Freeing up space

Keep in the Cloud: free space without deleting cloud files

Remove local copies of files already safe in iCloud Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive or Google Drive. Nothing is deleted; files still uploading are kept.

By the MoreRoom team, Yando Pte. Ltd.This page as Markdown

In short

  • Keep in the Cloud removes the local copy of files that are already stored in your cloud drive — like Finder’s Remove Download, but for whole folders or drives.
  • Nothing is deleted: the files stay in the cloud, keep their place in Finder and download again when you open them. Files whose changes aren’t uploaded yet are never touched.
  • One folder at a time is free; a whole drive in one click needs Pro. Keep in the Cloud needs Full Disk Access.

How to keep files in the cloud

  1. Open Keep in the Cloud Click Keep in the Cloud in the sidebar. It works without a scan. MoreRoom checks which cloud files are downloaded on this Mac.
  2. Choose how old Use Not opened for to keep recently used files on your Mac: Any time, 30 days, 90 days or 1 year.
  3. Pick a folder or a whole drive Click the arrow of a cloud drive to see its largest folders, then click Remove Download next to a folder — or Remove Downloads for the whole drive (Pro).
  4. Confirm MoreRoom reminds you that the files stay in the cloud and download again when you open them. Confirm with Remove Downloads.

What it does

Cloud drives keep a copy of your files on your Mac so they open instantly. When a file is already safe in the cloud, that local copy isn’t needed: removing it frees its space, and the file downloads again the next time you open it. Finder can do this one item at a time with Remove Download; MoreRoom does it for whole folders or drives.

MoreRoom finds iCloud Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, Google Drive, Box and other cloud services that sync through macOS, plus the iCloud data of individual apps when it’s larger than 100 MB.

What you see

For each cloud drive: how many items are downloaded on this Mac and how much space they take, or “Everything is already in the cloud only”. Click the arrow to see its largest folders and the files at the top level, each with a Remove Download button.

Not opened for limits everything to files you haven’t opened for 30 days, 90 days or a year, so the files you use often stay on your Mac.

Safe by design

  • Nothing is deleted. The files stay in your cloud drive, in the same place in Finder, with a cloud icon.
  • Files not uploaded yet are kept. If a drive shows “size still uploading — kept on this Mac”, those files are skipped until the cloud has them.
  • When it’s done, MoreRoom tells you what was freed — “size freed · files stay in service” — and how many files were kept until uploaded.

Free and Pro

  • Free: Remove Download for one folder at a time.
  • Pro: Remove Downloads for a whole drive in one click.

If it says “Full Disk Access needed”

To see which cloud files are downloaded without macOS asking about each service, MoreRoom needs Full Disk Access. Click Open System Settings and follow these steps.

If it says No cloud storage on this Mac, no supported service syncs files to this Mac.

Good to know

  • Opening a file that’s only in the cloud needs an internet connection.
  • Some apps download their files again on their own. iCloud’s Optimize Mac Storage can also remove downloads automatically when space runs low.
  • Our guide Remove Download vs Delete explains the difference in detail.
  • For files that aren’t in a cloud drive, Free Without Deleting gets space back while keeping every file on your Mac.