ingveJan 21

Can you slim macOS down?

https://eclecticlight.co/2026/01/21/can-you-slim-macos-down/

Can you slim macOS down?

In a quest to reduce the number of processes running in macOS Tahoe, consider the example of Time Machine backups, which can easily be replaced by 3rd party alternatives.

The Eclectic Light Company
Show threadvegabookJan 21
I don't understand why Apple doesn't offer a headless MacOS or at least a path to a minimal install. Those mac minis make a great little server box but losing 8GB to hundreds of processes, before you've done anything, just feels wasteful and inelegant.
Show threadcrazygringo

> Those mac minis make a great little server box but losing 8GB to hundreds of processes

It doesn't matter because all the extra stuff just goes to swap. And you can't disable virtual memory anyways. So in the end you're not really losing anything. Those hundreds of processes are ultimately basically mostly just using up a little bit of your SSD, not your RAM, so it's not a concern.

Jan 21 at 7:16pmWeb
Show threadsaagarjhaJan 21
They’re not in swap if those processes wake up to do things