Maintaining macOS Health

Recovery and prevention playbook for macOS disk and memory crises. Validated against a real watchdog-timeout kernel panic on Apple Silicon caused by vm_compressor segments saturated to 100 % with the disk over 90 % full. The same playbook works for routine cleanup or first-time setup on a new machine.

Table of contents

• When to use
• Skill layout
• Core mental model
• Standard workflows
  • First interactive use: optional disk responses
  • A. "Free space NOW" (incident response)
  • B. "Set up alerting" (new machine or first time)
  • C. Alerter stopped working / making noise
  • D. "Uninstall an app cleanly"
• Safety rules (non-negotiable)
• Domain quirks captured
• Outcomes scale