[thomzeyl]

I must have had something of the "system" in the trash when I emptied it. I was forced to re start from scratch, from the install CD. However I had updated Jaguar to the latest version, so my restart created a " Previous system folder", which I can not delete. Any suggestions on how to get rid of it? It takes over a Gig on my HD.

 

[Mississauga]

Can you log into "root" and delete it?

 

[JohnnyG4]

If your Macintosh boots into OS 9, just boot into 9 and remove it there. It's easier than telling netinfo about root users and the like. Just remove that one folder - don't touch anything else.

John

 

[thomzeyl]

I think I'll boot OS 9, as I'm not familiar with"logging into root"
Can I safely delete the whole "previous system folder" without making the current system folder unhappy?

 

[MacGenius]

Whenever I do a "clean" install of OS X (10.1 to Jag say) it creates a new system folder, usually migrates the networking and users over then it renames the old System to Previous System folder.

To remove it simply launch Terminal and type:

sudo rm -rf

and drag the Previous System folder on the terminal to complete the path. Press enter and type your password.

Wait a bit while it deletes the old system and you've got all that space back.

 

[thomzeyl]

Thanks for the info, but I don't even know how to launch Terminal (blush)

 

[Strongblade]

Enabling 'root' is a way to access alot of extra power over the core system files, but it also gives the chance of royally screwing things up.

I found that a nifty little app, called Cocktail which is at 2.0 (apparently a new interface though). I have 1.2 and it's a really nice tool. It has an empty trash function that can kill even the most stubborn of files.

Not to mention do all sorts of maintenance that is supposed to help streamline stuff or clear out old cache files from the system.

It's been a solid little tool for me.

I haven't looked at the new version (the posts at the site are not praising the new interface) but it's functionality is great. And you don't have to mess around in 'root'.

 

[Strongblade]

I just took a look at the newer 2.0 of Cocktail and I agree with the posters that the interface is not as good (although not as bad as I was expecting from the comments posted)

It's feature set has received a boost in a few areas though.

 

[Chealion]

The Terminal is the application to access the command line in Mac OS X. You can find it in Applications/Utilities/
Its a completely different world and can be a wonderful tool if you learn how to use it.