When you install an application, related support and preference files are stored in various folders throughout your system and they are not always deleted when you drag an application’s icon to the trash. This handy little utility helps ensure that there are no orphaned files left behind when you delete an application.

Completely Deleting an Application

To delete an application and all of its related files from your Mac, launch the AppCleaner application and drag the icon for the application you wish to delete to the AppCleaner window as shown below. Then, click the Delete key.

Moving an application to another computer

I have personally found this utility handy for moving an application to another computer. When purchasing a new computer for instance, you might want to start out with a fresh, clean machine and instead of restoring all of your application from a backup, you might want to only bring over selected applications. Dragging an application’s icon to the AppCleaner window will display the location of all related files. This way, you can ensure that you bring over all necessary support and preference files when moving the application.

In the example below, the window displays the PhotoShop CS3 application and the location of all of its related files. If I wanted to copy this application to a new computer, I would want to ensure that all of these support files were copied along with it and placed in the proper folders.

Using SmartDelete

In the AppCleaner Preferences window, you can turn on the SmartDelete feature. What this does, is that when you delete an application, it will find and offer to remove all related application, ensuring that no orphaned files remain behind.

This is a free utility which has become an important part of my own workflow. You can download it from the Freemacsoft Web Site.

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