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Fussel 1.1 · Forgotten files, and safer than ever

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@github-actions github-actions released this 29 Oct 17:20
v1.1.0
9db5a88

Fussel app icon

Fussel 1.1

Less fluff, more Mac.
Finds what deleted apps left behind, and closes two safety gaps found in a security audit.

Fussel scanning, showing what it found, its biggest folders and recent clean-ups, and cleaning up

What's new

  • Hidden app caches: apps from the App Store keep their caches inside their own container, where Fussel didn't look before. With Full Disk Access it now finds them too (never Apple's, only what's inside each Caches folder). They're Safe to Remove, like other caches
  • Leftovers of removed apps: settings, caches and background helpers of apps you deleted long ago. Fussel is strict here: the folder must be named after an app that's gone, untouched for 30 days, not from a maker you still have an app or audio plug-in of, and never shared building blocks. Every leftover is Review First, nothing is picked for you
  • Honest about emptying the Trash: when you empty the Trash, the prompt now says how many of those items came from earlier Fussel clean-ups, because Undo can't bring them back afterwards. Those items are also marked in the list, so you can leave them out. Thanks to the Reddit commenter who pointed this out
  • Check your download: every release file now comes with a record from GitHub of exactly which commit and workflow built it. gh attestation verify Fussel-Installer.zip --repo Dshamil/fussel checks it (more in the README)

Safer

A security audit of the updater, the installer, the clean-up rules, Undo and the build closed two gaps, both now covered by tests (28 in total):

  • No more redirected folders: Fussel refuses any path that runs through a folder which is really a link somewhere else. An app can no longer point its cache folder at, say, your Documents and have Fussel tidy them up
  • Undo only brings back what's really in the Trash, and only to places Fussel may clean. Before, a program that edited Fussel's history file could have used Undo to move files around with Fussel's Full Disk Access

Neither could be used from outside your Mac; both needed another program already running on it.

Safety first

Everything Fussel cleans goes to the Trash first, and Undo puts it right back. Only items that are already in the Trash are deleted for good, and Fussel asks before doing that. System files, Apple apps and your main folders are never touched, and nothing marked Review First is ever picked for you. 28 automatic tests guard these rules on every build.

Install

Recommended: the installer

  1. Download Fussel-Installer.zip below. Your Mac unpacks it to Fussel-Installer.pkg; open that.
  2. Fussel isn't signed with an Apple Developer ID yet, so macOS blocks it at first. Open System Settings › Privacy & Security, scroll down and click Open Anyway next to the Fussel installer.
  3. Click through the installer. Fussel lands in your Applications folder and appears in the menu bar, next to the clock.
  4. Recommended: allow Full Disk Access in System Settings › Privacy & Security, so Fussel can reach the Trash and every hidden cache.

Already using Fussel? On 0.9.8 or later, just click Update Now. Older versions: install this one by hand once with the installer.

Or: drag and drop

Open Fussel.dmg and drag Fussel onto the Applications folder. Before the first launch, run this once in Terminal:

xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Fussel.app

Requires macOS 14 Sonoma or later. Runs natively on Apple Silicon and Intel. The Glass cards need macOS 26; earlier versions get frosted glass.

Good to know

  • Undo works as long as the items are still in the Trash.
  • Found something odd? Send Feedback in Fussel's menu opens a GitHub issue, already filled in with your Fussel and macOS version. Screenshots help a lot.

Made by Dshamil Meziane, built with Claude. Free and open source under the MIT license.

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