does ccleaner work well on a mac

I'll stick with the advice of not using any third party app that claims to clean, protect, manage, boost performance, etc. your computer. These apps are not necessary and generally may cause problems.

Effective defenses against malware and other threats

I'm really surprised at all the negative responses here. Are most so called "cleaner" programs baloney money grabs? Definitely! Is CCleaner one? Heck no!

CCleaner is super transparent about what it does. You have full control. It isn't just pressing a button and having some invisible cleaning magic happen behind the scenes.

You launch CCleaner and you get these options to free up hard drive space. Safari and all other browsers. You can pick and choose what to clean and what to leave around. You want your history and session data preserved? Uncheck those. You have total control and the default settings are very conservative.

It also has cool options like an easy app uninstaller. You can order the apps by size, by date installed, date last used, name, etc. You can then choose which, if any, apps to uninstall and do it right from there. That is in the "tools" section.

It then lets you look at your startup items and disable or remove any of them you choose to.

There are other things you can do with CCleaner but it isn't malicious, it isn't scamware, it's really good software that puts a bunch of stuff you could do yourself manually all in one location for you to do it quicker and easier. I've used it for years on Macs and PC's and 100% recommend it.

*I am NOT affiliated with CCleaner or Piriform in anyway.

This page is one of the first pages on google when you search for CCleaner and OSX/Mac. It is relevant. I work in IT and am part of a team that supports over 30 sites and thousands of users. We support Macs, Wintel, Chromebooks, and other specialty devices.

CCleaner is the specific app that was inquired about. Nothing about CCleaner is "lethal." Experienced users don't "need" it but hey, if you like to manually go and clear out your browser cache, and/or session data, etc. and clear out app caches and your trash and system logs, etc. because your old MacBook Air's tiny SSD needs every MB available you could take the ten minutes to do that or you could do it in 30 seconds using CCleaner. If you want to quickly organize the apps on that Macbook air by date last used and/or size to see if there are any that can be removed, which you can do from that same window, you can do that in another 30 seconds one click away.

CCleaner is simply a tool of convenience. It's free, you can check it out yourself because it's plainly obvious to me that you've never used it nor has anybody in this thread. It won't change your browser settings, it won't complain at you to upgrade to the paid version, it won't make itself hard to remove. Oh, and it won't do anything "lethal."

If the OP had just asked about cleaning apps in general I'd agree with most of what's been said in this thread but OP asked specifically about CCleaner which is a good product.

This page is one of the first pages on google when you search for CCleaner and OSX/Mac

Nevertheless, it's a four year old thread.

I work in IT

Of course. Still doesn't change my opinion, no any of the other regular posters here.

if you like to manually go and clear out your browser cache, and/or session data, etc. and clear out app caches and your trash and system logs, etc. because your old MacBook Air's tiny SSD needs every MB available you could take the ten minutes to do that or you could do it in 30 seconds using CCleaner

Why would you want to do things that a: slow the Mac down or b: can be done with a simple finder command or c: happen automatically? But you work in IT, so, I guess that means something.

Your opinion is based on nothing since you have zero experience with the application but hey, Macs! Where end users are either so sure they can't be affected by anything malicious they'll type their credentials into anything or they are so paranoid they'll bash an application because it fits in a category they deem dangerous.

Nothing I mentioned will slow down anything. But you've got a lot of points on an Apple discussion board so I guess that means something.

No it won't, not in the scenario I mentioned. If you are on a single user machine without a completely full hard drive then sure, removing cached elements means downloading them from the internet/intranet(in the case of internal company sites) again. For most people that's not really going to be that noticeable because they're on broadband, but sure, until their cache is rebuilt, the first time they go to some of their commonly visited sites it might take a couple extra seconds to load. I could get into other aspects, like websites that update elements but not in a way your browser will recognize as new, but that's outside of the scope of what I'm talking about.

In my scenario I've got an older generation Macbook Air in a multi-user environment with the SSD so full that a logon attempt takes several minutes. Going through and freeing up whatever space I can, including the cached files of users who may never use that machine again, is only going to make the performance of that machine better.

Also while modern browsers are supposed to manage their own caches sometimes that doesn't happen. I've seen caches grow to the over one hundred gigabytes because a browser was duplicating items in the cache. Weird things happen sometimes.

I don't know why this is making you so salty. CCleaner is not only not malicious but is very configurable and just offers you some convenient features all in one place. That is it. You could have an open mind and download it and just check it out, then remove it once you know what it really is and what it really does. Then at least when you speak on it in the future you can speak from a place experience.

