Emtying Trash

P

peterjws

Registered
Whenever I try and empty the Trash I get a message saying it "cannot be completed because an unexpected error occurred-- Error Code 8003."

Anyone know how to fix this?? OSX 10.6.8
 
Could be a corrupted file in the trash.
Try this to force-empty the trash:
http://www.techenvi.com/2012/12/20/fix-error-code-8003-when-emptying-the-trash/

If that doesn't help, boot to your OS X installer, and run Disk Utility from the Menus, and click the Repair Disk button (different from Repair Disk Permissions, which won't likely help you)

Then, restart, and try emptying the trash again, and if that still doesn't work, try the terminal command again, which should work this time.
 
Thanks. I cannot get the techenvi link to work. There seems some confusion as to exactly what should be typed into Terminal and it will not let me type in my password.

Disk utility says I have corrupt files and wants me to start up with the installation disk. Unfortunately I am away from home and do not have that disc available. Any other suggestions? Thanks Peter
 
When you type your password in the terminal, no characters are reflected on the screen (it's a security thing!). Just type your password, and press enter.
the proper terminal command is here
Code: 
sudo rm -rf ~/.Trash/*

The best way to enter that command is to copy the complete command and paste directly into a terminal window.
Again, type in your admin password. You will NOT see any characters as you type your password, and again press enter.
 
Thanks Delta Mac but I cannot get Terminal to work. When I open T. I get a window saying "Terminal-Login 80 x 24.
I then paste in your link and press enter. Nothing happens.
I have tried then typing in my admin password and this shows up in clear. Pressing enter again just results in the password coming up again on the next line down.
I have T. version 2.1.2 (273.1)
Help please!!
 
make a new terminal window, from the Shell menu in Terminal.
You should get a prompt
Follow these instructions exactly...
Type the word login, and press enter.
You should get the word login as a response.
Type in your account name (That's your admin user account name), and press enter.
The response will be the word password:
Type in your password, and again press enter. (again, you won't see anything as you type in your password)
You should get a response showing your computer's name, and the account name that you are using to login to the terminal, and ending in a cursor
Try the command then....
 
Last edited:
Thanks. I have done as you suggest but I get no prompts at all and the password comes up in clear as before.
 
Thanks Delta Mac. I have tried that but the new window performs exactly as before ie I get no responses and my password comes up in clear.
 
But - the terminal does not ask for your password, correct?
If you enter your password without a password prompt, then it's just random text - that coincidentally is your password. In other words, if the terminal does not prompt you for a password, then typing your password is essentially ignored, because the terminal doesn't know that you have typed in a password unless the terminal asks for it.
And if your press enter after that random text, you should get something like "command not found" (unless you are unlucky enough to choose a password that is also a terminal command :D )

Can you tell me _exactly_ what appears in a terminal window, when you first launch the terminal, and before you have entered any text?
You don't need to report anything that is in the window title bar, only within the confines of the terminal window.
 
peterjws said:
Thanks. I cannot get the techenvi link to work. There seems some confusion as to exactly what should be typed into Terminal and it will not let me type in my password.

Disk utility says I have corrupt files and wants me to start up with the installation disk. Unfortunately I am away from home and do not have that disc available. Any other suggestions? Thanks Peter
Click to expand...
Follow the instructions on this web page to fix your HD without the need for the install disc.
 
Thanks J Barley. I did all that and the everythingmac procedure found and repaired an incorrect volume count. It then said the disk was OK. Unfortunately it cannot be as I still get the same error message when I try and empty the Trash.
 
Good, your post shows that you get a prompt in the terminal - and the trash empty command should work.
the tip from jbarley may repair your hard drive directory, but WON'T empty the trash. You still need to do that. After the directory repair, be sure to restart your Mac and try emptying the trash normally. If not, try the terminal command again.
You should be able to simply type in your command, or (better) copy and paste the complete command.
The terminal WILL ask you to type in your password.

What DOES happen after you enter the command to empty the trash? (again, copy and paste is the best way to do this, as it prevents entry mistakes)
Do you get ANY response that asks you for your password?
 
Last edited:
Some suggestions:

1. How Long Will You be Away from Home? if it is for a few days, stop trying to empty the trash, wait until you get home and run the Disk Utility repairs as suggested. Ignore the rest of this post.

If you are currently fleeing jurisdiction having burned down your home to cover up the fact you are actually Batman, then you need to protect yourself.

1.1 I Can Neither Confirm Nor Deny I Am, Actually, Batman but I Will be Home Soon but Unemptied Trash Confuses and Annoys Me:

Download the FREE :) Onyx program for your system. Go to Cleaning then Trash and empty the trash. If THAT does not do it, you need to wait for better solutions which involves repairing your system.

1.2 I Will Not be Home Soon . . . Stop Persecuting Me! I AM THE NIGHT!:

Move on to 2

2. Have You Backed Up Your Data? if you do this regularly then WHATEVER is the problem--damaged volume, dying hard-drive, upset Polynesian Rain Goddess--you can ultimately fix it without losing precious data . . . like that French Lichen Porn. If you have not and will NOT be home for some time consider buying a small, portable, external HD and clone your hard drive. There are a couple of benefits to that. You can "boot" your Internal HD off your now cloned External HD and then run Disk Utilities from the External HD. Disk Utilities is a part of your system. You just cannot effectively repair a hard drive it is "on" if you are booted on that hard drive.

Should that work . . . voila!

3. I AM Rogue! I Am Ronin! which means you will not have access to your installation disks for some time. Backing up your system is crucial. If you cannot repair your system that way--back up, boot off back up, repair, re-back up--then you should consider an alternative--particularly Disk Utilities FAILs to fix your problem.

3.1 Expensive: A program like Disk Warrior. You can boot off of that, and if DW cannot fix it--da broke! I have a FAQ thread on that--the big upside is at the very least it can save your data. The problem is if you have volume corruption is can increase over time until--like me--suddenly you have a non-working computer. Of course, that is expensive--like ~$90.

3.2 Not So Expensive: Consider getting--if you do not have it--a downloaded version of your OS--they have practically given away Snow Leopard--you can still get it on Amazon for about $30. Or if your computer can handle it you can upgrade to Lion or even Mountain Lion. What you want is something you can "boot" off of. SL is best, perhaps, since it is still a DVD that you can then boot off of, run Disk Utilities, and at worse reload your System. The others require a bit more steps to create a bootable USB/disk.

Anyways, that is all of the iterations of your situation I can imagine . . . unless you are actually The Joker. . . . :)

--J.D.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top