# Bytewell

> Bytewell is a native macOS disk analyzer and cleaner for developers and AI users, made by Axleno LLC. It maps the whole disk in seconds and finds what can be removed safely, with a focus on developer and AI clutter. It never deletes anything permanently: everything goes to the Trash and can be undone.

Bytewell runs on macOS 15 Sequoia or later, on Apple silicon and Intel. It is signed by Axleno and notarized by Apple. It is free to use; Bytewell Pro is a one-time lifetime purchase ($19.99), with a 14-day trial and a 30-day refund. Bytewell for Teams is the same lifetime Pro for 3 people or more at $14.99 a seat, paid once (seats are picked at https://bytewell.app/#teams): the buyer holds the first seat and gives the others to teammates by email in the app, and each person gets their own lifetime key. Seats are for life and can't be moved to someone else; a team can add seats any time. No subscription and no account. Current version: 1.4.2.

## Get it

- Download: https://updates.axleno.com/bytewell/Bytewell.dmg (updates arrive inside the app)
- Homebrew: `brew install --cask callmecelebi/tap/bytewell`
- Pro: buy from the website or inside the app; the key is emailed and activates with one click. On a new Mac, "Activate Pro by email" sends the key again to the purchase address.

## What it finds

- Xcode DerivedData, simulators and simulator runtimes
- node_modules, Python virtual environments, build output and package caches, grouped by project, with stale projects flagged
- Local AI models from Ollama, LM Studio and Hugging Face in one list, including the same weights stored twice
- Docker, OrbStack, Colima and Podman disks, and what macOS "System Data" contains
- AI coding tool clutter: old Claude Code, Codex and Gemini CLI sessions, older Claude Code runtimes, editor state for folders that are gone (VS Code, Cursor, Windsurf and more), and agent git worktrees. Claude Code memory is never offered.
- Duplicates: identical files, and the same photo saved more than once (resized, re-saved, HEIC and JPEG) in a folder or, with the user's permission, the Photos library; never photos that only look alike
- Large files, with ready views: screen recordings, old videos in Downloads, old installers, files not opened in a year; and leftovers of apps that were already removed
- Everyday space: old iPhone and iPad software updates (.ipsw), Telegram and chat app caches. Messages, Mail and WhatsApp attachments are shown with the size and the app's own setting to clean them; Bytewell never moves them

## Disk health

- How worn the Mac's SSD is: the share of its rated write endurance used, everything written to it so far, and errors it reports. Read straight from the drive, no administrator password
- Swap: how much memory spilled onto the disk, which is what keeps writing to the SSD
- Memory: used of the total, compressed, and the five apps holding the most (helpers counted with their app), read when the card opens; it names apps, never frees or quits anything
- On a MacBook, the battery's capacity against new and its charge cycles

## Beyond a scan

- Scheduled scans in the background, and alerts when the disk runs low or free space drops fast (naming the folder that grew)
- Autopilot (opt-in, its own screen): after scheduled scans, moves old, safe clutter to the Trash, starting with rehearsals that move nothing; custom rules for your own folders. Free: rehearsals after the scans you run, with a "would have freed" total. Moving, scheduled scans and custom rules need Pro
- A menu bar view, a Disk Space widget, and Shortcuts and Siri actions (free space, status, scan, review safe cleanup)
- A `bytewell` command-line tool inside the app, for scripts and terminals
- Install Watch (Pro, from 1.3.1): press Start before installing an app and Stop after, and Bytewell lists what appeared where apps keep things, hidden files too, so the app can later be removed cleanly. macOS doesn't say which program wrote a file, so it's "what changed while you watched". The uninstaller also lists what an app's .pkg installer put elsewhere. The Keychain is never read

## How it stays safe

- No permanent delete: items move to the Trash, every move can be undone, and only the user empties the Trash
- Every suggestion is marked "safe" (rebuilds itself) or "review" (the user's data, or a long re-download)
- Keychains, Mail, Messages, Photos, iCloud Drive, browser profiles, SSH keys and .env files are always refused as cleanup. The Photos library is only compared by Duplicates in the app, through Photos and after the user allows it; a photo is removed only through Photos' own prompt, into Recently Deleted
- Scans read sizes and dates only and never leave the Mac

## Languages

The app and this website are in English, German, Spanish, Japanese, Turkish, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese. Bytewell follows the Mac's language, or one picked for it in System Settings.

