Guide

Start here

Start with one task: gather photos, clear unwanted files, or make images smaller.

Gather photos into Apple Photos: on Home, choose Gather my photos, then choose your home folder or another folder to search. Pick the album groups you want, rename them if you like, and look through the pictures. Before anything happens, the approval screen lists each step separately: making smaller copies (optional), copying into Photos, and moving the originals to the Trash (optional). Originals are moved to the Trash only if you choose that option and KarmaDisk has fully verified the copy in Photos. Anything uncertain stays where it is.

Cleanup: choose Review clutter on Home. Choose your home folder, Downloads or another location. Wait for the check, expand a suggestion and select files you no longer need. Review their names, locations and sizes before approving Move to Trash. Nothing is selected automatically.

Make images smaller: first scan a folder, then open Photos → Make smaller to see which images KarmaDisk can shrink. The standard option keeps each image’s format and every pixel exactly the same. The separate JPEG XL option changes the format. KarmaDisk keeps the originals so you can restore them, until you choose to remove them. For pictures already in Apple Photos, choose Photos → Photos library, read the limitations, and try about five photos first.

After each task, read the result screen. History lists what KarmaDisk has done and offers ways to get files back where possible. Files in the Trash, and photos in the Recently Deleted album in Photos, still take up space. You can recover them from there until they are permanently deleted. Photos deletes items in Recently Deleted automatically after about 30 days. Don’t empty the Trash or Recently Deleted until you’re sure you have everything you need.

Folder access and permissions

Why you choose folders, and how to reconnect them.

This edition works within the macOS App Sandbox. It can scan and change ordinary files inside folders you explicitly choose. It does not request Full Disk Access. Choose the narrowest folder that contains what you want to review.

Home lists your chosen folders. The circular × button removes a folder permission from the list, not its files. Undo restores the permission. macOS may retain active access until KarmaDisk quits. Choose the folder again to reconnect an unavailable permission.

When you organize files, KarmaDisk may ask you to choose the destination folder separately. In Cleanup → Photo originals, open More → Allow access to folder… if KarmaDisk cannot reach a file. Choose the folder containing the originals. Connect any external disk before checking files stored on it.

Some locations are always skipped, even if you choose a folder that contains them: macOS system folders, other apps’ private data, the apps themselves, and Photos libraries. This version does not uninstall apps or manage items that open when you log in.

Explore storage and understand sizes

Use maps and lists without mistaking file sizes for freed space.

Open Files → Storage map. Switch between Circular map and Treemap. Larger areas use more space. Colors match the list below. Click an area to select it; double-click a folder to look inside. To go back to a folder higher up, click its name in the path above the map. In the circular map, click the center to go back one level.

Click list column headings to sort. Use Large files, search and filters to narrow the results. Quick Look previews a selected file; Show in Finder reveals its location.

The size shown for a file is not always the space you will get back by removing it. A file can take up more or less room on disk than its listed size. It may also share storage with a copy, be compressed by macOS, or be kept in a system snapshot, such as a Time Machine local snapshot. Moving files to another folder on the same disk does not free space. Moving files to the Trash usually frees space only after you empty the Trash.

The capacity card shows your whole disk. Scan results show only the folders you chose and that KarmaDisk can access. Space that macOS manages itself is shown for information only. Don’t add it to the size of the files you selected; KarmaDisk does not free it.

Review cleanup suggestions

Older does not necessarily mean unwanted.

Choose Downloads, or a folder containing your Downloads, and wait for analysis. Open Cleanup → Cleanup. This edition reviews old downloads and installers; it does not clean other apps’ private caches or system folders.

Expand a category by clicking its review row. Inspect names, paths, sizes and dates, then select the items you want to remove. Use the selected count and size to check the scope. Nothing is selected automatically.

Read the final action before confirming. Files that changed or became unavailable may be skipped. Check History afterwards. To recover a trashed file, use Finder’s Trash; emptying Trash is permanent.

Choose which duplicate copies to keep

Keep one copy, several copies, or all of them.

Open Files → Extra copies. If no results are shown yet, start the search for duplicate files. Open a group to see where each copy is stored. Even when copies are identical, their locations can matter: an app or project may expect a file to be in a particular place.

Mark every copy you want to keep. You can keep more than one. At least one copy must remain. Use Quick Look and Show in Finder before deciding.

Move to Trash now moves that one copy to the Trash straight away. To handle several groups at once, review your choices and check every selected copy before you go ahead. KarmaDisk checks the files again just before acting and skips any copy that has changed or gone missing.

Some copies already share disk storage. Removing one may release little or no space. The shared-storage filter helps distinguish these groups.

Make images smaller

Reduce file sizes while keeping every pixel exactly the same.

Scan a folder that contains images, then open Photos → Make smaller and look through the images KarmaDisk suggests. Select the ones you want, check the preview, and review the options. JPEG, PNG and TIFF files are supported. Images in other formats, and images that can’t be made smaller while keeping every pixel the same, are left unchanged.

