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Can you help me identify these strange files in my root directory?

post #1 of 4
2/8/12 at 10:34pm
Thread Starter 
I noticed some strange files/folders in my root directory and have no idea where they might have come from:

(Link to image)
https://files.me.com/chris_perry/ahl6p4

Here are some of the file names, if you can't view the image for some reason:
/?%98%DE%FF%FB%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%A0
/%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%FF%DA%FF%FB%FF%FF%FF%A0
/%D4%DE%FF%FB%FF%FF%FFq%D9%FF%FB%FF%FF%FF
/B87571A5-45B3-4811-A035-3B592F1CE296

Also, while I'm asking, I don't remember ever seeing a "mds" or "private" directory here before.

Anyone have any ideas? I can't help but be curious about these things. My root directory used to be nice and tidy; only "Applications", "Library", "System", "Users"... Now I feel like I'm running Windows or something with all this random crap there...
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post #2 of 4
2/9/12 at 6:22am
mds is spotlight and private is a system folder so leave those. They should be hidden though. You can hide them using the terminal:

chflags hidden /mds
chflags hidden /private

The files with odd names shouldn't exist so you can just delete them. The B875... looks like a serial code. They may have been files dumped by an application installation or something, maybe a system crash.
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post #3 of 4
2/9/12 at 12:22pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Marvin View Post

mds is spotlight and private is a system folder so leave those. They should be hidden though. You can hide them using the terminal:

chflags hidden /mds
chflags hidden /private

The files with odd names shouldn't exist so you can just delete them. The B875... looks like a serial code. They may have been files dumped by an application installation or something, maybe a system crash.

Thanks! I deleted the files and it didn't seem to affect my system (whew!) I managed to hide the mds folder too, but the private one wouldn't hide. It said I didn't have permission to do it...
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post #4 of 4
2/10/12 at 10:19am
Quote:
Originally Posted by cleifperry View Post

Thanks! I deleted the files and it didn't seem to affect my system (whew!) I managed to hide the mds folder too, but the private one wouldn't hide. It said I didn't have permission to do it...

You will have to use sudo for that one:

sudo chflags hidden /private

and it will ask for your admin password. It won't type anything but hit return when you finish putting the password in.
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