Error -36 when emptying trash

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Error -36 when emptying trash

I deleted some files on 2 external drives and cannot empty the recycle bin. When I disconnect the external drives the files disappear in the trash. When I connect the drive the files appear in the trash again. I cannot move them to the desktop, that only makes a second copy.I have downloaded and used Trash It 5.0. I have held the command button and delete button and used secure trash removal. The files are still here. How do I remove them? Also, if you need to see a screen shot, I would need instructions on how to do this.

Thank You

iMac, Mac OS X (10.7.3)

Posted on Apr 30, 2012 7:29 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,541 points

Apr 30, 2012 7:35 AM in response to grammydoreen

Launch the Disk Utility application and run Repair Disk on the external volumes.

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Answer 2

Limnos

Level 10

411,121 points

Apr 30, 2012 7:39 AM in response to grammydoreen

What format is the external drive?

General information on I/O error -36 - http://fuzzy.wordpress.com/2006/12/10/ioerror-36/

General information about error -36 - https://discussions.apple.com/thread/3902534?answerId=18221459022#18221459022 - bad disk or format; try using Terminal to delete file.

Error -36 reported when copying files to external drive - http://discussions.apple.com/message.jspa?messageID=8467699

Error -36 and filename characteristics - http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=9629287 - FAT drives may not like all Mac filenames

AD topic on Error -36 trouble shooting - http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=8586572

As a general note, although you see only 1 Trash, trash is stored on each drive separately. That's why it appears and disappears as you remove and connect the drive, and when you tried ot move it to a different drive it just copied the files to the trash on the other drive as any normal file copy would.

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Answer 3

grammydoreen Author

Level 1

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Apr 30, 2012 8:13 AM in response to Linc Davis

Thank you Linc. Disn Utility worked on 1 drive. My 500g external. However, not my 1T external. On the 1T I ran the repair utility 3x. On the second run it cleared all but 1 file. After the third run I ran verify disk and it said errors were found but cannot be fixed. I ran repair disk again and the trash is empty!!!

These 2 drives held previous backups from a pc. I'm going to use them to backup my imac now. Should I format them for Mac or is that not necessary? I don't have formatting software for them anymore. They are Seagate go flex and free agent. I know the 1t Free Agent, is a windows NT filesystem.

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Answer 4

Limnos

Level 10

411,121 points

Apr 30, 2012 9:30 AM in response to grammydoreen

For optimal Mac use you should format them to Mac extended. If you are not going to use these with a PC then definitely go for Mac formatting as this will help avoid problems such as you just encountered.

Disk Utility should be on your computer and is all you need to do the formatting.

Pondini: Formatting, Partitioning, Verifying, and Repairing Disks... - http://web.me.com/pondini/AppleTips/DU.html

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Answer 5

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,541 points

Apr 30, 2012 2:38 PM in response to grammydoreen

If you're only going to use the drives with your Mac, then you should format them. Doing so will of course erase all the data they contain now, so it has to be backed up first.

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Answer 6

Aug 17, 2013 8:23 AM in response to grammydoreen

Try this.

sudo rm -ri ~/.Trash

just make sure it is your admin account.

if it is other account, use this instead.

sudo rm -ri /Users/user_name/.Trash

This will delete your trash bin and recreate a new one.

Don't forget to relogin!

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Answer 7

Mar 24, 2015 1:46 PM in response to Solver2010

I've read multiple threads on this subject. Before I start a new one with the specifics on what is happening to me, I thought I would respond to your post. And hope that two years later, you might still get a notification.

I tried using your suggestion, but I'm told the folder doesn't exist. There is a "Trashes" folder though. Was it renamed under 10.10.2? I don't want to take the chance.

Some additional info.

Under Users/user_name/.Trashes, I get permission denied when issuing a command such as ls -l. When performing sudo ls -l, I get a blank directory.
Where would MacOS put this folder in Win7? I have a duo-boot system.

I repaired the internal drive via the command R route before trying your suggestion which didn't solve the issue.

Thank you.

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