How to clean your computer using a disk. Cleaning up your C drive is a killer method for clearing junk from your computer. Cleaning the system disk with third-party programs
Hello dear friends! Now I will talk about a problem that probably everyone has encountered. It is when drive C is full, and I will tell you what needs to be done in such cases, and what can be removed without damaging Windows operation. I've been asked more than once what can you delete from drive C?, otherwise it is filled to the limit, and the system displays a window with warnings.
Let's go in order. Why drive C? Because it is on this disk that in 99% of cases the operating system is installed Windows system and it doesn’t matter whether it’s Windows 7 or Windows XP. In progress Windows installations we break HDD into partitions, I wrote about how to do this in the article “Be sure to partition the hard drive, do not make one partition for the system and for storing files.
We create a partition and set its size. The point here is the culmination, depending on how much memory you allocate to the local drive C, the time it will take for it to be completely full depends. Previously, I always allocated about 30 GB for the C drive, but almost all computers now come with hard drives ranging in size from 500 GB to 1 TB. And in such cases, giving the system 30 GB for the C drive seems stupid to me. I’m currently giving away 100 – 150 GB for the system disk.
But as practice shows, even these 150 GB fill up very quickly and drive C turns red, which means that it is completely full, and then the questions begin: what can be done, what can be deleted from the local drive C? Although I always say, don’t save any videos, photos and other heavy files to the system partition. Yes, and it is advisable to install games on other partitions; now there are such games that they take up several tens of GB.
What is the danger of a full C drive?
Nothing bad should happen. The computer will run slower, and Windows will warn you that there is no memory on the system disk. In short, there will be many unpleasant moments in the operation of the computer. Do we need it? We'll decide :).
What can you delete from your local C drive?
This is probably the most important question in this situation. Many people want to delete information, but are afraid to delete something they need. After all, the operating system is installed on this disk, and many are afraid of harming it.
You know, I have seen many computers in which the disk on which Windows is installed is filled to capacity. Well, there’s a lot there, it’s on almost all the computers I’ve encountered. And you look to remove this unnecessary thing, and it seems like everything is needed :), sound familiar?
1. First of all, it is worth remembering that all the information that is stored on the desktop, in the “Documents”, “Pictures” and “Music” folders, is stored on the local drive C. Be sure to check these folders first. If there are heavy files there, such as movies, music, photos, etc. Then move them to local drive D, or E. In most cases, these folders contain files that fill partition C. And I have also seen a bunch of movies on the desktop more than once, is it so difficult to copy them to another partition?
Go to "My computer" and click on top “Delete or change a program”. A window will open with a list of installed programs and games. Click on “Size” to sort the list by size that they occupy installed programs and games. Remove everything you don't need, I'm sure you'll find something like that. If there are very heavy games, then remove them and install them again, only selecting a different partition for installation.
3. We remove garbage from the system. If Windows has not been reinstalled for a long time, then several GB of garbage and temporary files have probably accumulated there. In order to remove them, you can use a good program CCleaner. I always clean my computer with this program from time to time. You can download it on the Internet, just type in Google “Download CCleaner”. Install the program and start cleaning the system. I will not dwell on this in detail now; I will write about this program later.
4. Empty the trash, as an option to free up a couple of MB :).
These are the main (in my opinion) methods, by doing which you can free up quite a bit of memory on the local drive C. You can also disable it, or move system recovery to another drive, or, but it seems to me that this is not very effective options and they should be used as a last resort.
To summarize everything written above, I want to say that it is possible to prevent the local drive C from becoming completely full. And this is very easy to do.
Are you copying or downloading a movie from the Internet? Don’t be lazy to select drive D, E, or whatever you have for saving. No need to save it to your desktop. When installing the game, change the installation location from drive C to another partition, this is a matter of a few seconds, and in the end it will help protect the system disk from redness and ensure stable operation of the computer.
Also, when saving files to partition C, it is worth remembering that in case of problems with operating system and you can lose all your files. Because when installing Windows, partition C is usually formatted. I think you will also be interested in reading ““, it should come in handy.
And finally, do one more thing, it’s unlikely to add memory, but it will put things in order, and the computer will work faster. Good luck!
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Disk C is full. What to do and what can be removed? updated: January 12, 2015 by: admin
The system area has the unpleasant feature of filling up without notifying the computer owner. Therefore, sooner or later, many users wonder how to clean drive C from unnecessary windows files 7 manually.