## AI agents

Bytewell includes an MCP server (`bytewell mcp`) with one-click setup for Claude Code, Claude Desktop, Cursor, Codex, Gemini CLI, Windsurf and VS Code. Agents see only Bytewell's own suggestions, every move needs a single-use preview and the user's OK, and moves that include "review" items or uninstall an app also need the user's approval in the Bytewell app, with Touch ID or their password.

- Connect a client: one click on the app's AI Agents page, or `bytewell connect claude-code` (also claude-desktop, cursor, codex, gemini, windsurf, vscode). The command is inside the app at `Bytewell.app/Contents/Helpers/bytewell`.
- Claude Code plugin (the MCP server plus a careful cleanup skill): `/plugin marketplace add callmecelebi/bytewell-claude-code`, then `/plugin install bytewell@bytewell`. Source: https://github.com/callmecelebi/bytewell-claude-code
- 20 tools (18 before 1.4.0), among them disk_status, scan_disk, list_cleanup_suggestions, biggest_folders, large_files, ai_models, docker_status, disk_health, list_apps, move_to_trash, undo_trash, uninstall_app, remove_background_items, list_on_drives and move_to_drive (from 1.4.0; it copies to an external drive, checks every byte, then moves the original to the Trash). The `agent_guide` tool returns the current guide for the installed version, with the limits (200 paths per move, previews valid 10 minutes) and what each error code means.
- A failed call ends with `(error code: …)` and carries the same code in `_meta` (`io.axleno.bytewell/errorCode`), for example `no_scan`, `pro_required`, `preview_required` or `approval_declined`.
- `find_duplicates` with `images: true` lists copies of the same picture in a folder (read-only; the user removes copies in the app).
- Free tools: the guide, status, scans, cleanup suggestions, folders, large files, disk health, moves to the Trash and undo. Models, projects, duplicates, System Data, Docker, history and apps need Bytewell Pro. Without Pro, the app still shows the System Data total and its biggest part, and how many apps there are and their size.

## Guides

Answers with the exact folders and commands. Each is also at /<language>/help/<page> for the languages under Links.

