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System Data over 1 TB

Hello, 2019 MacBook Pro Monterey


Currently, over 1.3 TB of my storage is taken over by System Data.


Have done multiple scans of my HD but am unable to locate the culprit, all combined adds up to approx 800 GB so no idea where the rest of this storage is going.


Disk Utility tells me it's in Macintosh HD - Data, that it is APFS Data Volume. I'm unable to get there to see what's taking up all the room, I'm not terribly tech literate so don't think I would want to.


Any help would be greatly appreciated

MacBook Pro

Posted on Aug 16, 2022 5:53 AM

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Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Posted on Aug 16, 2022 6:39 AM

A couple of things to try first.


  • > System Preferences > Time Machine now turn off (uncheck) Back Up Automatically. Wait while it deletes Local Snapshots then turn it back on again. Check to see if the System Data has decreased.
  • Restart in Safe Mode, this will undertake various system maintenance tasks which may release space. Do a Normal Restart and check System Data
2 replies
Question marked as Top-ranking reply

Aug 16, 2022 6:39 AM in response to miohara

A couple of things to try first.


  • > System Preferences > Time Machine now turn off (uncheck) Back Up Automatically. Wait while it deletes Local Snapshots then turn it back on again. Check to see if the System Data has decreased.
  • Restart in Safe Mode, this will undertake various system maintenance tasks which may release space. Do a Normal Restart and check System Data

Aug 16, 2022 6:57 AM in response to miohara

The " Macintosh HD - Data " Volume is where the Users Data is Stored and you the User has control of this Data


Rebuild the Spotlight index on your Mac


What is “Other” storage on a Mac, and how can I clean it out?


Free up storage space on your Mac


OmniDiskSweeper Safe to use


GrandPerspective 


How to delete Time Machine snapshots on your Mac


See used and available storage space on your Mac


Locate backups of your iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch


Notation - If the user is using a cloning software like Carbon Copy Cloner - suggest tweaking the Safety Net Feature in this software. It may be making addition Snap Shots that are not being Cloned to the Eternal Drive. If this should be the case, these Snap Shot could be using additional space on the drive 


The final word from Apple on Managing the " Other/ System Data “ Category


Other / System Data: Contains files that don’t fall into the categories listed here. This category primarily includes files and data used by the system, such as log files, caches, VM files, and other runtime system resources. Also included are temporary files, fonts, app support files, and plug-ins. You can't manage the contents of this category. The contents are managed by macOS, and the category varies in size depending on the current state of your Mac.

System Data over 1 TB

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