BlueHarvest 8

The most powerful way to keep your disks clean of macOS metadata.

Frequently Asked Questions

Since upgrading to 10.14 or 10.15, deleting .Spotlight folders from my disks fails.?

To allow .Spotlight folders to be deleted, grant BlueHarvest "Full Disk Access" under System Preferences -> Security and Privacy -> Privacy -> Full Disk Access.

What's the difference between the Apple App Store version of BlueHarvest and the non App Store version?

The non App Store version allows you to hide the menubar icon.

Can I switch from the App Store version to the non App Store version?

Yes! If you've purchased the App Store version you can contact support and request a serial number for the non App Store version.

I’ve lost my serial number / registration details. Help!

Please use the contact form.

What is a .DS_Store or ._ AppleDouble file?

.DS_Store files are created by OS X to store metadata about folders and files including viewing options, icon positions and color labels. ._ AppleDouble files are created by the OS X when an application adds resource data or metadata to a file on a disk whose format doesn't support resources or metadata.
Apple support: Apple Double Format Creates File Name With the Prefix '._'. (Archived)
Apple support: How to prevent .DS_Store file creation over network connections.

What items can BlueHarvest delete?

._ AppleDouble files
.apdisk
.DS_Store
.VolumeIcon.icns
Desktop.ini (from Windows)
Thumbs.ini (from Windows)
.AppleDouble folders (NAS/*NIX)
.fseventsd (disks only)
.Spotlight-V100 (disks only, not running 10.14 Mojave)
.TemporaryItems (disks only)
.Trashes (disks only)
$Recycle.bin (from Windows)
Files which match a UNIX wildcard string e.g "*.blah"

When we connect to our NAS device we see folders called “.AppleDouble”. Can BlueHarvest help?

Yes. BlueHarvest can delete .AppleDouble folders when connected to a server using SMB. To enable, make sure you've checked ".AppleDouble (Netatalk)" under "Folders to delete" in the "Clean OS X data" section of the BlueHarvest preferences.

Does BlueHarvest support Avid ISIS and Avid NEXIS?

Yes. BlueHarvest v6.3 and later support removing ._ files and .DS_Store files from Avid ISIS and Avid NEXIS network disks.

Can BlueHarvest cause data loss?

Yes. Some applications rely on data stored in ._ files (for example legacy MacOS fonts or EPS files) or other metadata files. Always make sure you use BlueHarvest with files which don't rely on data in ._ files. If there are particular file types which you don’t wish to have the ._ file removed for, you can click “Advanced” -> “Types” in the BlueHarvest preferences.

Does BlueHarvest remove items from Mac disks?

BlueHarvest only removes metadata from non Mac disks or servers. By default, BlueHarvest doesn't remove DS_Store files from Mac disks unless the disk is added by clicking the "+" button.

How can I see what BlueHarvest is deleting when not manually cleaning?

Open Console.app inside the /Applications/Utilities folder and click Console.log on the left. BlueHarvest will print a message whenever it deletes something.

Can I use BlueHarvest to clean my DropBox?

Sorry, no. It’s not possible to use BlueHarvest to clean a DropBox shared folder.

Can I use AppleScript to control BlueHarvest?

Yes, you can simply send an 'open' command to have BlueHavest clean a folder with the current settings. For example: tell application "BlueHarvest" to open "/Volumes/MyDisk/AFolder" The folder and all its sub folders will be cleaned.

What does BlueHarvest install? (Non App Store version only)

Other than the application itself, BlueHarvest installs the following items:

(Startup Disk)/Library/LaunchDaemons/com.zeroonetwenty.BlueHarvestHelper.plist
(Startup Disk)/Library/PrivilegedHelperTools/com.zeroonetwenty.BlueHarvestHelper

These items are installed and removed when BlueHarvest is turned on/off respectively. They can safely be manually deleted.

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Supports macOS 10.15 to macOS 15 Sequoia.
See release notes for older versions.

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