C Drive is full How to Free up space (Clean C drive Like a Pro), by Open Box Tech on YouTube. 9 min 52 s.
- Video length
- 9 min 52 s
- Time to do it
- 20 minutes
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Steps
- 8
What you need
Steps
Open the Run box with Windows + R, type %temp% and press Enter. Select everything with Ctrl + A and delete it. Skip any file Windows says is in use.
In Run, type prefetch and press Enter. Delete the files inside, which are old startup data Windows rebuilds as needed.
Type SoftwareDistribution in Run to open the Windows Update cache folder. Delete the files inside to clear old update downloads.
Right-click the Recycle Bin and choose Empty Recycle Bin. This permanently frees the space used by deleted files.
Search for Disk Cleanup, pick the C drive and tick the boxes for temporary files, thumbnails and Windows.old if listed. Click OK to remove them.
Open File Explorer, go to the C drive and type size:gigantic in the search box. Review the results and delete or move large files you no longer need.
Go to Settings, System, Storage and turn on Storage Sense. Set it to delete temp files and empty the Recycle Bin automatically.
Open Settings, Apps, Installed apps and sort by size. Uninstall programs you no longer use to reclaim more space.
Tips and common mistakes
Never delete the Windows, Program Files or Users folders themselves, only the junk files inside the temp folders.
Check the size of any file before deleting it, since some large files may be personal photos or backups you want to keep.
Run Disk Cleanup again after a big Windows update, as new leftover files build up each time.
Keep at least 15 to 20 GB free on the C drive so Windows updates and the page file have room to work.
Questions
Will deleting temp files break my PC?
No. Temp and prefetch files are rebuilt automatically. Only skip files Windows says are currently in use.
Can I delete the Windows.old folder?
Yes, if you no longer need to roll back to the previous Windows version. Disk Cleanup removes it safely.
How much space can I free up?
It varies by PC, but clearing temp files, update cache and unused apps often frees several gigabytes.
This guide was drafted from the video's details and general task knowledge. It has not been checked against the full video. Check the video and relevant product instructions before following a procedure. Report a correction.
