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How to free up space by deleting massive system data on M2 MacBook Air

I recently bought the 2022 M2 Macbook Air and I noticed it came with this huge System Data Storage, it's over 140GB in one single Macbook! I have searched on how to delete some of the data, but unsuccessfully... What do I do?



[Re-Titled by Moderator]

MacBook Air, macOS 14.0

Posted on Oct 2, 2023 8:23 PM

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6 replies

Oct 4, 2023 8:14 PM in response to peterlramos

Hey there peterlramos,


We'd like to help by learning more about what's happening, along with ruling out some possible causes:


  1. Both categories can fluctuate, especially after an update was performed. Are you seeing any storage full alerts on your iPhone?
  2. We see that the latest version(macOS 14.0) is installed, but any app updates available? Here are the steps to check: How to manually update apps on your Apple device
  3. How long ago did you update to macOS 14.0, and has there been any change in the amount of storage those two categories are using?


Cheers!

Oct 6, 2023 3:48 PM in response to peterlramos

Hi peterlramos,


System Data can relate to third party applications or temporary files. You can find more from the information below and in the article here: Change Storage settings on Mac - Apple Support


"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. You can manage your data that falls outside the other categories using the Finder or the third-party apps that created it."



When sorting by category with the steps here: Find and delete files on your Mac, do you see anything out of the ordinary?


Also were there any recent installs of third-party apps or programs that may be syncing or using temporary file space?


Keep us posted, and we'll continue to assist.


Cheers.


How to free up space by deleting massive system data on M2 MacBook Air

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