private/var/vm - ok to delete?

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private/var/vm - ok to delete?

hi everyone. i'm trying to free up some hard disk space. was wondering if it's ok to delete files in my "private" folder, in particular "private/var/vm". what's "vm" anyway?

also, is it ok to delete "system/library/frameworks"?

thanks. and sorry if these are silly questions...

sasha

Mac OS X (10.5.1)

Posted on Dec 7, 2007 3:17 PM

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Answer 1

cornelius

Level 6

17,826 points

Dec 7, 2007 4:54 PM in response to Sasha Masoch

Sasha:

Don't touch those files. The files you list are system files and deleting them can lead to serious issues.

Before you begin cleaning things out, I suggest that you have an up-to-date backup of your entire computer. The best method is to clone your entire internal HDD to an external firewire HDD using SuperDuper or Carbon Copy Cloner.

Dr. Smoke's FAQ Freeing space on your Mac OS X startup disk has excellent suggestions for finding space on your HDD.

If you find yourself running out of space it may indicate that your usage pattern dictates a larger, more capacious HDD.

Cheers 🙂
cornelius

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