macOS disk cleanup, cache pruning, stale file detection, and Downloads triage. TRIGGERS - disk space, cleanup, disk usage, stale files, cache clean, brew cleanup, forgotten files, Downloads cleanup, free space, storage, dust, dua, gdu, ncdu.
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Audit disk usage, clean developer caches, find forgotten large files, and triage Downloads on macOS.
Self-Evolving Skill: This skill improves through use. If instructions are wrong, parameters drifted, or a workaround was needed — fix this file immediately, don't defer. Only update for real, reproducible issues.
Use this skill when:
1. Run disk overview (df -h / and major directories)
2. Audit developer caches (uv, brew, pip, npm, cargo, rustup, Docker)
3. Scan for forgotten large files (>50MB, not accessed in 180+ days)
4. Present findings with AskUserQuestion for cleanup choices
5. Execute selected cleanups
6. Report space reclaimed
1. Measure current cache sizes
2. Run safe cache cleanups (brew, uv, pip, npm)
3. Report space reclaimed
1. List Downloads contents with dates and sizes
2. Categorize into groups (media, dev artifacts, personal docs, misc)
3. Present AskUserQuestion multi-select for deletion/move
4. Execute selected actions
1. Scan home directory for large files not accessed in 180+ days
2. Group by location and type (media, ISOs, dev artifacts, documents)
3. Present findings sorted by size
4. Offer cleanup options via AskUserQuestion
Get the lay of the land before diving into specifics.
/usr/bin/env bash << 'OVERVIEW_EOF'
echo "=== Disk Overview ==="
df -h /
echo ""
echo "=== Major Directories ==="
du -sh ~/Library/Caches ~/Library/Logs ~/Library/Application\ Support \
~/.Trash ~/Downloads ~/Documents ~/Desktop ~/Movies ~/Music ~/Pictures \
2>/dev/null | sort -rh
echo ""
echo "=== Developer Tool Caches ==="
du -sh ~/.docker ~/.npm ~/.cargo ~/.rustup ~/.local ~/.cache \
~/.conda ~/.pyenv ~/.local/share/mise 2>/dev/null | sort -rh
OVERVIEW_EOF
| Cache | Location | Typical Size | Clean Command |
|---|---|---|---|
| uv | ~/Library/Caches/uv/ | 5-15 GB | uv cache clean |
| Homebrew | ~/Library/Caches/Homebrew/ | 3-10 GB | brew cleanup --prune=all |
| pip | ~/Library/Caches/pip/ | 0.5-2 GB | pip cache purge |
| npm | ~/.npm/_cacache/ | 0.5-2 GB | npm cache clean --force |
| cargo | ~/.cargo/registry/cache/ | 1-5 GB | cargo cache -a (needs cargo-cache) |
| rustup | ~/.rustup/toolchains/ | 2-8 GB | rustup toolchain remove <old> |
| Docker | Docker.app | 5-30 GB | docker system prune -a |
| Playwright | ~/Library/Caches/ms-playwright/ | 0.5-2 GB | npx playwright uninstall |
| sccache | ~/Library/Caches/Mozilla.sccache/ | 1-3 GB | rm -rf ~/Library/Caches/Mozilla.sccache |
| huggingface | ~/.cache/huggingface/ | 1-10 GB | rm -rf ~/.cache/huggingface/hub/<model> |
/usr/bin/env bash << 'CACHE_CLEAN_EOF'
set -euo pipefail
echo "=== Measuring current cache sizes ==="
echo "uv: $(du -sh ~/Library/Caches/uv/ 2>/dev/null | cut -f1 || echo 'N/A')"
echo "Homebrew: $(du -sh ~/Library/Caches/Homebrew/ 2>/dev/null | cut -f1 || echo 'N/A')"
echo "pip: $(du -sh ~/Library/Caches/pip/ 2>/dev/null | cut -f1 || echo 'N/A')"
echo "npm: $(du -sh ~/.npm/_cacache/ 2>/dev/null | cut -f1 || echo 'N/A')"
echo ""
echo "=== Cleaning ==="
brew cleanup --prune=all 2>&1 | tail -3
uv cache clean --force 2>&1
pip cache purge 2>&1
npm cache clean --force 2>&1
CACHE_CLEAN_EOF
| Issue | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
uv cache lock held | Another uv process running | Use uv cache clean --force |
brew cleanup skips formulae | Linked but not latest | Safe to ignore, or brew reinstall <pkg> |
pip cache purge permission denied | System pip vs user pip | Use python -m pip cache purge |
| Docker not running | Docker Desktop not started | Start Docker.app first, or skip |
Find large files that have not been accessed in 180+ days.
