Macbook Pro Disk full--Disk size error?

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My macbook pro disk space is low but my files add up to be about 20gb short after I use OmniSweep. I also use ShowHiddenFiles and folders don't add up to the actual usage of my SSD. Please help! This is driving me nuts!

Disk Inventory X also shows 87.5Gb but system information says that I have used 119gb w/ 900mb left. What is taking up my space mysteriously

I have Time machine turned off
 
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So, using Disk Inventory, what does that say is taking up the space ??

Do you have any backups on the go ?? Do you backup your iPhone, iPad onto your Mac ?? Sometimes, .mobilebackups will keep building the backups without deleting the older one, if the backup is interrupted . .

Apart from that, without knowing what model Mac and what OS version you are running, there isn't much more we can do. You have the tool in Disk Inventory telling you whats being used up . .
 

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M2 Max Studio Extra, 32GB memory, 4TB, Sonoma 14.4 Apple 5K Retina Studio Monitor
There is another thing to consider. If the OP has been using Time Machine, but currently has it switched off, may it not be the case that the MacBook is "holding" recently changed items awaiting the next TM backup.

In other words, how about the OP connecting Time Machine, let it backup and when finished, maybe some of the "extra" stuff on his Mac will have disappeared?

Just a thought.

Ian
 

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Neither of those apps have permissions to show some things... ex. data owned by other users, some system data (virtual memory and sleep image possibly). I forget right now, but I don't believe they will show you the show you the space taken by TM local snapshots either - don't have any on my machine, so I can't test that right now. Both of those apps present to you the used space based only on the data they are permitted to measure.

WhatSize in user mode also ony shows you the same data as the above 2 apps, but also lets you see the total used space - not only that it measures. Unlike the 2 apps mentioned, it has an option to measure as admin. It is the only app of these 3 that will show you the same (or very similar usage as you will find when using the About This Mac). The only thing WhatSize does not show you is resource fork data which takes minimal space.

On my current system, usage shown by the various apps
About This Mac - 231 GB
DIX - 208 GB
Omni - 223 GB
WhatSize - 231 GB in either User or Admin mode - but may provide different folder sizes when there is a difference in the 2 modes and those folder sizes will not add up to the total depending on mode being used.

Omni and WhatSize are both superior to DIX.
Omni shows basically the same folder sizes as WhatSize in User mode.
So already, it's doing a better job than DIX.
The advantage is having an option to run in Admin mode.


(It's been a few years since I tried Daisy Disk, so I can't speak to how well that app perfroms in comparison.)

Regardless, befor you end up with a computer that will no longer boot, I strongly suggest you a) boot into Safe Mode and get rid of some data or you will end up with a machine that will not boot. Do Not try installing WhatSize or anything else until you free up some space.

While in Safe mode you may want to turn off TM local snapshots - there are plenty of tutorials for that on the web and it will auto delete the existing snapshots when you turn it off.

You better backup your computer if you don't want to lose any of your data - immediately.
 
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So, using Disk Inventory, what does that say is taking up the space ??

Do you have any backups on the go ?? Do you backup your iPhone, iPad onto your Mac ?? Sometimes, .mobilebackups will keep building the backups without deleting the older one, if the backup is interrupted . .

Apart from that, without knowing what model Mac and what OS version you are running, there isn't much more we can do. You have the tool in Disk Inventory telling you whats being used up . .

Macbook Pro 13" mid 2014
OS X Yosemite 10.10.3

Disk inventory, OmniDisk, & About This Mac>Storge are telling me the same thing as Finder: 80ish Gb space are taken by all the visisible folders I have (User 42.5, Library 31.6, System 8.6, Library 6) Total = 86.7 GB. However, My Macintosh HD shows that it contains 116.79 GB of files. I want to know what is taking the other 20 GB. Even after I use terminal to show all files, there aren't any large files that appear.
 
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There is another thing to consider. If the OP has been using Time Machine, but currently has it switched off, may it not be the case that the MacBook is "holding" recently changed items awaiting the next TM backup.

In other words, how about the OP connecting Time Machine, let it backup and when finished, maybe some of the "extra" stuff on his Mac will have disappeared?

Just a thought.

Ian

this is interesting and I'm sure this has something to do with it. Is there a way to delete those backups easily?
 

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The best practice is to connect the external drive that is used for Rime Machine and let the backup complete. Once that is complete the local snapshot files are removed.

At this point though the drive is close enough to full that this may not be possible. You can delete the existing Time Machine files with these directions.
 
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I found the problem. I have a folder called .DocumentRevisions-V100 that is 30GB and it did not show up in size calculations in Finder and other apps because I did not have permission to read & write.
 

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