app you're looking to delete has a menu bar icon it is probably worth the trouble to uncheck that option in the apps Settings before deleting the app otherwise you might have to reinstall the app to get it out of your menu bar. Not always necessary but, in my experience, it's 'more often than not'.
 
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But if we don’t delete associated files with a certain uninstalled app, if we install the app again it is immediately configured? The same happens with iPhone because we just delete apps like described in the link mentioned above, right?
 
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q3anon said:
But if we don’t delete associated files with a certain uninstalled app, if we install the app again it is immediately configured?
Click to expand...
Yes, that's usually what happens. It will pull data and configuration settings that were left behind. It really depends on the app though, and if you got it through the App Store or not. Some apps might include an uninstaller to clean all that out, but it's rare.

q3anon said:
The same happens with iPhone because we just delete apps like described in the link mentioned above, right?
Click to expand...
No, deleting apps on iPhone (and iPad) also deletes the data associated with them. That is not the case with Macs.
 
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bogdanw said:
As Apple slowly turns macOS into iOS, deleting apps might soon remove associated data.
OSXDaily - “How to Uninstall Apps on MacOS Sonoma & Ventura via System Settings”
https://osxdaily.com/2024/04/23/how-uninstall-apps-mac-system-settings/
Click to expand...
There is a way to go before that happens.

1. Does the System Settings method delete any associated data for sandboxed apps? Right now the size of an app given by System Settings is smaller than the size indicated by Finder. The size certainly doesn't include any associated data.

2. Until all macOS apps are sandboxed (hopefully never)), deleting many apps can't become similar to iOS deletion.
 
Use AppCleaner to delete applications.

Works as well as (or better than) anything else.
 
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"Don't we all just drag them to the trash?"

No.
We don't "all" do that.

If you want "all of it" gone, use AppCleaner...
 
Just curious...how exactly do these "App Cleaners" work? Like, how does it know all the bits and pieces a particular application left behind? Is it using crowd sourced information, or is it just making a guess based on folder/file names?
 
iStorm said:
No, deleting apps on iPhone (and iPad) also deletes the data associated with them.
Click to expand...

i*OS exception being any apps that use Group Containers (aka shared space and files). Examples: Microsoft, Google.

Files exist under the Group Container until the last of the apps from the developer is deleted. Why you see the occasional thread here along the lines of "I installed XYZ app from ABC and I was already logged in/seeing all my files/etc! Have I been hacked?!". Convenience feature(s).

BigBlur said:
Just curious...how exactly do these "App Cleaners" work? Like, how does it know all the bits and pieces a particular application left behind? Is it using crowd sourced information, or is it just making a guess based on folder/file names?
Click to expand...

Pathnames, filenames are generally string values in the executables, so can search through the binary for these and see if you can locate said items. Can make it more intelligent by doing some educated guesses (eg. have a file name "abc.plist" in the executable, can search under ~/Library, /System/Library to see if a file by that name exists).

If one has Xcode installed, there is a command line program "strings". Can enter in Terminal "strings executablenamehere" to dump all the string/text values in the binary.

But even then, not always 100% as I do see the stray folder/file left behind by App Cleaner.

In the app's container are various plists and other files that can be scanned to see if you can find the name of the container(s) and files used by the program, so can make previous paragraph easier.

Speculation: might even have some of that information buried somewhere (header?) in the executable. Or somewhere in the OS's "databases" (eg. when a program gets installed and run, file extension information gets registered [eg. "I can handle PDF, GIF, JPEG"], MacOS security checks to see if installed from the web, checksums ok [aka: "Ok to run this program that came from internet" message) that might have information where in Library the program is writing files to.
 
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gilby101 said:
There is a way to go before that happens.
1. Does the System Settings method delete any associated data for sandboxed apps? Right now the size of an app given by System Settings is smaller than the size indicated by Finder. The size certainly doesn't include any associated data.
2. Until all macOS apps are sandboxed (hopefully never)), deleting many apps can't become similar to iOS deletion.
Click to expand...
I assume not, I have’t tried. By soon, I was thinking as soon as macOS 15 :)
All apps should be sandboxed and the user should have the choice to give the permissions needed.

BigBlur said:
Just curious...how exactly do these "App Cleaners" work? Like, how does it know all the bits and pieces a particular application left behind? Is it using crowd sourced information, or is it just making a guess based on folder/file names?
Click to expand...
Apps should have a unique bundleId (example: CFBundleIdentifier – net.freemacsoft.AppCleaner) and that can be used very effectively to search for the folders/files they have created.

CFBundleIdentifier https://developer.apple.com/documen...information_property_list/cfbundleidentifier/

How to clean uninstall macOS apps using AppCleaner open source alternative https://sunknudsen.com/privacy-guid...apps-using-appcleaner-open-source-alternative
https://github.com/sunknudsen/priva...leaner-open-source-alternative/app-cleaner.sh

Pearcleaner - “A free, source-available and fair-code licensed mac app cleaner inspired by Freemacsoft's AppCleaner and Sun Knudsen's Privacy Guides post on his app-cleaner script.”
https://github.com/alienator88/Pearcleaner
 
q3anon said:
Do you know why and can you tell me if I should allow it?
Click to expand...
Why: Because Apple requires apps to get those permissions - for security reasons. Do you trust Pearcleaner not to do bad things?
Allow it: You will have to if you want to use it!
 
gilby101 said:
Why: Because Apple requires apps to get those permissions - for security reasons. Do you trust Pearcleaner not to do bad things?
Allow it: You will have to if you want to use it!
Click to expand...
AppCleaner do not ask permission to access other apps data. Why Pearcleaner needs access to other apps data? I deleted it because I don’t understand why Pearcleaner needs access to other apps data! Until I don’t understand why I will not use it!

If I do not allow Pearcleaner uninstall apps with no issues, but is always asking to allow to access other apps data.
 
q3anon said:
If I do not allow Pearcleaner uninstall apps with no issues, but is always asking to allow to access other apps data.
Click to expand...
Don’t use it, just conjecture here based on knowledge and experience… how do you propose an app that uninstalls other apps and deletes those apps’ data files will work if it doesn’t have access to other apps data?
 
Bigwaff said:
how do you propose an app that uninstalls other apps and deletes those apps’ data files will work if it doesn’t have access to other apps data?
Click to expand...
The same way AppCleaner does. Why an app uninstaller needs to access other apps data to do the job? There are two ways for an uninstaller app do the job:
1- Monitor constantly the installed apps
2- Using the apps identifier and their names

Like I said, I don’t understand why Pearcleaner needs to access others apps data.
 
There might be some applications that AppCleaner can't remove entirely -- probably because it can't find some of the [many] app-installed components scattered all over the place.

This might be true for software publishers like Adobe or Microsoft.

I've found that at least one component of "Karibiner Elements" could only be removed through the terminal. Took some internet searching to discover that.

A method that works for me if App Cleaner can't remove everything:
I open a good search utility (a GOOD one, not spotlight) -- "EasyFind" (which is free).
Then I search on a specific word or term. For example, hunting for fragments of Adobe flash, I searched for "flash player".
Even that didn't find everything, so I again searched with a slightly modified string "flashplayer".
Etc.
Eventually, I "think I got it all".

NOTE:
Sometimes you will find something and it won't delete without an administrative password.
No problems -- I just enter it, delete the item, and move on to the next one.
 
What's left for 99% of apps is just a few text files in ~/Library. It's literally just taking up a few kilobytes. Not worth getting another app to delete them.
 
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