How To Access Library Cashes On Mac

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You’ve probably heard and seen the term 'cache' used on your Mac but do you know what it is?

Cache files are basically temporary data stored on your hard drive and used to speed up processes. For instance, Safari will download images on a webpage into cache so that next time you visit the site you don’t have to download the images again.

2017-10-25  This could be caused by a corrupt library cache. To prevent the cache from becoming corrupt, you should delete everything in the Caches folders once a month, about the same time you run the file system checker mentioned in a previous article.+ +Here’s how to clean your caches:+ +1. Choose Usersyour user nameLibraryCaches.+ +2.

  • How To Clear Cache on Mac? Deleting the Web Cache (In Safari): If you’re a Mac user, it is entirely possible that Safari is your default browser. Surfing the Internet of course ends up giving a lot of cache files, which need or should I say MUST be deleted before it clogs all your space.
  • 2018-11-2  官方说 在 macOS Sierra 中，当您打开优化 Mac 储存空间时，会显示“可清除”内容。当需要储存空间时，Mac 可自动从“可清除”部分清理出储存空间 可是 可是 我根本没有打开 优化Mac 存储空间 这个东西。至少对于我的情况，不属于这种情况。.

How are cache files different from cookies?

Cookie files are tiny members of the big cache family. This form of cache is collected by your browser to remember previously visited websites. Cookies collect the details of your visit, its duration, actions on a page, etc. Advertisers also use these to follow you around the internet. However annoying they are, cookies are a part of internet reality that we cannot help but “Accept.”

There are many reasons to remove old cache from your MacBook and disk space issue is only one of them. So what are the other benefits ?

  • Fixing issues with laggy web pages that load outdated content
  • Removing personal data stored by websites and applications.
  • You need to force-delete outdated cache from an app.

Are you ready to reclaim space on your Mac? Let’s go!

What are main cache types?

There are roughly three main types of caches you can clean on your Mac:

  • System cache
  • User cache (including app cache and DNS cache)
  • Browser cache.

This article will go over cleaning up all three.

Now, when it comes to clearing cache on Mac, there are two ways you can do it. You can clean them up manually step-by-step, or you can clean them in second with a cleaning utility like CleanMyMac X. If you want to clear cache on your Mac right now, we suggest doing it the easy way:

  1. Launch CleanMyMac X (2019 version is preferable)
  2. Select System Junk
  3. Click 'Scan', and then “Clean”

That’s it, all cache files cleaned! CleanMyMac X works on all systems, including the latest macOS Catalina. You can download CleanMyMac X for free here and try.

However, if you’d like to clean them all manually, follow the steps below.

How to empty user cache on Mac?

Potential space reclaimed from junk - Up to 70%

How To Access Library Cashes On Mac Account

As you can see, a single user cache folder on my computer takes up enormous 1.6 GB of space. And that’s just one folder out of hundreds. That means a good cleaning could free up gigabytes of free space and speed up your Mac in the process.

To clear your user cache, do the following:

  1. Open a Finder window and select “Go to Folder” in the Go menu.
  2. Type in ~/Library/Caches and hit enter to proceed to this folder.
  3. Optional step: You can highlight and copy everything to a different folder just in case something goes wrong.
  4. Go into each of the folders and clean out everything.
    Note: We recommend that you remove the insides of these folders, but not the folders themselves.

Now, repeat the same steps above, but substitute…
~/Library/Caches with… /Library/Caches

Make sure that once you have finished clearing out these caches for additional hard drive space, you empty out your Trash. To do this, Control-click on the Trash icon in the dock and select “Empty Trash.” Restart your Mac afterward so your Mac can begin to create new, fresh cache files.
To help you make sense of your Library folder here's a brief explanation what each sub folder stands for.

4 main types of cache within Library folder


Caches
Temporary data created by apps and websites. Your apps keep generating cache files for as long as they are active. Relying on such pre-loaded content reduces memory load and speeds up data exchange.
Preferences
Prererences folder is where you’ll find customized settings for your apps. Sometimes, there is a need to reset an app and delete its corrupted Preferences file. Preference files always end with .plist — so they are easy to spot and delete.

App support
App support folder contains large pieces of app data, like game saves. App support files may remain on your Mac long after you’ve deleted the app itself. That’s why “cleaners” for system junk were invented.

Containers
Containers folder is an exchange buffer that apps use to communicate with one another. This is often referred to as “sandboxing.” Containers folder is automatically emptied after you restart your Mac.

If you aren’t comfortable with the risk of deleting user cache manually, a specialist cleaning app CleanMyMac X can do it for you. It will only remove files you don’t need and will find up to 7x more temporary cache files to remove from all over your system.

How to delete system and app cache on Mac

Potential space reclaimed from junk - Up to 10% (manual methods) or 15% (using cleaner)

Next up we’re looking at your system cache files. These hidden cache files are mainly created by the apps that run on your Mac.