I notice you fixate on the browser caches - and agree that deleting will slow things down, thanks - but say nothing about the simple trash command, for instance? And your scenario is pretty rare, but also, really, you get to log in because you trash the caches which are then rebuilt in usage so next time round you're back to square one? No one is being salty, but we see hundreds of posts on here from folks who create problems for themselves under the impression that they're "cleaning" something that doesn't need to be cleaned. And the solution to an overfull disk is not trashing caches but moving data off the volume as it's in serious risk of corruption.

Although I agree with most of what you have said here, the slowdowns from rebuilding browser cache extend over a long period of time as the user re-visits sites. So it does slow down that initial contact after clearing cache, but those are short and usually not even noticed.

The real slowdowns occur when you delete application and system caches which tend to be build immediately after login or app launch and are quite noticeable. I normally accomplish this with a Safe Mode boot, but most cache cleaners can do the same thing, if told to. I would only do this as a last resort when I know something has suddenly gone wrong that a reboot didn't solve and suspect that a database cache might be corrupt. If it's just a Spotlight issue, then I'll simply tell spotlight to re-index either in System Preferences or a Terminal Command. Again, I know that things will be sluggish while this is going on, so I usually find something better to do with my time and leave the computer to itself.

There is a similar argument for rarely ever clearing RAM cache, but that's off-topic here, so I won't go into that one.

I'm not "fixated" on anything, I swear people only skim a post. I was giving specific examples of some of the many things you can do from within CCleaner. When or if you would use those features depends on what you're trying to accomplish.

You shouldn't use cleaning apps. They could work, but they can delete a system file and make OS X unusable, having to reinstall, so it's better not to use them. Also, OS X knows how to take care of itself with maintenance scripts, for example, which makes these applications less needed

How to maintain a Mac

1. Make redundant backups, keeping at least one off site at all times. One backup is not enough. Don’t back up your backups; make them independent of each other. Don’t rely completely on any single backup method, such as Time Machine. If you get an indication that a backup has failed, don't ignore it.

2. Keep your software up to date. In the Software Update preference pane, you can configure automatic notifications of updates to OS X and other Mac App Store products. Some third-party applications from other sources have a similar feature, if you don’t mind letting them phone home. Otherwise you have to check yourself on a regular basis. This is especially important for complex software that modifies the operating system, such as device drivers. Before installing any Apple update, you must check that all such modifications that you use are compatible.

3. Don't install crapware, such as “themes,” "haxies," “add-ons,” “toolbars,” “enhancers," “optimizers,” “accelerators,” "boosters," “extenders,” “cleaners,” "doctors," "tune-ups," “defragmenters,” “firewalls,” "barriers," “guardians,” “defenders,” “protectors,” most “plugins,” commercial "virus scanners,” "disk tools," or "utilities." With very few exceptions, this stuff is useless, or worse than useless.

The more actively promoted the product, the more likely it is to be garbage. The most extreme example is the “MacKeeper” scam.

As a rule, the only software you should install is that which directly enables you to do the things you use a computer for — such as creating, communicating, and playing — and does not modify the way other software works. Use your computer; don't fuss with it.

Never install any third-party software unless you know how to uninstall it. Otherwise you may create problems that are very hard to solve.

The free anti-malware application ClamXav is not crap, and although it’s not routinely needed, it may be useful in some environments, such as a mixed Mac-Windows enterprise network.

4. Beware of trojans. A trojan is malicious software (“malware”) that the user is duped into installing voluntarily. Such attacks were rare on the Mac platform until sometime in 2011, but are now increasingly common, and increasingly dangerous.

There is some built-in protection against downloading malware, but you can’t rely on it — the attackers are always at least one day ahead of the defense. You can’t rely on third-party protection either. What you can rely on is common-sense awareness — not paranoia, which only makes you more vulnerable.

Never install software from an untrustworthy or unknown source. If in doubt, do some research. Any website that prompts you to install a “codec” or “plugin” that comes from the same site, or an unknown site, is untrustworthy. Software with a corporate brand, such as Adobe Flash Player, must be acquired directly from the developer. No intermediary is acceptable, and don’t trust links unless you know how to parse them. Any file that is automatically downloaded from a web page without your having requested it should go straight into the Trash. A website that claims you have a “virus,” or that anything else is wrong with your computer, is rogue.

In OS X 10.7.5 or later, downloaded applications and Installer packages that have not been digitally signed by a developer registered with Apple are blocked from loading by default. The block can be overridden, but think carefully before you do so.

Because of recurring security issues in Java, it’s best to disable it in your web browsers, if it’s installed. Few websites have Java content nowadays, so you won’t be missing much. This action is mandatory if you’re running any version of OS X older than 10.6.8 with the latest Java update. Note: Java has nothing to do with JavaScript, despite the similar names. Don't install Java unless you're sure you need it. Most people don't.