Usually, there are no special problems with cleaning other partitions - the PC owner simply deletes unnecessary information. With "S" the situation is different. The system fills up not only from the load, but also from third-party garbage that remains from the OS.
It accumulates, taking everything more quantity free space, which negatively affects the performance and functionality of the PC.
There is a “Temp” folder in the operating system. It contains all the temporary files on the computer. Those that are downloaded during updates, application installations, or necessary for the temporary operation of any program.
Over time, a huge amount of garbage accumulates in this folder. They cannot be called differently, since these files have no practical use, they only take up space in the system.
You need to periodically clean your computer of everything unnecessary. There are two cleaning methods. Using special applications and manually. Moreover, the second method is much more effective.
How to clean Windows 7 from unnecessary files manually
Windows Seven has a built-in special program that can be called up using the Disk Properties window.
Another launch method is to press the Win+R key combination and then type the command “ cleanmgr ».
Next, you need to click OK and select the target partition (In this case, C). As a result of scanning, a window will appear on the monitor where the amount of memory being freed is displayed and you must select the objects to be deleted.
Usually a large amount of memory is occupied simple updates and browser information. Then you need to click OK to remove the garbage.
Some updates are stored in a separate element – “”. If it is not cleaned, it can become filled with significant weight.
Under no circumstances should you delete anything from this directory yourself. Another important point is that in order to properly clean this folder using the Windows Assistant, a certain update (KB2852386) must be installed on the computer, which increases the assessment level of the parts being cleaned.
In the window " Additional funds cleaning" begins removing unused utilities and backup saves systems. Then you need to click “Clean up” in the “programs and features” menu, go to the installed section (to display only the most voluminous, you can click on the black triangle in the “Size” item).
If you find unfamiliar items, you need to figure out whether they are important before removing them. Many people delete all utilities that they haven't used for several months.
Delete unnecessary Windows 7 files manually
The first thing you need to check is the Desktop, which also belongs to C. Many people save photos, books, etc. there. This is done to make it easier to find the desired shortcut. However, it is not recommended to save bulky items on your desktop.
Only shortcuts and frequently used objects should be there. The excess should be transferred to section D. With the correct layout, the weight of the desktop will be minimal.
Then check the system partitions C (My Documents, Images, etc.). Even if the owner does not personally save data in these directories, they can be filled in by other utilities that, by standard, save information in these folders.
They take up space, especially if you use video frequently, graphic editor or play computer games. It is better to carefully study the contents of these sections and delete some of the data.
Another way to free up space is to move the contents to D. However, using the standard “Copy-Paste” operation may not work. The output is a change in the location of individual elements in the properties.
Free up space using third-party programs
There are many special applications for removing garbage from C. The most common free representatives:
- CCleaner;
- WinDirStat;
- Auslogics BootSpeed.
In addition, you should free C from unnecessary Internet files. This can be done with the help of additional assistants and using a browser. It provides a function for deleting cookies, browsing history and cache. When information accumulates, section C is filled out.
For Opera users, it is important to clear temporary browser data. They can be located in several places: Temp, App data.
According to the standard, they are set to “hidden” status. This indicates that when navigating to a location, the user will not be able to find it. You can remove the status in “Folder Options”
In Windows, temporary Opera saves are located at: ...\Roaming\Opera or ...\Local\Opera.
Clearing files
Items with a special extension are called unnecessary:
- .tmp;
- .bak;
- .temp;
- .old etc.
They remain after changing documents and settings. These extensions can be located in the program itself or in the place where the change itself is located. It can be very difficult to find all this garbage. You can use Revo Uninstaller for this purpose.
Additional Methods
If all else fails and you are still interested in the question of how to clean the disk from unnecessary files windows 7 manually, then disable hibernation mode in Windows Seven (if it is not used), and then remove hiberfill.sys.
It has a capacity comparable to built-in RAM (the more RAM installed, the more massive it is). The way out of this situation is to reassign disk sizes. By increasing the size of directory C, you can solve the problem for a while.
As using Windows temporary files of system programs, the contents of the recycle bin, old OS recovery images and other data accumulate on the disk. You can delete them.
Click in Explorer right click mouse over the system drive (usually drive C) and select “Properties” → “Disk Cleanup”. In the next window, mark the items that take up the most space, click OK and confirm deletion.