What is app cache? In short, it’s any media downloaded by the apps you use in order to work faster and not load it every time you open the app. Do you need it? It’s debatable, but app cache takes up disk space and can be cleaned.

You can delete app cache on Mac in the same way as user cache, by going to ~/Library/Caches and removing the insides of the folders with the app name.

Proceed with caution! Not all app cache can be safely cleared. Some app developers keep important user info on cache folders. Backing up a folder before you delete is always a good idea. If everything works fine then you can delete the backup later.

To be on the safe side, use CleanMyMac, it works with a Safety Database and knows how to clear app cache safely. As if that wasn’t enough it will also remove more junk than manual methods.

How cache is created? An example from Photos

Every time you do image manipulations, like rotating a picture, its additional copy is created on your drive. In this manner, just 4 rotations are enough for an image size to grow from 2.5 MB to 10 MB of disk space taken. If you edit photos and videos on a regular basis, you may notice that your editor application also keeps temporary data — like intermediate version of your files.

How to clear browser cache on Mac

Potential space reclaimed from junk - Up to 15%

We all love to surf the web but every site we visit adds to the growing browser cache. Clearing your browser cache doesn’t just free up space, it will can also clear your browsing history to secure your privacy.

Browser cache temporarily stores website data such as images, scripts, and other stuff, in order to make your browsing faster when you revisit the same site. If you’re worried about your privacy or want to hide pages you’ve visited, you can clear your Internet cache (or browser history). Also, resetting your browser cache will potentially help to get rid of 404, 502, and other errors caused by corrupted cache.

Each browser has its own cache location, so the process of clearing is different in each case. For instance, Chrome cache location is in Settings, Safari stores its cache in Privacy, and Firefox cache location is History tab.

Here’s a quick introduction into how to delete browser cache on Mac.

How to clear cache in Chrome

Here’s how to clear browser cache in Chrome manually:

  1. Click the 3-dot icon in the top right corner of Google Chrome browser.
  2. Choose Settings.
  3. At the bottom of the menu, choose Advanced.
  4. Click “Clear browsing data.”
  5. Deselect all, but Cached images and files.
  6. Timewise, choose All time.
  7. Hit “Clear data” button.

How to clear cache in Firefox

Here’s how to delete cache in Firefox manually:

  1. Click the hamburger icon in the top right corner.
  2. Choose Privacy & Security on the left sidebar.
  3. Scroll to the section 'Cached web content' menu item.
  4. Now, click Clear Now to delete Firefox cache.
  5. Exit/quit all browser windows and re-open the browser.

In the same menu, checkmark Override automatic cache management and limit the cache size in MB. Go with the default amount of 350 MB, which is enough for most users' needs.

TIP:

If for some reason you cannot open a web page, try putting cache: in front of the URL address. This redirects you to the site’s cached copy.

For example: cache:macpaw.com

It works most of the time and can magically open even the otherwise blocked sites.

How to clear cache in Safari

Safari is a little trickier than the rest of the browsers. You could remove caches together with all the other website history through History — Clear History in menu bar.

But if you need more precision, here’s how to empty cache on Safari browser:

  1. In the top menu, choose Safari.
  2. Click Preferences.
  3. Choose the Advanced tab.
  4. Enable Show Develop menu in menu bar.
  5. Now go to Develop in menu bar.
  6. Choose Empty caches.

Make sure you close/quit the browser and restart it after clearing cache. Note, that all your auto logins and predicted websites in the address bar will be cleared.

Manual methods remove most of the browser junk but if you want to remove all of it, from all your browsers at once, there’s a safer and faster method to clear your internet cache on any browser.

How to clear cache files on Mac with a single click of a button

Instead of searching all over your Mac to find and remove cache files yourself, you can clear user caches on a Mac using CleanMyMac X. It makes removing cache files as easy as can be.

To get rid of cache files with CleanMyMac X:

  1. Download CleanMyMac X (free) and launch it.
  2. Select Smart Scan in the left menu.
  3. Hit Scan at the bottom of CleanMyMac X.
  4. Then click Clean.

And you're done! If you’d like to remove only cache files and nothing else, click on Review Details before clicking Clean. Deselect everything but System Cache Files and User Cache Files, then click Clean.

The easy way to clear all browsing data

Instead of clicking between browsers and being limited to what they let you clean, take full control of all your browser cleaning with this simple method:

  1. Open CleanMyMac and select the Privacy module
  2. Click on your browser of choice
  3. Make your selections from the list of all your cache and privacy tracks
  4. Click Remove to clean your browser

Cleaning your Mac has never been easier. Download CleanMyMac X and try for free to get yourself a faster, cleaner Mac — without worrying about cleaning the wrong thing.

