Updated for Safari 4

Did you know that Safari provides several options for managing downloads? With Safari, you can set a default location for downloaded files, have downloaded files automatically removed from Safari's memory and manage active downloads.

Setting Download Location

To set the location for saving downloaded files on your hard drive, open Safari's preferences and select the General tab.

General preferences pane in Safari browser

Click the button next to Save downloaded files to and a drop-down menu will appear and you can select a location on your hard drive:

  • [Last download location] - The last download location you selected will be listed first.
  • Other... - A Finder pane will open and you can select a folder on your hard drive for your downloads.

Removing Downloads

When you download a file, the Downloads Pane opens and you can view the progress of your download. If you want Safari to automatically remove file names from the downloads list in the pane, click the button next to Remove download list items on the General preferences pane and select an option from the drop-down menu.

Download options in Safari browser

  • Manually - If you select this option, downloaded items will remain in the list on the Downloads Pane until you click the Clear button in the lower left corner of the pane. This is a useful feature if you sometimes want to download a file again without returning to the original web page for the file. This option lets you quit Safari and continue the download at a later time.
  • When Safari Quits - Every time you quit Safari all items in the Downloads Pane will be removed. Use this option cautiously since all downloads will be removed when Safari quits and you won't be able to resume downloads at a later time.
  • Upon Successful Download - Once a file has been downloaded, Safari will automatically remove it from the Downloads Pane. If you quit Safari before the download is completed, the file will remain in the Downloads Pane and you can resume the download at another time.

Managing Active Downloads

The Downloads option on the Window menu provides you with more control over your downloads. When you select Downloads from the Window menu, the Downloads Pane will open, listing all active downloads and also perhaps some past downloads, depending on your settings in the General preferences pane.

Downloads pane in Safari browser

If you want to stop the download, click the Stop button (a circle with an x in it) next to the file name. The download will stop and you can resume it whenever you want by clicking the Resume button (a white curved arrow in an orange circle) next to the file name.

You can view the progress of a file that is downloading in the Downloads Pane and you can view the actual file in the Finder by clicking the magnifying glass button next to the file name. Downloaded files will be saved to the downloads location you specified in the General preferences pane.

Sometimes you might start downloading a file and decide you don't want the file. To completely stop the download and remove the download file from the Downloads Pane, first click the Stop button next to the file name and then click the Clear button in the lower left corner of the pane. The file will be removed from the Downloads Pane and Safari, but the partially downloaded file will still be in the downloads location on your hard drive and you'll have to remove it manually in the Finder.