ElfClean support

ElfClean shows what is using space in your home folder and helps you remove what can safely go: caches, logs, old downloads, Xcode and package-manager files, project build folders, coding-agent leftovers and local AI models. It's built for developers, people who build with AI, and anyone running AI tools on their Mac.

Contact: csergay@gmail.com
Please include your macOS and ElfClean versions (Settings → About), the screen you were on and the exact message shown. Leave out private file names and contents.

Getting started

Grant access to your home folder, choose Everyday or Developer mode, and run a scan. Scanning only reads; nothing is removed until you review and confirm. Developer mode can also look inside the project folders you choose for build folders such as node_modules.

What the labels mean

Safe: rebuilds itself when needed (caches, build files).
Review: look before choosing (old downloads, leftovers from deleted apps).
Caution: may be your only copy (agent history, worktrees, archives). Choose these individually, or acknowledge the listed items in the review. Large files and repositories with something to lose always need an individual choice.

Storage shows measured coverage of your home folder, not the whole disk.

Getting things back

Items move to the Trash by default. Space is freed when you empty the Trash. To undo, open History, select the entry and choose Restore…: ElfClean puts it back where it came from while it is still in the Trash (if a later cleanup reused its Trash name, History says so instead). You can also choose Reveal in Trash and drag it back yourself. macOS doesn't offer Finder's Put Back for items an App Store app moved to the Trash, so History is where the original location is kept. Once the Trash is emptied, items can't be recovered.

Keep and Never touch

Keep leaves a file, folder or project out of future scans; Undo reverses it right away. Manage the full list under Settings → Folders → Never touch.

Removing an app

On the Apps screen, choose an app (or drop it in). macOS asks you to grant access to that one app. Its optional cache and saved state start unticked. Apple and system apps, running apps and shared or ambiguous data are left alone.

What's free

All scans, previews, Storage and History are free, and so are cleaning one item at a time and removing an app with its data. A one-time purchase unlocks cleaning several items at once. There is no subscription. Use Restore purchase with the Apple Account that bought it.

Menu bar, schedules and alerts

All optional. Scheduled scans run only while ElfClean is running and never remove anything by themselves. Low-space alerts stay quiet until space recovers.