And if you’re looking to clear just browser cookies, check out this easy one-minute explanation we’ve made for you.

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The Library folder contains a lot of sensitive files and applications, so, it makes sense why Apple has chosen to hide this particular folder from the users. Just make sure that you do not change unknowingly or accidentally which is the main reason why Apple chose to hide it. The visibility option on the Library is always turned off by default because Apple wants it protected. So, if by any chance you need to access the Library files from the ~/Library folder for modifications or some specific changes to settings then, first, you have to make sure that the Library folder is visible. So, if you wish to know how to find Library on Mac, read the 3 best methods mentioned below so that you can do it without any problems.

Way 1: How to Open Library on Mac with Go Menu

The shortest way to make the Library folder visible is to use the “ Go Menu ” from the Finder app. It is the most efficient way to get access to Library files. Want to know how to access Library on Mac through the “ Go” Menu, read below:

How To Access Library Cashes On Mac Download

1. Run Finder on Mac.

2. Now, find the Go option on the menu bar and tap to open a drop-down menu.

3. Choose “ Go to Folder ”.

4. A new dialog box will open up, enter “ ~/Library ” and tap on “ Go ”

It will show you the Library and you can directly access the Library from here.

So, this is how to get to Library on Mac. It is basically the easiest way if you do not know where to find Library on Mac. Another great thing about this method is that if you have visited Library multiple times through this method, the Library option will be visible on the “ Recent Folders ”, and this will make your work easier.

Way 2: How to Access Library on Mac with Terminal

The Library folder contains all the system and settings files of the device. So, Apple always hides that particular folder on any Mac device. Unfortunately, there are times when you may want to access the Library folder to change few settings for your work. So, if you want to know how to access Library folder on Mac, read the following steps:

1. Open your Mac.

2. Find Terminal which is located at the “ Utilities ” folder in “ Applications ”.

3. Now, launch Terminal on the Mac.

4. The Terminal Prompt will be opened and you need to type the following command in there…

“ chflags nohidden ~ /Library/ ”.

5. Now, press “ Enter ”.

Mac

6. As the command has been executed you can exit the Terminal window.

7. Now, you will be able to see the Library folder in Finder.

After your work is done with the Library folder, you may want to make the folder hidden again. If you want to do it, then just type the following command:

1. “ chflags hidden ~ /Library/ ”.

2. Lastly, press “ Enter ” to execute the command.

So, now you know how to go to Library on Mac using Terminal.

Way 3: How to Get to Library on Mac with Funter

Aside from Terminal, there are other ways to make the Library folder visible. One of them is Funter. Funter is an app designed by Apple simply to make the hidden files visible. This app will also provide you a quick access to the Library files. Be sure to remember that this app will not only make the Library files visible but also all the other hidden files in the Mac as well. So, if you want to know how to find Library folder on Mac with Funter, read the following steps below.

First of all, Funter is specially designed so that the app will integrate with Finder the moment it is launched. So, you will be able to change the file view from the Finder window.

1. Now, before all that you have to download and install the Funter app.

2. Run the app on your Mac.

3. The Finder window will be opened. You need to click on the Funter icon and tap “ Show Hidden Files ” to make the files visible.

After the process is completed, the Finder app will be launched automatically again, and all of the hidden files will be visible on the window. After you are done with the Library files if you want to hide it, just repeat the process again from the Finder window and tap “ Hide Hidden Files ” to make them hidden again.

Extra Tip: How to Permanently Unhide Library Folder on Mac

The methods to go to Library mentioned above on this article are excellent and it would be very easy for you, but what if instead of going through the same method every single time, you make the Library visible, permanently. It would be more efficient for you to access Library that way. So, now let’s look at how to open Library on Mac permanently.

1. You need to launch Finder on your Mac.

2. Then go to your Home folder.

3. After that, you need to go to “ View ” and click on the “ Show View Options ”.

4. After this, a new window will be opened.

5. You just have to make sure that the box beside the “ Show Library Folder ” is checked.

6. Now, you just have to close the window and Library folder will be permanently visible.

If you are a kind of user who likes to change settings constantly to suit your needs then leaving it permanently visible is the most logical choice. But you need to remember that after you go through this process the Library won’t be a hidden folder anymore, it will be visible until you change the settings again.

Conclusion

More or less you do not have to go through any trouble to find the hidden Library files if you know how or where to find it. Just be careful when you are accessing the Library files as it contains a lot of sensitive files. If you use any of the methods mentioned above, it will be easier for you to find Library or simply make it visible permanently. Unfortunately, if you have deleted anything from the Library folder, you can use Tenorshare Any Data Recovery for Mac app to recover that lost data. It is a versatile data recovery tool that can recover lost/deleted files from your devices in no time. We highly recommend this software for all your data recovery quests.

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