To erase even more temporary files, including update data and outdated restore points, click Disk Cleanup again and click Clean up system files. Mark the largest objects in the list that appears and delete them. Then go to the Advanced tab, click Clean up under System Restore and Shadow Copies and confirm deletion.
It is especially useful to perform such cleaning after updates, since a large backup copy may remain on the computer previous version Windows.
Browsers and other installed programs fill the system with temporary files over time. Sometimes this data can take up a significant amount of storage space. But you can quickly get rid of such garbage with the help free utilities like .
There may be large files on your computer that you do not need and are just wasting disk space. Searching for them manually is a thankless task. Moreover, there are programs that analyze the disk and display a list of all folders and files on the computer, ordered by size. Use one of them to find and remove unnecessary objects.
Over the years of using a computer, duplicates usually accumulate on it: accidentally copied pictures, songs downloaded several times, and other objects. You don't need these copies, and together they can take up significant storage space. To avoid searching for them yourself, use one of these to find and remove duplicate files.
Windows 10 comes with a built-in Compact OS utility that can make your system smaller. This happens by removing unnecessary OS elements and compressing the remaining data. This way you can free up to 6 GB on the local drive where Windows is installed (usually drive C). If you're interested, do it just in case. backups important data and use it.
Any operating system, during its operation, saves some temporary files in a specially designated area of disk space. Thus, a fairly substantial amount of information, especially unnecessary information, gradually accumulates. This is why it is important to periodically clean the C drive. There are 10 ways to free up space on the C drive that will seem simple even to a beginner.
Navigator by methods
1 way. Using the Windows utility.
10 ways to clean up a disk include the basic and not the most effective method cleaning system disk from files that are not needed. It's built-in Windows utility. Thanks to it, you can delete data that does not affect the operation and is unnecessary for the system, and it only takes a couple of minutes. To do this, you need to launch the tool by opening the “My Computer” window and selecting the properties of drive C. In the menu that appears, select the “General” tab, which most often opens by default. Next you will have to click on the clear button. After a certain period of time, the utility can display a list of temporary files, information about the operation of the operating system, and even data located in the Recycle Bin.
3 way. Empty the cart.
It's important to remember that everything deleted files most often go to the Trash. A folder called "Trash" acts as temporary storage for everything that is deleted. In reality, this folder takes up a lot of space on your PC. In order to finally get rid of data from the recycle bin, you should right-click on it, and then select the appropriate “Empty Recycle Bin” item.
4 way. Clear folders Temp.
Windows has 2 Temp folders where various temporary files are stored. For example, files that are necessary when installing drivers, programs, updating antivirus or Windows. After these files become useless, you can simply delete them, thereby freeing up some space on the C drive. To do this, you will have to open “Computer – drive C – Windows folder", find the Temp folder there and delete all contents.
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5 way. Restore the system.
Another way to free up space on the C drive is to delete recovery checkpoints. They also take up a certain number of megabytes. To see them, go to “Start – All Programs – Accessories – System Tools – System Restore”.
6 way. Clean your desktop.
If you want to clean up drive C, the first thing you need to do is clean your desktop. All files that are on the computer desktop are physically located on the “C” drive. In this regard, moving files from your desktop to another drive, for example, drive D, will instantly help free up a large amount of occupied system space.
7 way. Use CCleaner.
An excellent program called CCleaner can help clean up drive C. It is the most popular utility among garbage cleaners.
8 way. Remove duplicates.
Duplicate files are a more serious problem. And almost everyone has it. In fact, the same folders with photos, music and videos are always on the disk. They are real disk space eaters. You can find them without using special program, especially if you have a good memory. If your memory is bad, you can use special software, for example, Duplicate program Killer.
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9 way. Remove unused programs.
Removing unused programs will help free up space on the C drive the fastest, but some programs take up very little space and deleting them will hardly change the overall picture. Therefore, in the Programs and Features section, programs can be sorted by size. To do this, press Win+X and select “Programs and Features.” You should click on the name of the “Size” field with the mouse so that the applications are sorted by size. Next you can choose necessary programs and click the “Delete” button.
10th way. Disable sleep mode.
When the computer is in sleep mode, the system saves the contents random access memory on your hard drive. This allows the user, during the process of waking up the computer, to continue using it from where they left off. Windows stores the contents of RAM in the Hiberfil.sys file on drive C. To save space on your hard drive, you should disable sleep mode and delete the Hiberfil.sys file.
