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I've got an issue where if I upgrade MAMP, it generates a new folder in my Applications folder. So far this has occurred three times now and I'm no closer to finding out why it's happening. Here's a screenshot of the Finder window showing all MAMP folders. The ones that got created after updating MAMP all have the dates and times they were created.

A screenshot of the Finder window showing all MAMP folders. The ones that got created after updating MAMP all have the dates and times they were created

I've tried deleting the new folders and leaving the original one but that prevents MAMP from opening ("These files are in the trash") but the path for the document root still points to the original folder. Here's a screenshot of that:

Screenshot of MAMP's preference pane showing document path to root folder

Can anyone advise on how best to remove these duplicates and prevent this from happening again? Each duplicated folder adds at least 10GB to my storage and I'm running low! I can't find any reference to this in MAMP's documentation, or even on this site. Any ideas? Thanks!

Conkerface
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2 Answers2

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As Peter pointed out that is normal behaviour. The folders containing dates (MAMP_2018-0....) are the backups of the previous installations/versions. The following named folders always contain the latest updated installation files:

  • MAMP
  • MAMP Pro

It is advisable NOT to store development sites in the MAMP/htdocs directory. It is advisable to set the Document Root to a separate development directory (not within the MAMP program folder) e.g. DevServer under My Docs.

Before MAMP/MAMP Pro is upgraded record the preference settings. Next upgrade the software and recheck the settings match after the upgrade. Then launch and check your development website(s).

ridgedale
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  • What about the database files in the db folder inside MAMP? Should they be placed outside of MAMP folder as well? How would one move them (in this case, WordPress databases)? – YCode Oct 02 '18 at 13:11
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    Apologies for the delay in responding. The database files do not get automatically copied to the updated MAMP folder. They should be copied from the relevant backup folder as required to the db>mysql folder (assuming you are using MySQL, of course) in the updated MAMP folder. Hope that helps belatedly. – ridgedale Dec 05 '18 at 11:26
  • That explains a lot! Thanks! – YCode Dec 05 '18 at 16:50
  • So can I safely delete the MAMP_XXXX-XX-XX_XX-XX-XX folders? – ruslaniv Oct 21 '19 at 15:07
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I've experienced this when upgrading in the past. I believe this is normal behaviour.

I have just gotten into the habit of deleting the old ones and haven't had any problems.

Peter Woodward
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  • Hi Peter, I've just tried deleting them one by one, and I've been able to get rid of the two that were created yesterday, but if I delete the original folder or the folder that was created in April, MAMP won't run. SO it seems I'm stuck with two folders for now! – Conkerface Jun 26 '18 at 14:30