I dragged old backup files from my external hard drive to the trash (cleaning house). When I went to empty the trash, it took all night and then I got a message that some items were locked and asking did I want to remove them. Not knowing if it was OK, I said no and trashed only unlocked things. The trash is now still full of those old files. Can I trash locked files without affecting the hard drive versions (my apps)? They are just "backups" but I am a little leery of saying yes without being sure.
safe trashing of locked files
- Thread starter owl912
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Which program did you use to make the backups? Old Time Machine backups should only be deleted from within Time Machine, not directly from the hard drive.
Hi, thanks for responding.
It's a WD external hard drive operating through Time Machine (probably shouldn't have even tried to remove them!). I have never done this and I am smart (can follow directions
) but not super tech savvy, so if you can give a brief explanation how to delete them within Time Machine (or show me where to find out), that would be greatly appreciated.
AND THEN, how to I get rid of the files in the trash, as when I tried to move them back to the external drive or out, a copy remains of each. When I looked to see what amount of space they are using, it appears they are mostly empty folders, but the folders are still there (labeled by date). Some show they are "actions," "bundles", "kernels," "PPP plugins" or "components," but still show no size. Not sure what remains locked and therefore not permitting them to be removed.
I SO appreciate any help!
It's a WD external hard drive operating through Time Machine (probably shouldn't have even tried to remove them!). I have never done this and I am smart (can follow directions
) but not super tech savvy, so if you can give a brief explanation how to delete them within Time Machine (or show me where to find out), that would be greatly appreciated. AND THEN, how to I get rid of the files in the trash, as when I tried to move them back to the external drive or out, a copy remains of each. When I looked to see what amount of space they are using, it appears they are mostly empty folders, but the folders are still there (labeled by date). Some show they are "actions," "bundles", "kernels," "PPP plugins" or "components," but still show no size. Not sure what remains locked and therefore not permitting them to be removed.
I SO appreciate any help!
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