What is the difference between Mac OS created user's home folder and one created by user manually?

[hajime]

Hi, what is the difference between the user's home folder created by the OS and a folder manually created by a user (be it on an external drive or another folder in the internal drive)?

I read that some of those who have a 256GB SSD on their Mac went through some complicated steps such as creating some links to move the user's home folder from the small internal SSD to an external drive. What so special about that home folder compared with one manually created by a user? Just drag and drop won't work? Can't we just leave that home folder in the internal drive alone and manually create a folder called home2 on an external drive and then store user created files there?

 

[Boyd01]

Here's one thread about this

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/13-3-breaks-home-folder-on-external-drive.2385675/

 

[hajime]

Thanks. I read that some users have issues like the ones mentioned in the thread so I opted for a possible combination of 512GB internal and a higher capacity DAS and/or perhaps later on add a NAS. If even over 10 years ago I used a 1TB internal and planned to buy the next Mac with 2TB internal (before the existence of Silicon Mac that integrates cpu, memory and SSD together), is it better to buy a new Mac with 1TB internal or go with 512GB internal and higher capacity external?

 

[bzgnyc2]

Hi, what is the difference between the user's home folder created by the OS and a folder manually created by a user (be it on an external drive or another folder in the internal drive)?

I read that some of those who have a 256GB SSD on their Mac went through some complicated steps such as creating some links to move the user's home folder from the small internal SSD to an external drive. What so special about that home folder compared with one manually created by a user? Just drag and drop won't work? Can't we just leave that home folder in the internal drive alone and manually create a folder called home2 on an external drive and then store user created files there?

I am interpreting your post as 3 issues:
1) Home folder created manually versus by macOS
2) Layout/prepopulation of home folder
3) Home folder stored externally versus internally

As to 1) at the system level, a folder/directory created by macOS for a new user account is the same as one created by the user using UNIX or Finder. The nice thing about UNIX is that there are no special/magic/weird files or folders, and generally MacOS X followed that (resource forks in HFS+ and a few other things aside). The main issue is getting all the attributes (owners, permissions, ACL, etc) right. That can all be done through standard means but you have to know what the target is and why (essentially how the system works at the UNIX, etc level).

2) On login to a new user account (or one missing key files), MacOS X will create what it needs and/or update older configuration files on that user's login. For example, if there is no Library folder it will create one. If you don't have a Dock preferences files, it will create one.

3) There are long discussions on this but I can say I've been using this configuration for years and it works fine. As long as the external drive is always connected. If a user's home folder is on an external drive that becomes disconnected while they are logged in, it will be a mess. Generally requires closing all applications (hopefully files saved somewhere...), logout, fix connection/drive, login back in. If the user logs in while the external drive is disconnected, the system will try to automatically create a new home folder for the user as per 2) above. It will of course be empty and this can be confusing. As such I never use external drives for home folders on laptops (but I do put home folders on non-system partitions on those laptops).

On the other hand, one can have a base home folder internal and then move selected folders external but I find this more confusing. First, not all applications have provisions for this. A lot of programs keep lots of stuff under ~/Library. You can move these manually but I find that confusing and the extent things are missing on login, might get recreated again as per 2). This to me has all of the risks of an external home folder with none of the benefits of a home folder cleanly stored on an external drive.

P.S.By default, MacOS X does not enable owners on external drives. This makes sense in the context of a thumb drive but is not good for a home folder. I recommend first enabling owners on external drives used for home folders.

 

[Ben J.]

IME, the folders created by a macOS installation or the creation of a user account, basically all the folders with the dim little icons on them, should not be deleted or moved. MacOS and many apps expect to find them at their defalt location, and might even create new folders if they don't, and it can become messy.

I think the best approach to dealing with limited space on internal ssds is to locate extra large folders and move them to an external drive, then create an alias or a symbolic link (much the same thing) of the folder on the external, and place it in your user folder where the large folder used to be. Any application or the OS looking for it or wanting to write to it, will find the alias/symlink and treat it as if nothing happened.

I like to use DaisyDisk to find folders that contain large amounts of data, that I think it would not hurt to move to an external drive. My internal drive is faster than my externals, so some files I choose not to move even if they are large. My Lightroom catalog is an example; it's 10GB, but it needs all the speed it can get to display my thousands of pictures quickly.

I also try to keep the folder structure on the external. Like this:
Bens_internal_folders/benjenssen/Library/Application_Support/ (the moved folder)
…even if there are no other items except the moved folder - to make it easier to rearrange in the future. But remember; navigating your home folder works just as before; opening an alias folder shows the content just as before, only it resides on the external.

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Bottom line: Keep the default folder structure in your home folder, and just use aliases to offload the wheighty stuff that doesn't especially need the speed of the internal.

 

[Mr_Brightside_@]

Thanks. I read that some users have issues like the ones mentioned in the thread so I opted for a possible combination of 512GB internal and a higher capacity DAS and/or perhaps later on add a NAS. If even over 10 years ago I used a 1TB internal and planned to buy the next Mac with 2TB internal (before the existence of Silicon Mac that integrates cpu, memory and SSD together), is it better to buy a new Mac with 1TB internal or go with 512GB internal and higher capacity external?

I implore you to purchase a Mac with an internal SSD sufficient for your needs.

 

[bzgnyc2]

Thanks. I read that some users have issues like the ones mentioned in the thread so I opted for a possible combination of 512GB internal and a higher capacity DAS and/or perhaps later on add a NAS. If even over 10 years ago I used a 1TB internal and planned to buy the next Mac with 2TB internal (before the existence of Silicon Mac that integrates cpu, memory and SSD together), is it better to buy a new Mac with 1TB internal or go with 512GB internal and higher capacity external?

Hi Hajime,

On that last question, that partially depends on you and your needs. Between those two scenarios I'd say that depends on how technical you are versus just needing something that "just works". If you are comfortable at the UNIX level or open to going down that rabbit hole, then a more complex configuration like you mentioned can be most cost effective (as in hard cash out the door).

If it is just trying to avoid paying a premium for Apple upgrades then I'd say the Apple premium for the 1 TB internal drive versus a 512 GB while annoying is more economical overall once your time is factored in over the life of the computer. There are other reasons for large external storage and/or storing a home folder on an external drive but I would say the hassle isn't worth it if is just the price of 512 GB versus 1 TB of internal storage.

However, help us understand the situation: do you already have a system that you are trying to figure out how best to configure or are you deciding on the specifications for a new one? Either way also share more details about your needs -- use cases, applications used, how much data, etc.