# why doesn't the OS show up free space on the pen drive?



## AM_SOS (Jul 8, 2010)

this is really funny. so i deleted some stuff off of my pen drive.
so obviously i expected the finder window to show me freed up space to the tune of 1.5 GB. but it still continued to show me the previous reading of 800 MB.
perplexed i looked around and finally realized that deleting stuff from a pen drive only moves it to the trash can and for some inexplicable reason it doesn't show the freed up space!
soon as i emptied my trash can, the pen drive showed the total free space as 1.5 GB instead of 800 MB.
why this weird setting for a drive that is not even internal to the mac?
i find this unergonomic to say the least.
is there a workaround ?
thanks


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

Um, it works this way for deleting stuff off of the internal drive too. It's the same as Windows as well, until you empty the trash can (or recycle bin) it's not deleted, and thus will not show free space because the files are still there since you can see them.


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## AM_SOS (Jul 8, 2010)

yeah i realised that too. and yes windows has the same feature except that if presses shift+del one bypasses the trash can and the file is deleting completely.
and i was going to ask you if this is possible for mac ...
one of the features i've noticed is the option to set the trash can to delete stuff permanently (finder preferences - advanced - "empty trash securely"). but i dont want to set this as the default option.
so wondering if there is an option to a delete only one file directly instead of the entire contents of the trash can.


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## sinclair_tm (Mar 11, 2005)

Not that I know of. If you pull up the Help system, you can search for keyboard shortcuts and get a list. _IMHO_, using the trash/recycle can as a storage place is foolishness. If you don't want it permanently gone, put it in a Junk folder, not the trash. Call it a pet peeve of mine when I sit at other's computers and the can is full, and they are just storing things there.


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