5. Don't fill up your boot volume. A common mistake is adding more and more large files to your home folder until you start to get warnings that you're out of space, which may be followed in short order by a boot failure. This is more prone to happen on the newer Macs that come with an internal SSD instead of the traditional hard drive. The drive can be very nearly full before you become aware of the problem. While it's not true that you should or must keep any particular percentage of space free, you should monitor your storage consumption and make sure you're not in immediate danger of using it up. According to Apple documentation, you need at least 9 GB of free space on the startup volume for normal operation.

If storage space is running low, use a tool such as the free application OmniDiskSweeperto explore your volume and find out what's taking up the most space. Move rarely-used large files to secondary storage.

6. Relax, don’t do it. Besides the above, no routine maintenance is necessary or beneficial for the vast majority of users; specifically not “cleaning caches,” “zapping the PRAM,” "resetting the SMC," “rebuilding the directory,” "defragmenting the drive," “running periodic scripts,” “dumping logs,” "deleting temp files," “scanning for viruses,” "purging memory," "checking for bad blocks," "testing the hardware," or “repairing permissions.” Such measures are either completely pointless or are useful only for solving problems, not for prevention.

The very height of futility is running an expensive third-party application called “Disk Warrior” when nothing is wrong, or even when something is wrong and you have backups, which you must have. Disk Warrior is a data-salvage tool, not a maintenance tool, and you will never need it if your backups are adequate. Don’t waste money on it or anything like it.

Read this post for an example of what 3rd party cleaning apps can do.

CleanMyMac has deleted the Italian language. What should I do?

Rob54Whit wrote:

does ccleaner work well on a mac or should I use it--- or use another method of removing junk files and empty chace

Your OS does an excellent job of cleaning up after itself, so unless you are the one contributing junk then it would almost certainly be a waste of time and money, at best, and could damage your system or applications. The same is generally true of all such cleaner apps, as others have already told you.

If, after following the advice of Linc and possibly other contributors here you are having specific issues, start a new thread to describe them and somebody will almost certainly be able to help.

Linc Davis, I am very careful about what I install on my Mac and have only worried about a couple of things. Below are questions that I've wondered.

Removing software/apps - I did install AppCleaner to remove any software or app that I have installed and/or am not using. Is AppCleaner good for accomplishing this or is it risky. If not, what is the best way to remove ALL of the files related to an app? An example is Airmail. I was looking for a different mail app, tried this one, and don't like it.. Will AppCleaner do the job in removing ALL of the files related to Airmail?

App Store and Safari Extensions - Can we safely assume that the apps in these two sources have been examined and are safe for Macs?

Thanks for your help. Your post on maintaing a mac is very helpful!!!

Gat0r wrote:

Linc Davis, I am very careful about what I install on my Mac and have only worried about a couple of things.

Linc doesn't always monitor older entries, but hopefully he'll be back later today. In the meanwhile I'll try and give you a few of my opinions/tips.

Removing software/apps...

Always go back to the developer first for instructions on how to remove their software. They will often have an uninstaller script either built into the app itself or available for download to take care of that. At other times they will simply list the items you need to track down and trash.

If you downloaded the app from the AppStore, then Open LaunchPad, find the app and hold the option key down. If an "X" in a circle shows up to the upper left of the icon, clicking that should be all you need to do. If there is no "X" then go back to the Finder and drag the app to the trash. There shouldn't be any files left over (e.g. preference files), but if there are they will be insignificant and not worth the bother to track down.

None of the remover apps is perfect, although some are better than others. Personally, I don't rely on any of them. Most use a simple search for any file containing the name of the app, something I can do just as well with EasyFind or Find Any File if I need to. One or two will watch to see what files an installer or the application install and keep a list to use to uninstall. Those are better than the first type, but do have to be active in the background when you do the install to work and will slow your computer to some extent.

App Store and Safari Extensions - Can we safely assume that the apps in these two sources have been examined and are safe for Macs?

AppStore apps have been screened by Apple to make certain that they comply with the rules, but there have been a couple of instances where they were found after the fact to be using information inappropriately. That is to say they asked the user for access to the contacts list and then exported information from them for uses that were not expected. I believe those were pulled shortly thereafter.

I'm not aware of any screening by Apple of Safari Extensions and that is currently the primary source of Adware these days. See this new Adware Removal Guide for additional details. Google Chrome just implemented a new policy Protecting Windows users from malicious extensions which I hope gets extended to Mac users and other browser.