All users are divided into two categories. The first ones have everything neatly arranged in folders and every gigabyte of disk space is taken into account. For the latter, the wallpaper is not visible behind the shortcuts scribbled on the desktop. However, both categories of users may encounter the problem of lack of free disk space. Some will approach it systematically and in advance. Others will come to their senses when the OS issues a corresponding warning. Our tips on how to free up disk space « C" Windows 10, suitable for everyone.
Microsoft is well aware of the intricacies of the operating system and its ability to “clutter” hard drive. In Windows 10, several tools are available to the user to remove its waste products. The first is called Disk Cleanup and is available in all versions based on the NT kernel.
Standard method
To launch it, perform the given sequence of actions in Explorer.
As a result of these manipulations, the properties window for the drive installed in the system will open.
So, we got to the cleaning mechanism. All groups of files that are listed in the list that opens can be safely deleted. As you tick the boxes, the system calculates the amount of freed up space. However, the utility's capabilities do not end there. Since we are going to carry out a total cleaning, we will also clean the system files.
The parameters indicated in the screenshot allow you to:
- Remove programs that have not been used for a long time. Selecting the first item "Clear", we will move to standard menu software management. As a result, it works as an interactive reminder for especially forgetful users;
- The second point is much more interesting. If you have System Restore enabled on your computer, which creates restore points, you can delete them. In a long-running system, they can take up significant space.
Actions taken when selecting the second item will need to be confirmed additionally.
Go to the main tab and confirm the selection again.
The system is deleting temporary files. The operation time will depend on their volume and type of drive.
New cleaning menu
In addition to the classic method that we just looked at, a new one has appeared in Windows 10. To use it, let's go to the options menu.
We will use the search function as a universal option suitable for any user.
Select the item highlighted in the screenshot to go to the new system settings.
In the quick jump menu located on the left side, select the item "Vault". Click on the stylized image of the system disk, which shows how full it is.
Disk space usage statistics open, showing the size occupied by each file category. We are interested in deleting temporary files, so let's move on to the appropriate item.
We tick the required boxes and confirm our actions. After making sure that the operation is completed, we return back to the section "Vault". In it we still have one more option that has not been considered. Pay attention to the position of the slider in the “Memory Control” section. His position answers the question: why temporary files are not deleted, accumulating in the system over time. By default it is always disabled.
Move the slider to the on position to allow Windows to automatically clean up temporary files. Open the link "Change the way you release" and look at what exactly falls under the automation.
If you're not using the trash can as a storage area for unnecessary files, you can leave the sliders in the on position. Click on the highlighted button to make sure that there is no “garbage” left in the system. At this point, the cleaning can be considered complete.
Cleaning the system after updating
After the next Microsoft update, called the Fall Creators Update, Windows 10 received additional settings and the first elements of Fluent Design. The main changes concerned the optimization of the executable code and are practically invisible from the outside. That's where the good news ends. After installing it, the user may be faced with the fact that the disk "WITH" crowded.
Let's figure out where the space went after the update. First, let's see how long Windows 10 takes after installation. Open the system drive in Explorer.
Note the highlighted folder Windows.old – We will return to it a little later. Find the directory with the installed OS and right-click the context menu.
We are interested in the item marked in the screenshot. By clicking on it we will open the properties of the selected folder.
Now let's go back and check the size by analogy Windows.old.
Now you understand how it turned out that the disk is full.
At the time of installation Windows updates makes a complete copy of the previous version so that the user can go back if something does not suit him. Microsoft allows 10 days for testing. After they expire, the copy should be deleted automatically. If there is really not enough space on the system disk, you need to delete the Windows.old folder before the allotted time.
We go to the section in which we configured the settings for automatic cleaning of temporary files.
After installing the Fall Creators Update appearance it has changed somewhat. Auto-cleaning of the downloads folder has been added, and the sliders have been replaced with checkmarks. We go down and see additional options related to the latest OS update. To delete a saved copy, check the corresponding box and press the highlighted button. As a result, we get back almost 20 GB of disk space.
