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Your Startup Disk Is Almost Full

Sara Jones

Anyone who buys a Mac product is looking for a better experience. Well, that is what you get most of the time. For many, they enjoy faster processing speeds, better hardware to handle multiple apps, and so much more.

As much as using a Mac product is all fun, sometimes you might encounter some problems. Do not worry as most of them are software related, and solving them is easy.

One of the common problems is when you get a warning message stating “Startup Disk Almost Full.” This message comes up when you boot up your device. When this message appears, it might make some people get worried as they do not know what it means. We delve deeper into this warning to help you understand it better and ultimately resolve it.

What does “Your Startup Disk Is Almost Full” Mean?

Whenever you see this message, it signifies that you are running out space on your startup disk. The startup disk, in this case, is your hard drive. It is the hard drive that stores all the necessary files for starting your machine.

You should not ignore this message as there might be consequences if you keep on using your Mac. The common drawback is that you will notice a significant reduction in the performance of your Mac. Since the warning is about storage space, you might be unable to save large files.

With such possible problems arising, it is best if you deal with the message appropriately. Below, we discuss some of the best ways to approach it. Let us get into it already.

Using CleanMyMac X to Resolve the Problem (5-10 Minutes)

CleanMyMac X is a tool important for managing the files on your Mac. If used correctly, it can be ideal for optimizing your Mac to help it perform better. Even for those facing the warning message, “Startup Disk Almost Full” can use it to delete various files and create more space.

Features of CleanMyMac X

  • One button does it all: If you want to fix various issues on your Mac, it might take several hours to get it done. However, with this tool, you should be done in just one click. Once the program is running, it will identify multiple issues with your device and take steps to make it better.
  • Fights off viruses and malware: CleanMyMac X is also great for identifying malware, viruses, adware, or ransomware in the system. These files are deleted right away so that your files are protected. It is why you should regularly clean your Mac by using this tool.
  • Uninstall apps: if you have apps that you barely use, they might end up taking up a lot of space. The tool identifies which apps you do not use and recommends for their removal. Once they are removed, then you should have more space on the Mac device.
  • Available in multiple languages: CleanMyMac X is ideal for people who speak different languages. This is because the tool can be configured to work in various languages, including English, Deutsch, Espanol, Francais, and many others. Check out the official website to learn more about the available languages.
  • It is free: To test the product, the developer offers you a free download of the tool. From the free download, you can experience the various features of the software before buying it. A license is necessary to unlock all the features of the product.

How to Use CleanMyMac X Tool

If you want to clean your Mac and remove unnecessary files with the CleanMyMac X software, then follow the steps mentioned below.

  1. Launch the CleanMyMac X app
  2. On the side panel menu, you will see a category for cleaning up your Mac. Under the Cleanup section, the software allows the user to find various files that you can delete from the Mac device. This includes system junk, Photo Junk, Mail attachment, iTunes Junk, and Trash Bins
  3. Once you select one of the options, click on Scan
  4. The CleanMyMac X app will scan through the system to identify the junk files.
  5. Once the Scan is complete, click on Clean to get rid of such files.
  6. The steps above are for the cleanup process only to free up disk space. However, if you want to do a lot more in just one step, from the Smart Scan tab, click on Scan. The software will go through the whole system, identifying the various problems and optimizing your Mac to make it perform better.

Other Method to Fix “Startup Disk Almost Full” on Mac (Time: At Least 1 Hour)

1. Uninstall unused apps

Apps are essential for handling various tasks on your Mac. However, you might install an app only to use it a few times or never. As such, you will have an app taking up a lot of space on your device, but you hardly use it. Go ahead and remove such unused apps and enjoy a faster Mac.

It is crucial first to identify the apps that you no longer need. Then proceed to uninstall them. Here is how to uninstall such apps.

  • Open the Applications folder through Finder, or you can simply click on the hard drive icon
  • Once you are in the Applications folder, identify the app you want to delete
  • Drag the app icon into Trash to uninstall it

Empty Trash to completely remove the files from your Mac creating more space

2. Delete downloads

There are many times that we download files and forget about them. Let us say you want to watch a movie, once you are done with the movie, the chances of watching it again soon are slim. When you keep on piling more files in the download folder, they will take up a lot of unnecessary space.

You should then consider deleting these files to free up more space. Accessing Downloads is easy; just follow the following steps.

  • Click on Go and then Downloads
  • Once you are in the Downloads folder, look at the files you do not need, then delete them
  • Do not forget to empty Trash

Files in the Download folder are not well organized when you first access them. Proceed to sort them so that you know which files should be deleted.

3. Clear the cache

For many, cache files might not be important. That is not entirely true as cache files play a crucial role in any system. The work of the cache files is to help load and run apps faster. However, once the apps are up and running, there are additional junk files added to the cache. With time, the size of the file grows and thus taking up a lot of unnecessary space.

The additional junk files might not be ideal for you, especially if you need to store more data. Below are the steps to follow if you need to clear cache files from your Mac.

  • From your Mac open Finder> Go > Go to Folder
  • Type ~/Library/Caches to open the location of the cache files
  • From the window that opens, look at the folder that is taking up too much space and delete any files in it

4. Delete unused iPhone backups

It is common for users to consider their MacBook as a backup device for their iPhone. It is easy to achieve this as you simply sync your iPhone with iTunes. The iTunes applications will now make dozens of backups of your iPhone. You might realize that the backups take up several gigabytes of space.

To find these backups, launch iTunes> Go to Menu Bar> iTunes> Preferences

From the Device Preferences window, click on the Devices tab to delete the old backups taking up a lot of space.

5. Clear Trash

Whenever we no longer need a file, we simply move it to Trash. What most people do not know is that sending the files to Trash does not mean they are deleted permanently from your system. Over time, the files pile up, and you end up with Trash containing multiple gigabytes of files. If these files are not permanently deleted, you can end up a low storage space message.

If you want to delete these files, open the Trash window and then click the “Empty” tab to remove the files from your Mac.

6. Use external drives

If you love working on multimedia content, then it is possible to end up with large files. These files normally take up multiple gigabytes of space. Whenever this happens, it is so easy to fill up your internal hard drive quickly.

To resolve this problem, consider getting yourself an external drive. Proceed to copy the large files to your external drive to free up more space on your internal hard drive.

Make sure that your external hard drive is correctly formatted to work with your MacOS. This helps with ease of connecting it to your Mac device and start copying the files.

Organize the various files that you copy to your external drive into folders. Such organization allows for ease of accessing the files the next time you need to use them.

7. Consider cloud services

The advancement in technology has made it possible to enjoy services such as cloud storage. With cloud storage, you have the option of storing your files on an offsite server and access them whenever you want. There are multiple cloud storage providers now available, with some offering free storage with a few limitations.

An example is when you use the Dropbox cloud service. The provider gives you free storage up to 2GB. Such storage should be enough to store multiple files. For many, it will act as a backup method for them.

To use Dropbox on your Mac, you need to download the app from the dropbox.com website. Ensure that you choose the Mac installer. It will have the .dmg file extension. Once installed, login into Dropbox and add your files to it.

Other than Dropbox, there are other options you can consider. They include iDrive, Google Drive, Microsoft SkyDrive, and many others.

In Summary

By now, the warning message “Startup Disk Almost Full” does not seem so bad. You should not panic whenever this message comes up on your Mac. With all the various methods discussed above, it should be easy for you to free up more space on your Mac. With more space available, your Mac will perform better living up to your expectations of using an Apple product.