Delete local
Bulk delete local
Free up disk space after a project is fully backed up. Tusk only deletes files it has verified copies of.
Bulk delete local removes every local copy of a project's files in one action, but only files that have at least one fully verified backup. Files without a verified backup are skipped, no matter what. The safety wrapper isn't optional and there's no override; this is the single-most-dangerous action in any backup tool, and Tusk treats it that way.
The deleted files go to the macOS Trash. They're recoverable until you empty the Trash. The backup copies on your destinations are not touched.
When to use it
- You finished a shoot, the footage is fully backed up to multiple destinations, and you want your Mac's drive back.
- You delivered a project and don't need fast access to the working files anymore. The backups stay; the local copies leave.
- You're archiving an old project. Bulk delete locally, confirm everything went where it should, then forget about it until you need to restore.
How to start it
1
Open the project
From the projects overview, click into the project.
2
Open the More actions menu
The three-dot menu in the project header. Click Delete local copies.
3
Read the safety summary
Tusk shows: file count to be deleted, total bytes that will be freed, file count that will be skipped (no verified backup), and a per-destination confirmation that the backups exist.
4
Confirm
Type the project name to confirm (an extra step that forces you to read what you're about to do). Click Delete local copies. Tusk moves the files to the Trash and updates the file table; rows flip from Synced to Not local.
Screenshot
Bulk delete local modal with a clear summary: '147 files (312 GB) will be moved to Trash', 'All 147 files have verified backups on 2 destinations: External SSD and Backblaze B2'. Include the type-to-confirm field showing the project name and the Delete button.
alt: The bulk delete local confirmation modal
What gets skipped
Tusk skips any file that doesn't have at least one verified backup at the moment you run the action. Common reasons:
- The file was added since the last sync and hasn't finished uploading yet.
- A destination is mid-verification and the file isn't confirmed there yet.
- An earlier transfer to every destination errored and you haven't retried.
Tusk lists the skipped files in the result summary so you know what didn't get deleted. Run the action again after the backups complete to clean them up.
What about files in protected locations?
Tusk's safety layer refuses to touch files in macOS system locations regardless of the project setup. Specific paths Tusk will never delete from: /System, /Library, /usr, ~/Library, ~/.Trash, the user's home root, the system root. If a project somehow ends up pointing at one of these, Tusk reports the protected paths in the bulk delete summary and skips them.
Trash vs unlink
Tusk uses the macOS Trash by default for any local delete. If the Trash isn't available for some reason (rare, but possible on certain volumes), Tusk falls back to fs.unlink(). You'll see a clear notification telling you which method was used so you know whether the file is recoverable from Trash or gone for good.
What happens to the file table
After the deletion, every freed file's row in the table flips to Not local. The row stays in the table; only the local-presence indicator changes. Backup statuses on destinations stay the same. Restore actions become available; the local actions (Show in Finder, Delete locally) become unavailable.
Verify your backups before bulk-deleting locally
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