{"id":"freeing-space.what-does-reclaim-old-local-backups-do","url":"/faq/freeing-space/what-does-reclaim-old-local-backups-do","category":{"id":"freeing-space","title":"Freeing up space"},"subcategory":{"id":"one-tap-cleanup","title":"One-tap clean-up (Run Tuhi)"},"question":"What does the \"Reclaim old local backups\" step of Run Tuhi do?","alt_questions":["Tuhi reclaim old local backups step","Which snapshots does Run Tuhi remove?","Does Run Tuhi touch Time Machine?","Old local backups Storage Studio","Thin snapshots during clean-up"],"short_answer":"It thins the oldest local snapshots on your startup disk, preferring ones already on Time Machine and never touching ones macOS requires. Your files and your Time Machine backups are unaffected.","answer_markdown":"It thins the oldest of the local snapshots macOS keeps on your startup disk — the short-term copies that can hold on to space your clean-ups should have freed. It prefers snapshots that are already saved to your Time Machine destination, and it never touches snapshots macOS requires.\n\nYour files stay exactly where they are, and your Time Machine backups on your backup drive aren't affected. Because macOS already treats this space as available, the summary reports it as reclaimed backups rather than as freed space — see [why it's a separate line](/faq/freeing-space/why-are-old-local-backups-reported-separately).","answer_html":"

It thins the oldest of the local snapshots macOS keeps on your startup disk — the short-term copies that can hold on to space your clean-ups should have freed. It prefers snapshots that are already saved to your Time Machine destination, and it never touches snapshots macOS requires.

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Your files stay exactly where they are, and your Time Machine backups on your backup drive aren't affected. Because macOS already treats this space as available, the summary reports it as reclaimed backups rather than as freed space — see why it's a separate line.

","answer_text":"It thins the oldest of the local snapshots macOS keeps on your startup disk — the short-term copies that can hold on to space your clean-ups should have freed. It prefers snapshots that are already saved to your Time Machine destination, and it never touches snapshots macOS requires.\n\nYour files stay exactly where they are, and your Time Machine backups on your backup drive aren't affected. Because macOS already treats this space as available, the summary reports it as reclaimed backups rather than as freed space — see why it's a separate line.","tags":["run tuhi","local snapshots","time machine"],"related":[{"id":"freeing-space.why-are-old-local-backups-reported-separately","question":"Why does Run Tuhi list reclaimed local backups separately from the space it freed?","url":"/faq/freeing-space/why-are-old-local-backups-reported-separately"},{"id":"freeing-space.snapshot-vs-time-machine-backup","question":"Does reclaiming local snapshots affect my Time Machine backups?","url":"/faq/freeing-space/snapshot-vs-time-machine-backup"}],"applies_to":"all","last_reviewed":"2026-10-01","title":"What does the \"Reclaim old local backups\" step of Run Tuhi do? — Storage Studio FAQ","description":"It thins the oldest local snapshots on your startup disk, preferring ones already on Time Machine and never touching ones macOS requires. Your files and your Time Machine backups are unaffected.","crumbs":[{"name":"Home","path":"/"},{"name":"FAQ","path":"/faq/"},{"name":"Freeing up space","path":"/faq/freeing-space/"},{"name":"What does the \"Reclaim old local backups\" step of Run Tuhi do?","path":"/faq/freeing-space/what-does-reclaim-old-local-backups-do"}],"jsonld":{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"FAQPage","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/freeing-space/what-does-reclaim-old-local-backups-do","inLanguage":"en","dateModified":"2026-10-01","mainEntity":[{"@type":"Question","name":"What does the \"Reclaim old local backups\" step of Run Tuhi do?","alternateName":["Tuhi reclaim old local backups step","Which snapshots does Run Tuhi remove?","Does Run Tuhi touch Time Machine?","Old local backups Storage Studio","Thin snapshots during clean-up"],"acceptedAnswer":{"@type":"Answer","text":"It thins the oldest of the local snapshots macOS keeps on your startup disk — the short-term copies that can hold on to space your clean-ups should have freed. It prefers snapshots that are already saved to your Time Machine destination, and it never touches snapshots macOS requires.\n\nYour files stay exactly where they are, and your Time Machine backups on your backup drive aren't affected. Because macOS already treats this space as available, the summary reports it as reclaimed backups rather than as freed space — see why it's a separate line.","url":"https://storagestudio.us/faq/freeing-space/what-does-reclaim-old-local-backups-do"}}]},"fragment":"
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Freeing up space · One-tap clean-up (Run Tuhi)

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What does the "Reclaim old local backups" step of Run Tuhi do?

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Short answer: It thins the oldest local snapshots on your startup disk, preferring ones already on Time Machine and never touching ones macOS requires. Your files and your Time Machine backups are unaffected.

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It thins the oldest of the local snapshots macOS keeps on your startup disk — the short-term copies that can hold on to space your clean-ups should have freed. It prefers snapshots that are already saved to your Time Machine destination, and it never touches snapshots macOS requires.

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Your files stay exactly where they are, and your Time Machine backups on your backup drive aren't affected. Because macOS already treats this space as available, the summary reports it as reclaimed backups rather than as freed space — see why it's a separate line.

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