macOS Monterey System Data is huge (part of the answer inside : Adobe)

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AlxV-FR Author

Level 1

4 points

macOS Monterey System Data is huge (part of the answer inside : Adobe)

Like many people, i have problems with my Mac : 10GB free space in a 2TB SSD with 800GB of System Data

I really would like to know why, where and how to reduce that insanely huge amount

Part of the answer, i had a look to ~/Library/Caches/

...and discovered that "Adobe" folder took 400GB

I am a big user of After Effect, and i use the "beta" too, and what was my surprise to discover old version cache folders with 20 to 100GB of unused data in each

So if you are in my situation, one simple advice is to delete old versions folders (22.6 actually, so everything older)

I saved 300 GB in 1 minute

So i can breathe a bit, but my System Datas is still huge : 500GB.... 1/4 of my SSD

any help ?

MacBook Pro Apple Silicon

Posted on Sep 20, 2022 3:47 AM

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Answer 1

Owl-53

Level 10

103,777 points

Sep 24, 2022 7:28 AM in response to AlxV-FR

Rebuild the Spotlight index on your Mac

What is “Other” storage on a Mac, and how can I clean it out?

Free up storage space on your Mac

OmniDiskSweeper Safe to use

GrandPerspective

How to delete Time Machine snapshots on your Mac

See used and available storage space on your Mac

Locate backups of your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch

Notation - If the user is using a cloning software like Carbon Copy Cloner - suggest tweaking the Safety Net Feature in this software. It may be making additional Snap Shots that are not being Cloned to the Eternal Drive. If this should be the case, these Snap Shot could be using additional space on the drive

https://bombich.com/kb/ccc6/legacy-safetynet-folder-not-used-when-snapshots-are-enabled-on-destination

The final word from Apple on Managing the " Other/ System Data “ Category

Other / System Data: 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.

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Answer 2

AlxV-FR Author

Level 1

4 points

Sep 24, 2022 7:23 AM in response to lexOS1

Thanks for answering but these are very basic advices ...

I clean my datas and empty the trash regulary, but in this case I am talking about a strange behaviour of MacOS that makes the "system data" taking most of my SSD space... 1To on a 2To SSD, that is insanely huge, and MacOS doesn't offer any way to deal with what cache or data backup or whatever it is doing in background

There are few answers on this problems on Internet, and the most precise ones ask us to deal with MacOS system folders from the Terminal, which is a bit dangerous according to me.

I moved some work folders in an external storage, I deleted old "cache" folders from old versions of Adobe apps, and now my system data takes 250Go with is high, but better than the 1To I've seen few days ago

Looks like MacOs do it's own "time machine" thing in the computer (even if time machine is on and set on my NAS), or something like that, and the more you use your internal SSD, the more it makes "system data" grow

As I said, it's "strange", but I'm on a better mood now. This invites me to give a precious advice : always make free space on your computer if you are using Monterey, the most you can, the more frequently you can

Regards,

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Answer 3

KMB_12

Community Specialist

Sep 24, 2022 7:51 AM in response to AlxV-FR

Hello AlxV-FR,

We certainly understand wanting to get this issue taken care of. At this point we suggest that you contact Apple Support to have this looked into further.

Get Support

Thanks for using Apple Support Communities.

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Answer 4

Owl-53

Level 10

103,777 points

Sep 24, 2022 7:36 AM in response to AlxV-FR

That is what Rebuild the Spotlight index on your Mac would have achieved

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Answer 5

lexOS1

Community Specialist

Sep 23, 2022 5:47 PM in response to AlxV-FR

Hi AlxV-FR,

Thank you for participating in the Apple Support Communities. If you are trying to free up space on your device, here are a few things you can check:

See if you can Optimize Storage with the following tips: Optimize storage space on your Mac - Apple Support
If you don't want to delete files, you can compress them using the steps here: Zip and unzip files and folders on Mac - Apple Support
After you have removed items, remember to empty the trash: Delete files and folders on Mac - Apple Support

If you need further support, contact Apple Support here: Contact - Official Apple Support

Have a great day.

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Answer 6

AlxV-FR Author

Level 1

4 points

Sep 24, 2022 7:34 AM in response to Owl-53

"You can't manage the contents of this category"

that is my main problem :)

at least ... that "was"

I think we can consider the problem solved as making space in my computer reduced the space used by "system data" from 1TB to 250GB

Note that when "system data" took nearly 1TB, and my personnal/working data almost the same, after effect was continuously saying to me that the disk was almost full while MacOS told me that I had 400GB available

Looks like the available space indicated by MacOS is not really the 'real' available space

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macOS Monterey System Data is huge (part of the answer inside : Adobe)

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