The order of interaction between the OS and RAM
A few more gigabytes can be taken away from the system by changing the way it works with memory. During operation, Windows creates and uses two hidden files with the “sys” extension:
- Pagefile- the so-called “swap file” or virtual RAM. To take advantage of RAM's processing speed advantages, non-urgent data is cached into it. By default, the size of this file is controlled by the operating system. If the amount of RAM is large enough, 8 GB or more, it is practically not used. The smaller the RAM value, the larger the page file becomes;
- Hiberfile- intended for storing the contents of RAM at the time of transition to “deep sleep” or hibernation mode. Accordingly, in order to successfully save information, it must have a size within 75% of RAM.
The use of the settings listed in this section depends on the tasks for which you are using the computer and its hardware configuration. The fight for free space should not come at the expense of performance.
Changing the size Pagefile
To change the size of the paging file, you will need to open system properties (Win + Pause / Break).
Select the marked item and move to the additional parameters window.
Go to the desired tab and open the performance parameters.
Change the tab again and move on to managing virtual memory.
We follow the sequence shown in the screenshot, first of all unchecking the automatic size selection. After this, the remaining items are activated. To determine how much space to allocate for pagefile, we will use the OS recommended value. In this case, we agree and reduce the size of the paging file by setting it to a fixed value. On click "OK" A warning will appear indicating that a reboot is required.
We confirm our decision. After restarting, the computer will be used for organizing virtual memory a limited amount of disk space allocated to it.
Disable hibernation
Users who prefer to turn off their PC after each work session can safely get rid of Hiberfile. It is worth warning that this may slightly increase the overall OS loading time. If ten seconds are not critical, then launch PowerShell in administrator mode.
The menu shown in the screenshot is called up by right-clicking on the button "Start". If you did not agree to switch to a new shell at one time, the command line will be located in this place. PowerShell has superior functionality, but using either tool will produce the same results.
Entering the command shown in the screenshot instantly deletes the Hiberfile from your hard drive. Replacement « off" on "on" returns it to its place. No reboot is required.
Compression mode
You already know how and what you can delete from the disk to free up space, without deleting programs. Let's look at another useful feature available in Windows 10. It's worth mentioning right away that it can be used successfully only on computers with a modern configuration. In this case, in accordance with Microsoft recommendations, the presence of an SSD as a storage device is implied. According to technical documentation, the Compact OS feature is automatically enabled when it does not cause any overall performance degradation.
The meaning of its work is “transparent” compression system files. As a result, the space required to accommodate the OS on the drive is reduced. You can check whether compression is working on your computer using the following command (enter in command line or PowerShell):
compact /compactos:queryYou can see the result of its execution in the screenshots below.
Now let's see how much space it took to install Windows 10 in both cases.
It can be seen that in the right screenshot the space occupied by the OS on the disk is 2.5 GB less than the actual size of the folder.
The result fully corresponds to the declared one. In the documentation, Microsoft promises savings of 1.5 to 2.5 GB, depending on the bit depth.
If Compact OS does not start automatically, but you decide to check how it will work in your configuration, you can do this in forcibly. In the above command, after the colon, type not « query", A "always". After some time spent on compactification, you will see the result.
We check how much space the system folder takes up to make sure the actions taken are effective.
If you are not satisfied with the result of operating the OS in a compressed state, you can perform the reverse process. Enter the parameter into the command after the colon « never" and return the system to its original state.
Third party cleaning programs
Users who are too lazy to do the work manually can use third-party programs to clean Windows. When installing such software, be sure to read the license agreement.
It says in black and white that developers are not responsible for the consequences of using the software.
Reg Organizer
Product of domestic developers, applies to on a paid basis. The cost of a personal license is 650 RUR. However, you can find version 7.52 from September 2016, which is free for non-commercial use.
You cannot update the program for free, but you can use it as much as you like.
The screenshot shows the main window with a list of options expanded on the left side. You can download the program on its official website.
CCleaner
The most popular utility in the environment Windows users. Developed by the British company Piriform Limited and distributed under a shareware license. More than 50 languages are supported, including Russian. At the time of installation, it offers to additionally install the Chrome browser.
As you can see, the program offers quite a lot of possibilities. “Safe” items are checked. How inactive sections look, showing what can be deleted additionally.
In any program designed for automatic cleaning, the main thing is not to overdo it. Do not repeat the mistake of users who, having discovered the OS type parameters, first of all try to delete hidden files. Mark only those items that you are sure of.
Finally
Reasonable use of the above methods will allow you not only to restore order to your computer one-time, but also to maintain its stable operation for a long time.
Video
For those users who like visual material, we have prepared a video on the topic.