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Storage space problem on MAC and not finding OTHER where bulk of the problem is.

The space taken by OTHER is 388GB of the 500GB storage on my Mac. I have followed the instructions to locate the OTHER which took me to LIBRARY but the files I see there do not take more than 30GB. How do I find the files in others like the PDFs etc. I have also invested in external devices and have cleared a lot of stuff, but it is the 388GB in OTHER I need to take to external device.


MacBook Air

Posted on Jun 14, 2021 9:01 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Jun 14, 2021 10:27 AM

If you have not tried these steps try it.


A user has no control over “Other” category of storage.

  • Other: Contains files that don’t fall into the categories listed here. This category primarily includes files and data used by the system, such as log files, caches, VM files, and other runtime system resources. Also included are temporary files, fonts, app support files, and plug-ins. You can't manage the contents of this category. The contents are managed by macOS, and the category varies in size depending on the current state of your Mac.

       https://support.apple.com/guide/system-information/see-available-storage-space-syspf9b375b9/11.0/mac/11



What a user can do?


   1.  Delete files

       https://support.apple.com/guide/system-information/find-and-delete-files-syspf5a64aa6/11.0/mac/11.0


  2.  Optimize storage

       Click the “Manage”button. Wait until Green “Completed” button appears.

       https://support.apple.com/guide/system-information/optimize-storage-space-sysp4ee93ca4/11.0/mac/11.0 


 3.  How to free up storage space on your Mac

      Try all steps posted in this article

      https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT206996

Similar questions

1 reply
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Jun 14, 2021 10:27 AM in response to hani07

If you have not tried these steps try it.


A user has no control over “Other” category of storage.

  • Other: Contains files that don’t fall into the categories listed here. This category primarily includes files and data used by the system, such as log files, caches, VM files, and other runtime system resources. Also included are temporary files, fonts, app support files, and plug-ins. You can't manage the contents of this category. The contents are managed by macOS, and the category varies in size depending on the current state of your Mac.

       https://support.apple.com/guide/system-information/see-available-storage-space-syspf9b375b9/11.0/mac/11



What a user can do?


   1.  Delete files

       https://support.apple.com/guide/system-information/find-and-delete-files-syspf5a64aa6/11.0/mac/11.0


  2.  Optimize storage

       Click the “Manage”button. Wait until Green “Completed” button appears.

       https://support.apple.com/guide/system-information/optimize-storage-space-sysp4ee93ca4/11.0/mac/11.0 


 3.  How to free up storage space on your Mac

      Try all steps posted in this article

      https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT206996

Storage space problem on MAC and not finding OTHER where bulk of the problem is.

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