/usr/bin/env bash << 'STALE_EOF'
echo "=== Large forgotten files (>50MB, untouched 180+ days) ==="
echo ""
# Scan home directory (excluding Library, node_modules, .git, hidden dirs)
find "$HOME" -maxdepth 4 \
-not -path '*/\.*' \
-not -path '*/Library/*' \
-not -path '*/node_modules/*' \
-not -path '*/.git/*' \
-type f -atime +180 -size +50M 2>/dev/null | \
while read -r f; do
mod_date=$(stat -f '%Sm' -t '%Y-%m-%d' "$f" 2>/dev/null)
size=$(du -sh "$f" 2>/dev/null | cut -f1)
echo "${mod_date} ${size} ${f}"
done | sort
echo ""
echo "=== Documents & Desktop (>10MB, untouched 180+ days) ==="
find "$HOME/Documents" "$HOME/Desktop" \
-type f -atime +180 -size +10M 2>/dev/null | \
while read -r f; do
mod_date=$(stat -f '%Sm' -t '%Y-%m-%d' "$f" 2>/dev/null)
size=$(du -sh "$f" 2>/dev/null | cut -f1)
echo "${mod_date} ${size} ${f}"
done | sort
STALE_EOF
| Type | Typical Location | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Windows/Linux ISOs | Documents, Downloads | .iso files from VM setup |
| CapCut/iMovie exports | Movies/ | Large .mp4 renders |
| Phone video transfers | Pictures/, DCIM/ | .MOV files from iPhone |
| Old Zoom recordings | Documents/ | .aac, .mp4 from meetings |
| Orphaned downloads | Documents/ | CFNetworkDownload_*.mp4 |
| Screen recordings | Documents/, Desktop/ | Capto/QuickTime .mov |
Use AskUserQuestion with multi-select to let the user choose what to clean.
~/Downloads with dates and sizes/usr/bin/env bash << 'DL_LIST_EOF'
echo "=== Downloads by date and size ==="
find "$HOME/Downloads" -maxdepth 1 \( -type f -o -type d \) ! -path "$HOME/Downloads" | \
while read -r f; do
mod_date=$(stat -f '%Sm' -t '%Y-%m-%d' "$f" 2>/dev/null)
size=$(du -sh "$f" 2>/dev/null | cut -f1)
echo "${mod_date} ${size} $(basename "$f")"
done | sort
DL_LIST_EOF
When presenting Downloads cleanup options, use this pattern:
| Tool | Wall Time | CPU Usage | Interactive Delete | Install |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| dust | 20.4s | 637% (parallel) | No (view only) | brew install dust |
| gdu-go | 28.8s | 845% (very parallel) | Yes (TUI) | brew install gdu |
| dua-cli | 37.1s | 237% (moderate) | Yes (staged safe delete) | brew install dua-cli |
| ncdu | 96.6s | 43% (single-thread) | Yes (TUI) | brew install ncdu |
dust for quick "where is my space going?" - fastest scanner, tree outputdua i or gdu-go for interactive exploration with deletion# dust - instant tree overview
dust -d 2 ~ # depth 2
dust -r ~/Library # reverse sort (smallest first)
# dua - interactive TUI with safe deletion
dua i ~ # navigate, mark, delete with confirmation
# gdu-go - ncdu-like TUI, fast on SSDs
gdu-go ~ # full TUI with delete support
gdu-go -n ~ # non-interactive (for scripting/benchmarks)
brew install dust dua-cli gdu
Note: gdu installs as gdu-go to avoid conflict with coreutils.
Ordered by typical space reclaimed (highest first):
| Action | Typical Savings | Risk | Command |
|---|---|---|---|
uv cache clean | 5-15 GB | None (re-downloads) | uv cache clean --force |
brew cleanup --prune=all | 3-10 GB | None (re-downloads) | brew cleanup --prune=all |
| Delete movie files in Downloads | 2-10 GB | Check first | Manual after AskUserQuestion |
npm cache clean --force | 0.5-2 GB | None (re-downloads) | npm cache clean --force |
pip cache purge | 0.5-2 GB | None (re-downloads) | pip cache purge |
| Prune old rustup toolchains | 2-5 GB | Keep current | rustup toolchain list then remove |
| Docker system prune | 5-30 GB | Removes stopped containers | docker system prune -a |
| Empty Trash | Variable | Irreversible | rm -rf ~/.Trash/* |
After modifying this skill:
/usr/bin/env bash << 'EOF' wrapper$HOME)| Issue | Cause | Solution |
|---|---|---|
uv cache clean hangs | Lock held by running uv | Use --force flag |
brew cleanup frees 0 bytes | Already clean or formulae linked | Run brew cleanup --prune=all |
find reports permission denied | System Integrity Protection | Add 2>/dev/null to suppress |
gdu command not found | Installed as gdu-go | Use gdu-go (coreutils conflict) |
dust shows different size than df | Counting method differs | Normal - df includes filesystem overhead |
| Stale file scan is slow | Deep directory tree | Limit -maxdepth or exclude more paths |
| Docker not accessible | Desktop app not running | Start Docker.app or skip Docker cleanup |
After this skill completes, reflect before closing the task:
Do NOT defer. The next invocation inherits whatever you leave behind.