Deleting hidden .trashes files on FAT32 USB thumb drive

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Level 1

5 points

Deleting hidden .trashes files on FAT32 USB thumb drive

Hi all.

I have a few thumb drives (1gb / 4gb) that I need to be able to use on both PC and Mac. They work fine for accessing files etc., but I find that if I delete files on OSX to make more room, the space isn't made available. I've discovered that this is due to invisible .trashes files, which I can only see and delete by using a Windows machine. This is a right pain as that means I have to remember to clear space on drives at work before trying to copy files onto drives at home. Is there any way to ensure that when I delete files in OSX that all the associated bits are cleared as well?

Cheers in advance for someones help !

Pete

iMac 24" Macbook Air, Mac OS X (10.5.2), 2.33Ghz Core 2 Duo iMac 24" / 1.6Ghz 80G hd MBA

Posted on Nov 16, 2008 3:41 PM

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Answer 1

Niel

Level 10

741,851 points

Nov 16, 2008 3:47 PM in response to irish_pete

Empty the trash before unplugging the drive; this can be done by control-clicking it in the Dock. Mac OS X doesn't delete files on non-network drives when they're moved to the trash unless there's a problem.

(37883)

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Answer 2

Kappy

Level 10

362,007 points

Nov 16, 2008 3:46 PM in response to irish_pete

In order to remove an item you must first put it in the Trash, then Empty the Trash. If you don't Empty the Trash, then the item remains on the drive. Emptying the Trash in OS X will not remove files put in the trash in Windows. You must empty the Windows trash in Windows.

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Answer 3

BDAqua

Level 10

250,259 points

Dec 21, 2008 11:51 AM in response to Tkmoore

Hi Tkmoore, and a warm welcome to the forums! 🙂

Is there any other way to delete these hidden files off of a flash drive besides emptying the trash.

Well, you could reformat it to wipe it clean.

if the flash drive is removed, can you just plug it back in and then empty the trash?

At least on the Mac side you can, I presume the PC side also works that way.

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Answer 4

irish_pete Author

Level 1

5 points

Nov 16, 2008 4:00 PM in response to Niel

Thanks Kappy and Niel, much appreciated.

Cheers,

Pete

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Answer 5

Tkmoore

Level 1

0 points

Dec 20, 2008 10:54 PM in response to irish_pete

Is there any other way to delete these hidden files off of a flash drive besides emptying the trash. Also, if the flash drive is removed, can you just plug it back in and then empty the trash?

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