Assistant · Explanations
"What is this file?": the assistant that explains before you delete
A 6 GB folder called com.apple.bird, a forgotten .dmg file, a DerivedData directory that keeps growing: on a Mac, plenty of items have names that mean nothing to most people. Before you click "Delete", the right question is simple: what is this file for, and what happens if I remove it?
The MacNeat assistant answers that question in a few lines, in your app's language. It doesn't replace your judgement: it gives you the missing context so you can decide with confidence.
One question, one short answer
From the results of a MacNeat scan, you can send a file or folder to the assistant. What comes back is a short explanation, usually three to five sentences:
- What it is: a cache, an app database, a local backup, an installer, a log…
- Who uses it: the app or macOS component that most likely created the item.
- What happens if you remove it: rebuilt automatically at next launch, settings lost, data to back up first, or an item best left alone.
The answer comes in the language selected in MacNeat. The goal is to understand in ten seconds, not to read a technical article.
What is sent, and what never is
MacNeat runs all its scans locally, on your Mac. The assistant is the only feature that queries a remote service, and it does so under strict rules:
- The generic path of the item, with your home folder anonymised:
~/Library/Caches/…rather than your user name. - A few metadata: size, creation and modification dates, file type, presumed owning app.
The file's contents are never read or transmitted: not your documents, not your photos, not the text of a log. For most system items, the path and type are more than enough to identify their role. If you'd rather not use the assistant, nothing forces you to: the rest of MacNeat works without it.
Real-world examples
A few typical questions and the kind of answer you get:
~/Library/Developer/Xcode/DerivedData: Xcode's intermediate build files. They are regenerated on the next build; deleting them frees space but makes the first build slower.~/Library/Application Support/MobileSync/Backup: local iPhone or iPad backups. Keep them until you've checked that an iCloud or more recent backup exists.~/Library/Containers/com.apple.mail: Mail app data, including local copies of messages. Don't delete it by hand; use the attachment cleanup in Clarté instead.- A
.dmgfile in Downloads: an installer disk image. Once the app is installed, it's usually no longer needed.
A decision aid, not an oracle
Let's be honest: an automatic explanation can be wrong, especially for a folder with an ambiguous name or one created by a little-known app. That's why the assistant always stays advice, never a trigger:
- It deletes nothing and ticks nothing on your behalf.
- It only sees the path and metadata: a folder with a generic name remains hard to identify with certainty.
- If you decide to delete, the item goes to the Trash, as always with MacNeat, and the operation is logged so it can be undone.
Protected macOS areas are always skipped by MacNeat, whatever the assistant says. For important data, the rule doesn't change: an up-to-date backup before any big clean-up. See data protection.
Where to find it and on what terms
The assistant is available from MacNeat's file lists, right where the question comes up: for example while browsing your disk with the Panorama space explorer. It works on Apple silicon Macs and Intel Macs alike.
Scanning your Mac is free; actions (deleting, uninstalling, cleaning) require a licence, with a free 7-day trial when you first sign in.