- [Claude Code, Codex and Cursor disk usage: what's safe to clean](https://bytewell.app/help/ai-coding-tools-disk-space): Where Claude Code, Codex, Gemini CLI, Cursor and VS Code keep transcripts, worktrees, runtimes and editor state on a Mac, and which of it you can safely remove.
- [I deleted an app on my Mac. Why are its files still there?](https://bytewell.app/help/app-leftover-files-mac): Dragging an app to the Trash leaves its settings, caches and data in your Library. Where those leftovers are, how to find them, and which are safe to remove.
- [Docker using too much disk space on a Mac: Docker.raw explained](https://bytewell.app/help/docker-disk-space-mac): Docker Desktop keeps everything in one file, Docker.raw. Why it looks huge, how to see what uses it, and which docker prune commands free space safely on Mac.
- [Can I delete iPhone software update files on my Mac?](https://bytewell.app/help/iphone-software-updates-ipsw-mac): Finder downloads several GB of iPhone and iPad system software to update a device, and keeps it. Where the.ipsw files are and why removing them is safe.
- [Is it safe to delete cache files on my Mac?](https://bytewell.app/help/is-it-safe-to-delete-caches-mac): Most app caches in ~/Library/Caches are safe to remove with the app quit: the app rebuilds them. Where caches are, how big they are, and what not to delete.
- [Where Ollama, LM Studio and Hugging Face store models on a Mac](https://bytewell.app/help/local-ai-models-disk-space): Where Ollama, LM Studio and Hugging Face keep local AI models on a Mac, how big they get, how to find the same model stored twice, and how to remove them.
- [My Mac says the disk is full, but Finder shows free space](https://bytewell.app/help/mac-disk-full-but-finder-shows-space): Your Mac has two numbers for free space: what's free now, and what's available once macOS removes purgeable data. Why they differ and how to close the gap.
- [What opens at login on my Mac, and how do I turn it off?](https://bytewell.app/help/mac-login-items): See what starts with your Mac in System Settings › General › Login Items & Extensions, what the background items are, and how to turn them off safely.
- [How to check your Mac's SSD health and wear](https://bytewell.app/help/mac-ssd-health): macOS only says S.M.A.R.T. Verified. How to read your Mac SSD's real wear (Percentage Used, data written, errors), what the numbers mean, and what wears it out.
- [Why is my Mac storage filling up by itself?](https://bytewell.app/help/mac-storage-filling-up-by-itself): Mac storage shrinking on its own? Usually snapshots, caches, swap, chat media, backups or developer tools. How to find what grows with two du runs a week apart.
- [What is System Data on a Mac, and how do I make it smaller?](https://bytewell.app/help/mac-system-data): System Data in Mac storage settings is caches, logs, Time Machine snapshots, swap, iPhone backups, app data and VM disks. What each is and what you can remove.
- [Messages and Mail are taking up storage on my Mac](https://bytewell.app/help/messages-and-mail-storage-mac): Messages and Mail keep attachments on your Mac. Where they are, and how to reduce them with Storage settings, Keep messages and Mail's own settings.
- [How to find and delete old node_modules folders and package caches on a Mac](https://bytewell.app/help/node-modules-and-package-caches): Find every node_modules folder on a Mac with one command, see which package caches (npm, pnpm, Yarn, Homebrew, pip, Go, Gradle) are safe to clear, and how.
- [Videos or GIFs on X are black in Safari](https://bytewell.app/help/safari-black-video): Videos and GIFs on X (Twitter) black in Safari while the timer runs, fine in Chrome? Safari's video helper is stuck. Quit Safari with Cmd+Q and reopen it.
- [Telegram is taking up storage on my Mac](https://bytewell.app/help/telegram-storage-mac): Telegram for Mac keeps a copy of every photo and video you open. Where its cache is, how to clear it in Settings › Data and Storage, and what secret chats lose.
- [What did this installer put on my Mac?](https://bytewell.app/help/what-did-installer-put-on-mac): A.pkg installer leaves a receipt on your Mac. List what it installed with pkgutil, find helpers it added, and what to do for apps installed from a disk image.
- [WhatsApp is taking up storage on my Mac](https://bytewell.app/help/whatsapp-storage-mac): WhatsApp for Mac keeps every photo, video and voice note from your chats in its Group Container. Where it is, how big it is, and how to reduce it in WhatsApp.
- [Xcode taking up too much space: what's safe to delete](https://bytewell.app/help/xcode-disk-space): Where Xcode keeps DerivedData, simulators, runtimes, device support and archives on a Mac, which of them rebuild themselves, and how to remove them safely.

## Links

- [Bytewell](https://bytewell.app/): features, safety, pricing, FAQ and download
- The same page in [Deutsch](https://bytewell.app/de/), [Español](https://bytewell.app/es/), [日本語](https://bytewell.app/ja/), [Türkçe](https://bytewell.app/tr/), [简体中文](https://bytewell.app/zh-hans/) and [繁體中文](https://bytewell.app/zh-hant/)
- [Refund policy](https://bytewell.app/refund): 30-day money-back guarantee
- [Privacy policy](https://axleno.com/privacy): what Bytewell and its websites collect
- [Axleno](https://axleno.com/): the company behind Bytewell