The "optimized storage" function of Apple computers is on by default, but can be turned off according to requirements. Its core function is to automatically streamline iCloud photos as thumbnails and delete infrequently used apps and caches. If you just want to turn off photo optimization, you can go to "System Settings > Apple ID > iCloud > Photos", turn off "Optimize Mac Storage" and select "Stay on Mac". To completely close, including automatic uninstall of the app, go to "System Settings > General > About this machine > Storage > Management", uncheck "Optimize storage" or "Automatic uninstall of the app". Whether to close depends on the person. Offline users or manually manage files recommended to close, while mild users or small-capacity SSD devices are recommended to keep. Pay attention to keeping a copy of the photo when operating to avoid accidentally deleting the original image.

The "optimized storage" function of Apple computers is enabled by default, which can indeed save a lot of space for many people. But if you are more accustomed to managing files yourself, or want to completely control local storage content, it is actually quite easy to turn it off.

What is "optimized Mac storage"?

This is an automatic cleaning mechanism of macOS, which mainly does two things: one is to automatically streamline the photos in iCloud into thumbnails, and only download the original image when needed; the other is to automatically delete the long-term unused apps and document caches. It sounds convenient, but sometimes it makes people confused about which files really exist locally.

How to turn off optimized storage of photo sections

If you just want to turn off the photo-related optimization, you can do this:

• Open System Settings > Apple ID > iCloud
• Find "Photo", click to enter
• Turn off the "Optimize Mac Storage" option, and the system will prompt you whether to keep a copy of the photo. It is recommended to select "Keep on Mac"

In this way, your photos will no longer be automatically replaced by the system.

How to completely turn off optimized storage

If you want to turn off the entire thing, including automatically uninstalling and cleaning of infrequently used apps and documents, you have to adjust it from the iCloud settings:

1. Click the Apple menu in the upper left corner → System Settings
2. Go to "General" > "About the machine" under "Storage"
3. Click the "Manage" button
4. Find the "Optimize Storage" or "Automatic Uninstall App" options in the function list on the left, uncheck

After this step is completed, the Mac will no longer automatically delete your local applications and files.

Is this feature worth turning off?

This question varies from person to person. If you travel frequently and rely on offline use, it is safer to turn it off. But if you are a daily office worker or a light user, keeping it will allow the system to free up more space for you. Especially for devices with smaller SSD capacity, such as the 256GB MacBook Air, the optimization function is quite practical.

In addition, if you have done a lot of classification and cleaning manually, you won’t suffer any loss by closing it. After all, you don’t want the system to move your own files randomly.

Basically, that's all. The operation is not complicated, but it is easy to ignore details, such as the "Keep Copy" option in the photo settings. Many people don't pay attention to it when closing it, but the photo becomes blank and thinks it's lost.

The above is the detailed content of How to turn off Optimized Mac Storage. For more information, please follow other related articles on the PHP Chinese website!