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User profile for user: justinrleung
justinrleung Author
User level: Level 1
11 points

Other volumes taking up too much space

I tried to erase and reinstall macOS on my MacBook Pro. After erasing my startup disk, Disk Utility tells me that the other volumes are taking up 407.02 GB and that I have around 100 GB of free space left. I checked with Terminal using diskutil list, but I can't find a reason why the other volumes are taking up so much space. Here's what the command gave me:

-bash-3.2# diskutil list

/dev/disk0 (internal, physical):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: GUID_partition_scheme *512.1 GB disk0

1: EFI EFI 209.7 MB disk0s1

2: Apple_APFS Container disk2 511.9 GB disk0s2


/dev/disk1 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: GUID_partition_scheme +2.1 GB disk1

1: Apple_HFS OS X Base System 2.0 GB disk1s1


/dev/disk2 (synthesized):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: APFS Container Scheme - +511.9 GB disk2

Physical Store disk0s2

1: APFS Volume Macintosh HD 20.5 KB disk2s1

2: APFS Volume Preboot 42.1 MB disk2s2

3: APFS Volume Recovery 1.0 GB disk2s3

4: APFS Volume VM 2.1 GB disk2s4


/dev/disk3 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +5.2 MB disk3


/dev/disk4 (external, physical):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: GUID_partition_scheme *1.0 TB disk4

1: EFI EFI 209.7 MB disk4s1

2: Apple_HFS Time Machine Backups 999.8 GB disk4s2


/dev/disk5 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +524.3 KB disk5


/dev/disk6 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +524.3 KB disk6


/dev/disk7 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +524.3 KB disk7


/dev/disk8 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +2.1 MB disk8


/dev/disk9 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +524.3 KB disk9


/dev/disk10 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +524.3 KB disk10


/dev/disk11 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +12.6 MB disk11


/dev/disk12 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +4.2 MB disk12


/dev/disk13 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +1.0 MB disk13


/dev/disk14 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +2.1 MB disk14


/dev/disk15 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +524.3 KB disk15


/dev/disk16 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +524.3 KB disk16


/dev/disk17 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +1.0 MB disk17


/dev/disk18 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +6.3 MB disk18


/dev/disk19 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +6.3 MB disk19


/dev/disk20 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +524.3 KB disk20


/dev/disk21 (disk image):

#: TYPE NAME SIZE IDENTIFIER

0: untitled +2.1 MB disk21

Is there a way to make it take up less space?


Message was edited by: justinrleung

MacBook Pro, null

Posted on Apr 19, 2018 6:04 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply
User profile for user: Encryptor5000
Encryptor5000
User level: Level 5
7,580 points

Posted on Apr 19, 2018 10:37 PM

Hi Justin,


Thanks for posting the output of diskutil list. Unfortunately, the only odd thing that I can see is that the local Recovery partition is 2 GB large. Thankfully, the issue can easily be resolved by erasing the entire internal hard drive (not just your startup disk).


To do this, you'll need to boot Recovery Mode from the Internet. The reason why the local Recovery partition wouldn't work is because if you boot that, you can't erase it until you boot a different volume (or put your Mac in Target Disk Mode). However, running Recovery Mode from the Internet doesn't rely on your internal hard drive, which permits you to erase the entire drive. To do this:


1. Hold down Option-Command-R while you turn on or restart your Mac. If prompted, select a Wi-Fi network and continue. Depending on the speed of your Internet connection, this could take a while. (Note: If you imaged Recovery Mode onto a USB drive using these steps, you can boot from that drive instead if you wish to speed up the process.)


2. When the Utilities menu finally appears, open Disk Utility. Click on View, then choose Show All Devices. Eject any external drives that are connected to ensure additional safety (unless you're using a bootable USB; then don't disconnect that drive). Then, select the top level of the drive, and click Erase. Format as follows:


Name: Whatever you want, but the default name is Macintosh HD

Format: APFS

Scheme: GUID Partition Table


3. Once erasure is complete, quit Disk Utility. Then, select Install macOS. The installer should permit you to install macOS normally.


Hope this helps!

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2 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply
User profile for user: Encryptor5000
Encryptor5000
User level: Level 5
7,580 points

Apr 19, 2018 10:37 PM in response to justinrleung

Hi Justin,


Thanks for posting the output of diskutil list. Unfortunately, the only odd thing that I can see is that the local Recovery partition is 2 GB large. Thankfully, the issue can easily be resolved by erasing the entire internal hard drive (not just your startup disk).


To do this, you'll need to boot Recovery Mode from the Internet. The reason why the local Recovery partition wouldn't work is because if you boot that, you can't erase it until you boot a different volume (or put your Mac in Target Disk Mode). However, running Recovery Mode from the Internet doesn't rely on your internal hard drive, which permits you to erase the entire drive. To do this:


1. Hold down Option-Command-R while you turn on or restart your Mac. If prompted, select a Wi-Fi network and continue. Depending on the speed of your Internet connection, this could take a while. (Note: If you imaged Recovery Mode onto a USB drive using these steps, you can boot from that drive instead if you wish to speed up the process.)


2. When the Utilities menu finally appears, open Disk Utility. Click on View, then choose Show All Devices. Eject any external drives that are connected to ensure additional safety (unless you're using a bootable USB; then don't disconnect that drive). Then, select the top level of the drive, and click Erase. Format as follows:


Name: Whatever you want, but the default name is Macintosh HD

Format: APFS

Scheme: GUID Partition Table


3. Once erasure is complete, quit Disk Utility. Then, select Install macOS. The installer should permit you to install macOS normally.


Hope this helps!

Reply

Other volumes taking up too much space

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