Organising files

Before you wipe the disk

Updated 2026-07-31 · 4 min read

A clean install is easy. The regret is the files you forgot were only in one place.

The obvious (you will remember these)

Documents, Desktop, Pictures, Movies, Music. Copy or confirm they are in a backup.

The non-obvious (the ones people lose)

~/Library data, none of which appears in a casual look:

• Mail — ~/Library/Mail if you use POP or want local archives
• Messages — ~/Library/Messages/chat.db for your iMessage history
• Notes — the Group Container database (or export important notes as PDF)
• Voice Memos — the Group Container recordings; drag them out first
• Stickies — ~/Library/StickiesDatabase
• Contacts / Calendars — if not synced to iCloud

App data:

• Photos library — if it is on the internal disk, back up the package
• App preferences you tuned — ~/Library/Preferences
• Fonts you installed — ~/Library/Fonts
• Browser bookmarks and passwords — export or confirm sync

Credentials and keys:

• Keychain — ~/Library/Keychains (or ensure iCloud Keychain has it)
• SSH keys — ~/.ssh
• GPG keys, API tokens in dotfiles — ~/.zshrc, ~/.config
• Dotfiles generally — years of shell and tool configuration

The find-everything-recent pass

Catch anything touched but not filed:

find ~ -type f -mtime -90 -not -path "*/Library/Caches/*" 2>/dev/null | \
  grep -vE "Library/(Application Support|Containers)" | less

Verify before erasing

• Confirm the backup restores — open a few files from it, do not just trust it exists
• Check licence keys for paid apps are saved (email or a notes file)
• Sign out of iCloud, iMessage, and app licences that count activations
• Deauthorise anything with a device limit

The whole point: everything important is either synced to iCloud or in a backup you have opened and verified. A search for recently-touched files outside your obvious folders is the step that catches the one you would otherwise lose.

Common questions

What files do people forget before erasing a Mac?

~/Library data — Mail, Messages history, Notes, Voice Memos — plus SSH keys, dotfiles and keychains. All hidden from a casual look.

How do I make sure I have everything before a clean install?

Back up, then verify the backup restores real files. Search for recently-modified files outside your obvious folders to catch strays.