Did you delete Disk Drill by dragging the app to the Trash? If so, you might still see the S.M.A.R.T. monitoring icon in your menu bar—or notice “FUSE” listed under System Preferences. These extras aren’t standalone apps but are installed alongside Disk Drill to monitor drive health (S.M.A.R.T.) and to enable third-party user-space file systems (FUSE) on macOS. While FUSE can remain on your Mac without issue, the S.M.A.R.T. feature won’t function once Disk Drill is gone.
Although leaving these components installed won’t harm your system, you may prefer a completely clean uninstall. Follow the guide below to remove any residual Disk Drill components, including the S.M.A.R.T. monitoring tool and FUSE references, so that your Mac is free of any leftover files.
Suggested Method: Disk Drill Uninstall Guide
Uninstalling Disk Drill using the official uninstaller is the most reliable way to remove the S.M.A.R.T. monitoring tool. The latest versions of Disk Drill no longer automatically install the FUSE plugin; however, if a compatible FUSE installation already exists on your macOS system, Disk Drill will use it to support third-party, user-space file systems. These features enhance disk recovery and health monitoring, but they aren’t required once Disk Drill is removed.
Our safe, easy-to-use uninstaller will automatically clean up any leftover Disk Drill components—including the S.M.A.R.T. monitoring extension—ensuring a complete uninstall. Read our full uninstallation guide for details.
Help! I Already Incorrectly Uninstalled Disk Drill
If you’ve uninstalled Disk Drill another way such as simply dragging it to the trash then we suggest downloading the latest version of Disk Drill, reinstalling Disk Drill and then following the uninstallation procedure mentioned above.
If you run into problems with the uninstaller or encounter issues while uninstalling Disk Drill, we offer several manual alternative options. These alternative removal methods can be found in the full Disk Drill uninstallation guide.