This will remove any file you want from your computer regardless of any error it may cause.īut, these two options above only delete them like you're emptying your trash. If you need to delete a folder, input rm followed by a space and -rf (to force it to work) followed by another space, then drag and drop your folder (it also works with files). Unlike using the Trash can, you can't undo this, so be careful. Then just hit enter/return and the file should be removed from your computer.

If you have some top secret files that you really want to get rid of, remove them completely from your computer by using the 'Secure Empty Trash' option instead of just 'Empty Trash'. Simply emptying the trash will still allow you (or someone else) to recover those files with a file recovery program. While emptying the can will free up space on your hard drive, those files are still on your device, just waiting around until they are eventually overwritten by newer data. But, there is one problem with emptying the trash can-it does not actually delete it. I empty my trash on a daily basis because I simply hate having that crumbled up piece of paper in the bin. Here are just a few ways that I found to go beyond simply tossing files into the recycle bin and trashing them on your Mac computer.

So, I figured it was time to add some Bond to my daily life by beefing up on my data deletion know-how, since I have a lot of spy-worthy (and embarrassing) content on my Mac that probably shouldn't be there. Don't get me wrong, it was a solid flick, but only made me jealous with all its super spy hacker stuff. I was kinda disappointed with last year's James Bond movie, Skyfall.

Enable secure empty trash mac