External HD and trash question

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When I hook my HD the trash box fills with a lot of stuff, when I unhook my HD those items disappear. Can anyone provide some direction as to why this is. Thanks.
 

chscag

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That's because there is a separate Trash for your external hard drive just as there is for your internal hard drive. The same holds true for any storage device you attach.

Have you tried emptying the Trash when your hard drive is attached? In order to permanently delete those files on the external hard drive, it needs to be attached when you empty the Trash.
 
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Yes I have tried to empty it a couple times but I keep getting an error and it tells me I have to push the power button. There are a lot of files mind you.
 

chscag

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Try these techniques for force emptying your Trash: LINK Make sure the external hard drive is attached when you do. Let us know if that works.
 
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That seemed to do the trick. Thanks
 

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