The savings shown beforehand are estimates; you’ll see the exact result after processing. Quick effort takes less time. A more thorough effort tries more ways to shrink each file and can take much longer. KarmaDisk keeps a smaller file only if a check confirms that every pixel matches the original.

Photo information such as capture dates, locations and camera details is kept by default. Leave “Remove capture dates, locations and other optional metadata” off to preserve it. Turning it on removes optional information from the compressed file; the saved original still contains that information. Review the metadata warning before deciding.

KarmaDisk keeps a copy of each original so you can undo the change. These saved originals still take up space, so you may not see any savings yet. Once you’re happy with the results, open Cleanup → Photo originals to check them and, if you choose, move them to the Trash. To undo a change, open History. If the smaller file hasn’t changed since, Restore original puts the original back. Otherwise, you can save the original as a separate copy.

Make smaller also has a separate JPEG XL option. It converts JPEG files to the newer JPEG XL format. Choose a folder of JPEG files stored on this Mac and approve the conversion. You can also choose to move the original JPEGs to the Trash once they have been verified. To verify each file, KarmaDisk rebuilds the original JPEG from the new JPEG XL file and checks that the two are identical, byte for byte. Some unsupported images, such as files that contain several pictures, are left unchanged, as are files that wouldn’t get meaningfully smaller. Some apps, websites and older devices cannot open JPEG XL files. If you need a JPEG again, Restore an original JPEG rebuilds it as a separate file and never overwrites an existing one.

Import into Apple Photos

Import first; verify before removing source files.

Open Photos → Gather photos and choose the folders to search. Use the large thumbnails and previews to recognize your pictures, then select the pictures and videos you want. Add folders if needed. Excluding a searched folder changes only this selection; it does not change or delete its files. Choose Continue to approval when you are ready.

Allow KarmaDisk to access Photos, then choose the albums you want. Making smaller copies is optional and keeps the image pixels and embedded photo information. Removing verified originals is a separate option: the approval button tells you whether originals will be kept or checked for removal. KarmaDisk moves an original to the Trash only after confirming a complete copy in Photos and membership in each chosen album. Any original that cannot pass these checks stays in its folder.

Pictures are imported into your System Photo Library. Opening a different library in Photos does not change this. Importing creates new copies, so you may need extra free space. If you use iCloud Photos, new items may upload to iCloud, and KarmaDisk may need to download the full-size files to check them. A smaller copy in Photos does not mean space has already been freed on your Mac. Photos decides how much to keep on your Mac, and originals moved to the Trash still use space until you empty the Trash.

The result screen shows separately which items were imported and verified, which originals were moved to the Trash, and which were kept because a check didn’t pass. KarmaDisk keeps a record of each import, so if an import is interrupted it can tell what was already done. You can come back later to Cleanup → Photo originals to deal with any remaining originals. KarmaDisk never empties the Trash for you.

To make pictures that are already in Apple Photos smaller, open Photos → Photos library and let KarmaDisk check which photos can be processed. The progress indicator shows how many photos have been checked so far. All photos that can be processed are selected at first; expand Review photos to search by file name or pick individual photos.

Create verified smaller copies adds a new, smaller version of each selected photo to your library. KarmaDisk checks that the pixels match exactly, and keeps the date, location, Favorite status and membership of ordinary albums. These kinds of items are left out: Live Photos, RAW photos, HEIC photos, edited photos, photos in shared albums, bursts, and items made up of more than one file. You’ll see the exact savings while processing. If your originals are stored in iCloud, they may need to download first.

Removing the original photos is a separate step that you have to approve. Some information exists only inside Photos and may not carry over to the new copies. This includes captions, keywords, People, Memories and other connections within your library. If any of this matters to you, keep the originals or make a backup first. Before asking to remove anything, KarmaDisk checks both versions again. When you approve removal, the originals go to the Recently Deleted album. If you use iCloud Photos, removing originals also removes them from iCloud and your other devices.

KarmaDisk keeps a record of each replacement, so an interrupted replacement isn’t simply retried. Creating copies temporarily increases storage. Recently Deleted, syncing and backups may delay actual free-space gains.

Organize files into folders

Review source and destination before moving.

To organize photos or documents into ordinary folders instead of importing into Photos, open Files → Organize files. Review an organization proposal, choose the destination folder in the macOS picker, and choose the offered layout. Review folder moves shows each source and proposed destination before you move anything.

If KarmaDisk asks, give it access to the destination folder. Choosing a destination only tells KarmaDisk where to put files; it doesn’t add any other files to what will be moved.

If a file with the same name already exists in the destination, KarmaDisk skips that file rather than replacing it. Check the final count, then run the selected moves. Afterwards, check the result for any skipped or failed items. Folders can be based on when a file was created or when it was last changed, so if dates matter to you, look carefully at the proposed folders.

