Losing files

Question

Level 1

4 points

Losing files

Is there anyway I can access my files from other and is there anyway I can prevent them from going there in the future?

I was downloading my files off the internet and moved them in finder (I have a program that extracts “.zip” files and turns them into “.package” files). I moved them to a folder that was on my desktop and moved my folder back into finder. I reloaded finder to make sure all of my files were where I needed them to be, but they weren’t there. I went in finder and did a general search and nothing came up except random dupes of the folder I was looking for, which contained nothing. Then I tried using terminal to find them since I thought they were hidden. Nothing came up, but I do believe that the files are hidden and somewhere within the depths of my mac in the “other” sections. Is there anyway I can get into “other“ and retrieve my files (preferably for free and using what’s already available on my system)? My mac is a 2014 Macbook Pro running MacOS 11.6.8 if that provides anything.

MacBook Pro 13″, macOS 11.6

Posted on Dec 29, 2022 10:00 PM

Reply

Answer 1

John Galt

Level 10

156,794 points

Dec 30, 2022 3:43 AM in response to L0rdStinky

The default download location for Safari is ~/Downloads: Change General preferences in Safari on Mac - Apple Support

(I have a program that extracts “.zip” files and turns them into “.package” files)

If I may offer a suggestion, you do not require any non-Apple programs to extract .zip files. Try opening them without using whatever non-Apple software you're using.

Did you try Spotlight: Search with Spotlight on Mac - Apple Support

If you want to search for misplaced or even hidden files, may I suggest Find Any File. It's not free.

Reply

Answer 2

Owl-53

Level 10

104,887 points

Dec 30, 2022 3:44 AM in response to L0rdStinky

Two things jump out to me>>

1 - 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.

2 - " Macbook Pro running MacOS 11.6.8 "

The Current stable version of Big Sur is 11.7.2

The links below are worthy of the User Attention

Do perform a Time Machine Backup before hand, just incase

Keep your Mac up to date

About the security content of macOS Big Sur 11.7.2 - Apple Support (CA)

Reply

Losing files

Similar questions