# Is it safe to delete Lima virtual machines in ~/.lima?

- URL: https://moreroom.app/folders/lima-instances
- Item: Lima virtual machines
- Location: `~/.lima` (items inside)
- Verdict: Review first — Might hold something you care about. Look inside before removing it.
- Comes back on its own: no
- Typical size: 2–100 GB
- Official command: `limactl delete <instance>`
- Source: MoreRoom rules catalogue (2026-10-17), by Yando Pte. Ltd.

## What is it?

Lima runs Linux virtual machines on macOS. Each instance has its own folder in `~/.lima` (for example `~/.lima/default`) containing its disk, configuration and logs. Folders starting with an underscore hold shared settings and are not instances. A disk is typically several GB.

## What happens if you delete it?

No. A deleted instance is gone with everything inside it; you can create a new one from a template, but your changes and files are lost.

## How to remove it properly

Run `limactl list` to see your instances, then `limactl delete <name>` to delete one you no longer use (add `--force` if it is running). This deletes permanently. `limactl prune` separately clears Lima’s download cache.

## Before you delete it

Instances can contain your own files, databases and installed packages. Check before deleting.