A DMG file is used to compress and store data on a Mac. It helps in using up less disk space than if the data wasn’t stored in a DMG file. This is exactly the same as what happens with zipped files on a Windows computer system. A DMG file is also known as an Apple Disk Image file, or a Mac OS X Disk Image file.
DMG files are mostly used for storing the software installation media for a Mac, rather than the user requiring a disc. Another key attribute of a DMG file is the checksum, which actually is the verification of the content’s integrity. Once the checksum has been successfully verified, only then the file will go on to decompress the data included inside it. DMG files made their debut from OS X 9, and have proved to be highly popular since then.
This was just a brief intro about DMG files, now let’s focus on how to get rid of duplicate DMG files from your MacBook.
The Manual Way
First up is the easier, straightforward and moderately reliable solution. It requires you to type in the extension (.dmg) in the right place and let your MacBook dig out all the dmg files for you. Once the whole list of duplicates has been compiled and presented to you, you have to give your verdict about any duplicates and move them to the Trash.
Sounds all simple, and good. But this method of searching up duplicate DMG files has its own fair share of downsides.
This method is totally reliant on the filename. If 2 DMG files share the same name, this method determines them to be duplicate. The reality might well be just the opposite, and so this method cannot be totally trusted upon at all. This is, unless you can spare the time and energy of opening up each file and comparing it with the rest after they have been detected as suspected duplicates because of matching filenames.
And by the way, just to ensure there is an increased degree of objectivity and you do not mistakenly delete a file, we recommend you perform a second ‘step’ before making the final call on if 2 (or even more) files are duplicates or not. If you’ve detected some files to be named the same way, you can compare their file size. If the files’ size is different, they simply aren’t duplicated and you can safely ignore them. But if the file size also matches bit by bit, this is most probably a case of duplicates and you should carefully review all the suspect files.
Managing and installing applications distributed with DMG files. You now can delete the DMG file if you would like, but you may prefer to store it on an external drive or in another safe.
This was a neat little tip to further refine the suspected duplicate DMG files into a subset. Now we will briefly describe another downside of the manual method before we move on to the automated solution of finding and deleting duplicate DMG files on your MacBook.
Jan 08, 2013 Then I delete the folder completely and start over again. If you can't identify the file, you can actually start the installation by clicking the.exe or extracting the.zip file temporarily,. Sep 16, 2018 If I delete ISO what will happen? Discussion in 'Installation and Configuration' started by SeanB1, Aug 9, 2015. SeanB1 Bit Poster. @SeanB1 Yes, you can delete the.iso file if you feel that not necessary. But it will help to repair Windows 7 home premium Virtual Machine.
By now you must have determined all the manual methods depend on the user to compare the files and judge if some/ all of them are duplicated or not. This might go well in the beginning, but can a user ensure they continue to examine files at their best even after they’ve performed this job for a good while? It is most definitely a long shot by all means.
Let’s take a quick look at the manual way of how you can search for duplicate DMG files on your MacBook.
- Click the Finder app the Dock.
- On the top-right of the screen will be the Search box, click it.
- Now type in kind:dmg and you will notice the Disk Image entry pop up below the Kinds heading under the same box. Select it.
- Now click the This Mac link in the bar right under the Search box to direct the search at the entire Mac.
- A list of all the dmg files will be compiled and laid out within seconds. Now you can easily compare the files and choose to delete or retain them.
- If you want to compare the DMG files by their metadata, right-click anywhere in a blank area on the screen and select Show View Options.
- Now you can choose from all the options available in the Show Columns area for any fields you want to enable.
The Automated Way
Let’s switch to the automated method now. This is a software program that scans and deletes DMG files with unparalleled accuracy. Since this is a software program, it is extremely swift in accomplishing the entire scan, detect and deletion process.
The software program is named Clone Files Checker, and it does what its name suggests. It will run a comprehensive scan in the target scan location and list out all the duplicates in a neatly presented layout within minutes. The duplicates are divided into categories such as Documents, Archives, Music, Videos, Images etc so the user can easily view the results of a specific file type.
This software does wonders in digging out DMG files on your MacBook’s SSD. It is super-accurate in accomplishing the task, super-light in occupying your Mac’s resources, and super-fast in completing it all. This is a complete package and delivers results par excellence.
Now we get to the biggest one. This software simply does not take into account the filename, file type, file size etc while comparing files for duplication. It minutely scans the file’s content bit-by-bit rather than giving any weightage to the file tags. This intelligent usage of smart algorithms means there is no chance of an error at any stage during the entire process.
Here is how it unfolds:
What Happens If You Delete A Dmg File Windows 10
- Head over to the Clone Files Checker website, and download its setup file.
- Execute the setup file and extract CFC to the Applications section of your MacBook.
- Launch the software and click the Add button in the Include for Scan section to include as many folders/ removable storage media as you want.
- The next step is entirely optional. It allows you to customize the scan by looking for file types of your choice and setting up a lower file size limit/ upper file size limit/ file size range so CFC only scans those files that lay within the range.
- Hit Start Search to initiate the scan.
- You will soon get a pop up on the screen informing you of the number of duplicate DMG files detected, as well as the storage space they have been occupying. Click the REVIEW & FIX button to review the duplicates.
- Now click the Select Duplicates button to complete the selection process in a more speedy and professional manner. Finally, click Select Action and choose if you want to permanently delete the duplicates or move them to a folder if you think they might be of help sometime in the future.
Note: The software also allows you to export detailed scan results in CSV and HTML formats.
What Happens If You Delete A Dmg File Online
The best part about Clone Files Checker for Mac is that the user is in control of the entire process at every single stage, without them being overburdened. This is a very smart way of scanning and deleting multiple copies of DMG files from your MacBook SSD with great speed.