Type the rm command, a space, and then the name of the file you want to delete. You can pass more than one filename to rm. Doing so deletes all of the specified files. Wildcards can be used to select groups of files to be deleted. This command would delete all of the png image files in the current working directory.
This command would delete all files that have a single character extension. For example, this would delete File. If a file is write-protected you will be prompted before the file is deleted. To reduce the risk of using rm with wildcards use the -i interactive option. This requires you to confirm the deletion of each file.
The -f force option is the opposite of interactive. It does not prompt for confirmation even if files are write-protected. To remove an empty directory, use the -d directory option.
To delete directories that are not empty, use the -r recursive option. To be clear, this removes the directories and all files and sub-directories contained within them. If a directory or a file is write-protected, you will be prompted to confirm the deletion. To delete directories that are not empty and to suppress these prompts, use the -r recursive and -f force options together.
Care is required here. Making a mistake with the rm -rf command could cause data loss or system malfunction. To gain an understanding of the directory structure and the files that will be deleted by the rm -rf command, use the tree command.
Running the tree command produces a simple to understand diagram of the directory structure and files beneath the directory from which it is run. You can also supply a path to the tree command to cause it to start the tree from another directory in the file system. The rm command also has --one-file-system, --no-preserve-root, --preserve-root options, but those are only recommended for advanced users.
If you get something wrong, you could accidentally delete all your system files. There is another command, called rmdir , that you can use to delete directories. The difference between rm and rmdir is that rmdir can only delete directories that are empty. It will never delete files. The simplest case is deleting a single empty directory. As with rm , you can pass multiple directory names to rmdir , or a path to a directory.
If you try to delete a folder that is not empty, rmdir will give you an error message. In the following example rmdir successfully, and silently, deletes the clients directory but it refuses to delete the projects directory because it contains files. The projects directory is left exactly as it was and the files in it are untouched. You can force it to ignore these errors with the --ignore-fail-on-non-empty option so that other directories are processed.
The --ignore-fail-on-non-empty option has been included in the command. Can you delete them at the same time using Terminal? You should press Return to execute the command. But, you still need to type yes , or simply y to confirm the deletion action. Also, you need to open Terminal using the way you like. Then, you should use the rm -R or -r command to delete the entire folder.
All the files, subfolders, and items contained in the subfolders will be removed from Mac. Likewise, you can add the -i flag for protection, typing rm -iR directoryname instead. How to delete an empty directory also known as the folder? You can use Mac Terminal to recover files moved to Trash or deleted permanently.
Therefore, you should turn to the powerful data recovery software that supports Mac. Click to tweet. You can click on the button below to get Stellar Data Recovery for Mac directly or visit this webpage to know more about it. Free Download. In Windows systems, there are also built-in command line tools to help users perform different tasks. How to recover permanently deleted files on Windows or Mac? Please read this page to know how to recover lost files with CMD:.
This page will show you how to recover files using CMD easily. You also can filter them by file type and other criteria. The latest released version of this tool looks like this:. This app by developer MacPaw is available for a free download here. Using this app, files are removed for good, and as far as we know, it's irreversible. We are sure you know how to drag your files to the Trash.
But here is an alternative way that deletes files at once, bypassing the Trash. And you cannot reverse this action. Delete hidden folders on Mac Some folders on your Mac are made invisible to protect them from accidental deletion. They are system and support files you would ignore most of the time. But what if a folder seems empty but still takes up space? You can apply another shortcut combination to highlight these unseen objects. Then, you can delete them at your own risk.
That was how to remove files and folders on your Mac, shown in multiple ways. Want to know more? Explore our blog for a whole universe of Mac tips! As Mac developers, we have a few more Mac tricks to share with you. Confirm your email so we can send you our best stories and more guides like this one. How To. Hit Return or Enter to search. Igor Degtiarenko. Writer and blogger at MacPaw, curious just about everything. Did you enjoy this post?
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