How to delete Mac Time machine backups?

Yes, it's saying it's a directory and terminal is sitting looking at me. WIth contempt.

Click to expand...

Try this, with lowercase R.

sudo rm -r /Volumes/Owen\ photography\ drive\ 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb

I seem to have to put my password in an AWFUL lot! It wasn't like this on a different mac.

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That is normal.
You are still the admin, but you have to authenticate.

Well it's just kinda looking at me now

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Owens-MacBook-Pro:~ owen$ sudo rm -r /Volumes/Owen\ photography\ drive\ 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb
Password:

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I've put in the password. How do I tell if it's doing anything?

It might take a while and you will get the prompt again when it’s finished.

Prompt being: Owens-MacBook-Pro:~ owen$

If it is deleting, and if it is massive, it can take a little bit.

whoop, it's just stuck a load of text up on screen
exciting

sudo rm -r /Volumes/Owen\ photography\ drive\ 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb
override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/GeneralPreferences.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/InfoPlist.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXAboutWindow.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXActionProgressController.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXAdjustAssetsDateTimeViewController.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXAdjustmentStrings.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXAlbum.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXAlbum.stringsdict? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXAlbumInfoSummaryContainerView.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXAlbumsPlaceholderViewController.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXAnnotationsOverlayController.strings? override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/no.lproj/IPXAssetResourceProgressViewController.strings?

er-minio said:

It might take a while and you will get the prompt again when it’s finished.

Prompt being: Owens-MacBook-Pro:~ owen$

If it is deleting, and if it is massive, it can take a little bit.

Click to expand...

Ok good stuff. I'll just let it do it's thing.
I might have tried to empty the trash whilst I thought it was doing nothing and then all the text came up.

Ye. Seems the backup includes system files that it doesn’t make you delete.

When it is done, check if the backup file is still there. Try to run the command again.

Anyway: there is a “neater” way to remove TimeMachine backups. (If only I can remember…)

well i can feel the drive spinning away so it must be doing something. Yes I know i need to upgrade to an ssd.


this is normal right?

override rw-r--r-- root/wheel restricted for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-07-20-213710/Owen HD/System/Applications/Photos.app/Contents/Resources/ru.lproj/IPXLibraryChooserModal.strings?

Left it run all night and still getting this sort of message

override rwxr-xr-x owen/admin for /Volumes/Owen photography drive 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb/Owen’s MacBook Pro/2020-09-28-215422/Owen - Data/Applications/Ableton Live 10 Trial.app/Contents/App-Resources/Max/Max.app/Contents/Resources/C74/packages/Node For Max/source/bin/npm/node_modules/is-npm?

I've been typing Y after it for yes until it tapsout. anyway, still left with the file. BOO!!!!

Anyway, I just bought a 2TB seagate for E60 on amazon. Not the latest super fast SSD but an old fashioned HDD. It'll be here on Saturday and I'll just copy all the files off this drive and reformat it. Seems the easiest way around this. I'll keep one drive as my dedicated time machine drive (the small one) and use the big drives for my photos. It's daft just having one copy of them.

this is normal right?

Click to expand...

Yes it is.
Sorry I fell into a coma on the sofa yesterday evening:

sudo rm -rf /Volumes/Owen\ photography\ drive\ 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb

(added the "f" flag, after r)

Swapping the drives, as you are doing, will be a more finite solution
Sorry it didn't work out the first time!

If I remember correctly, there is a command called CHMOD which allows you to change file permissions.
From post #28 it looks like the drive is set rwxr-xr-x or rwx r-x r-x where the first triplet refers to the admin, the second to the user and the third to everybody else. r = read, w = write, x = execute.

In Chmod, each triplet is treated as a binary digit so your current setting would be represented as 755. You want to set the drive to 777 but there's still a possibility that you may not be able to do it if you're not Admin.

It's a very long time since I worked on Unix machines and I don't use the terminal on my Mac so I would do some research before trying this out.

That’s for the advice and comments lads. I’ve decided to follow the path of least resistance with my drive purchase. Easier than trying to pretend I understand any of the Unix stuff discussed! My monkey see monkey do approach will only end in folly!!!

Moral of the story here is DO NOT THROW YOUR TIME MACHINE FILES IN THE TRASH.

Smelly Old Boots said:

That’s for the advice and comments lads. I’ve decided to follow the path of least resistance with my drive purchase. Easier than trying to pretend I understand any of the Unix stuff discussed! My monkey see monkey do approach will only end in folly!!!

Moral of the story here is DO NOT THROW YOUR TIME MACHINE FILES IN THE TRASH.

Click to expand...

Probably worth trying the approaches outlined above - just think how great you will feel once it’s done


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lmg said:

Probably worth trying the approaches outlined above - just think how great you will feel once it’s done


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

I've tried all the ones I understand

I'm so far out of my depth here, it's like I've gone from the paddling pool to the deep sea! I am confident that if I copy the files to another drive, I can just format this and move on. I was hoping it would be simpler! Anyway, thanks gang.

Try adding -rf as my message #30.

These are the flags/options to the command.

-r means that it is recursive, so it will go through multiple levels of folders deleting everything
-f will force delete

The force option might silence all those questions you got yesterday, when it was asking you to override the permissions.

By the way: when you put "sudo" in front of any command, it means that you will be executing that command as root (admin). That's why it asked for your admin password before going ahead.
It should override all permission settings where it can.

er-minio said:

Try adding -rf as my message #30.

These are the flags/options to the command.

-r means that it is recursive, so it will go through multiple levels of folders deleting everything
-f will force delete

The force option might silence all those questions you got yesterday, when it was asking you to override the permissions.

By the way: when you put "sudo" in front of any command, it means that you will be executing that command as root (admin). That's why it asked for your admin password before going ahead.
It should override all permission settings where it can.

Click to expand...

sudo rm -rf /Volumes/Owen\ photography\ drive\ 1/.Trashes/501/Backups.backupdb

Click to expand...

what would I change here to add -rf?

I'm trying that again for the fun of it. It asked for my password and is now blank. I'll leave it do it's thing until tea time and if it's not fixed by then, I'm giving up! It would be nice to evict that bunch of files! Satisfying even. IF that does not work I'll just burn them out! hehe!

what would I change here to add -rf?

Click to expand...

Nothing. Already there.

IT WORKED !!!!!!






It took AGES and it did not give any progress indication. I’m delighted! Thanks!!!!

Good!

and it did not give any progress indication

Click to expand...

Most terminal commands won't.

If you add the -v flag it will show what it is doing:

rm -rfv