Moving files on the same disk organizes them but doesn't free up space. For a recent move of an ordinary file, History may offer Move back. KarmaDisk first checks that the file hasn't changed and that its original location is still empty. For older records and folder moves, you may need to move the item back in Finder. Files in synced folders may also move on your other devices.

Remove verified originals

Recover space after compression or a Photos import.

Open Cleanup → Photo originals. This list holds two kinds of originals: those KarmaDisk saved when making images smaller, and the source files you imported into Apple Photos with KarmaDisk. Click Check listed files. Only files that pass every check can be selected for removal.

For a file you imported into Photos, KarmaDisk checks that Photos still holds a complete copy that matches it. For an original saved when making an image smaller, KarmaDisk checks the smaller file against the saved original. If a file has changed, KarmaDisk can’t access it, the copy isn’t available, or the record is unclear, the original is not treated as verified.

Review the paths and metadata warnings, select the verified originals you no longer need, then choose Move selected originals to Trash and confirm. The retained compressed files and Photos copies stay. Files are checked again before removal.

Removing a compression backup ends KarmaDisk’s Restore original option for that backup. You can still recover it from the Trash until the Trash is emptied. A backup that couldn’t be verified may offer a separate removal option. Using it doesn’t mean the backup passed a check, and it can discard your only copy of the earlier original or its metadata. Save a separate copy first if you need it.

If a source folder is synced, for example with iCloud Drive or Dropbox, deleting an original there may also delete it on your other devices. The space you get back may be less than the file sizes shown. Don’t empty the Trash until you have checked the copies you’re keeping.

History and recovery

Read the result, and recover the right file.

History records attempted operations and their outcomes. Completed, skipped and failed are different results. Open item details to see why a file was left alone. An interrupted operation may have completed some files; inspect the record before trying again.

For images made smaller in a folder, use Restore original when KarmaDisk offers it. It replaces the smaller file with the saved original, but only if the smaller file hasn’t changed. If the smaller file has been edited, moved or removed, save the original as a separate copy instead, so you don’t overwrite other work.

For files moved to the Trash, use Show in Trash in History to reveal the item in Finder. Then drag it out of the Trash, or use Put Back if Finder offers it. For an organization move, use Move back when it's offered. Otherwise, reveal the new location and move the item back in Finder. Importing into Photos removes source files only if you approved that option and the copy passed verification.

History is not a full backup. Keep a separate backup of important files. If a recovery record is unavailable, do not assume a missing source was successfully imported or removed.

Use the search field in History to find a file or action, including older records. Click Show older to load more results. If an interrupted task left an unfinished working file, History shows its exact location and offers Show in Finder. Check that file before removing it. An unfinished file or an unclear record is never proof that an original can be deleted.

When something does not work

Permissions, scanning, skipped items and Photos checks.

No results? Check the chosen folder and wait for analysis to finish. An empty cleanup list does not mean a scan failed: your files may not match the limited cleanup categories. Use Files or Make smaller instead.

Cannot access a folder? If it is on an external disk, reconnect the disk, then choose the folder again. In Cleanup → Photo originals, open More → Allow access to folder…, then check the listed files again. Scanning a different folder does not restore access to a folder you removed from the list.

Photos access denied? Check KarmaDisk’s Photos permission in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Photos. In Photos, make sure the library you want is set as your System Photo Library. If you use iCloud Photos, the full-size original may need to download before KarmaDisk can finish checking it. Seeing a thumbnail doesn’t mean the complete original is on your Mac.

No space saved? Check whether KarmaDisk is still keeping saved originals, whether files are still in the Trash or in Recently Deleted in Photos, whether the copies shared storage on disk, and whether some images couldn’t be made smaller. Don’t delete unrelated files just to match an estimate.

For a skipped or failed action, inspect its History details and correct the stated cause before retrying. If asking for support, include the app version, operation and error text. Omit private filenames and images unless you choose to share them.

Privacy, language and keyboard shortcuts

Local help, local records and familiar Mac controls.

This guide works without an internet connection. KarmaDisk has no analytics, advertising or tracking, and does not send your files or scan results to the developer. Scan results, folder permissions and recovery records are stored only on your Mac, in KarmaDisk’s own storage area. Apple Photos and any sync service you use handle their own syncing.

Settings lets you choose the appearance and language. This guide is available in every supported app language. Restart KarmaDisk after changing the language.

⌘O chooses a folder. ⇧⌘R scans again. ⌘. cancels scanning. ⌘Y opens Quick Look for the selected file. ⌘R shows it in Finder. ⌥⌘I shows or hides details where available. ⌘? opens Help. ⌘ is the Command key, ⇧ is Shift and ⌥ is Option.

The Help menu opens this user guide. Search looks at topic titles and the full text of each topic; clear the search to see every topic again. KarmaDisk works with folders you choose.