• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Technipages

Smart phone, gadget and computer tutorials

  • Topics
    • Android
    • Gaming
    • Hardware
    • Internet
    • iOS
    • MacOS
    • Office
    • Software
    • Windows
    • Definitions
  • Product Reviews
  • Downloads
  • About
Files & Folders You Can Safely Delete in Windows 10

Files & Folders You Can Safely Delete in Windows 10

By Mitch Bartlett 17 Comments

If you’re looking to free space or just simply clean off the clutter on the hard drive of your Microsoft Windows 10 computer, here is a list of file and folder locations you can safely remove to clear the most space.

Windows Temp Folders

Applications use these folders to temporarily write data. You can safely remove anything in the folder, but you may not be able to delete items that are in use.

Likely safe locations to delete files and folders from:

  • C:\Windows > Temp
  • C:\Users > username > AppData > Local > Temp

Browser Temp Folders

Data from web pages. Cached to make loading time quicker.

Likely safe locations to delete files and folders from:

  • Microsoft Edge – C:\Users > username > AppData > Local > Packages
    >
     Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge_8wekyb3d8bbwe > AC > MicrosoftEdge > Cache
  • Internet Explorer – C:\Users > OfficePower > AppData > Local > Microsoft > Windows > INetCache
  • Firefox – C:\Users > username > AppData > Local > Mozilla > Firefox > Profiles > randomcharacters.default > cache2 > entries
  • Google Chrome – C:\Users > username > AppData > Local > Google > Chrome > User Data > Default > Cache

Log Files

Files that store data about what certain applications did.

Likely safe locations to delete ONLY FILES THAT END IN “.LOG”.

  • C:\Windows
  • C:\Windows > Debug

Normally it’s safe to delete all files and folders in this location:

  • C:\Windows > Logs

Old Prefetch Data

Data Windows uses to open commonly used programs faster.

Likely safe locations to delete files and folders from:

  • C:\Windows > Prefetch

Crash Dumps

Files containing data about what was in memory when applications crash.

Likely safe locations to delete files and folders from:

  • C:\Users > username > AppData > Local > CrashDumps
  • C:\ProgramData > Microsoft > Windows > WER > ReportArchive

 

Surely, I don’t know it all. Others may have locations they regularly clear to free hard drive space in Windows 10. If you have a location you know about, please share it in the comments section.

You Might Also Like

  • Why Do Some Windows 10 Files and Folders Have Two Blue Arrow?Why Do Some Windows 10 Files and Folders Have Two…
  • Windows 10: A Tool to Compare Files in Two FoldersWindows 10: A Tool to Compare Files in Two Folders
  • MacOS: Show/Hide Hidden Files & FoldersMacOS: Show/Hide Hidden Files & Folders
  • How to Find and Delete Duplicate FilesHow to Find and Delete Duplicate Files
  • How To Colorize Folders in Windows 10How To Colorize Folders in Windows 10
  • Password Protect Folders in WindowsPassword Protect Folders in Windows
  • Windows 10: Show Size of FoldersWindows 10: Show Size of Folders
  • Windows 10: How to Mirror/Sync Folders AutomaticallyWindows 10: How to Mirror/Sync Folders Automatically
  • Windows: Create Folders From Command LineWindows: Create Folders From Command Line

Filed Under: Windows Tagged With: Windows 10

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Cahaya says

    November 17, 2020 at 9:57 am

    I deleted the Software Distribution / Downloads files and gained about 1-1.5 GB of space, but it seems like they get downloaded again right away and then my computer starts nagging again about not having enough space. Is there any way to change the location of these downloads? Thank you. This article is extremely helpful.

  2. Kyu says

    July 19, 2020 at 10:05 pm

    What about all the txt files?
    such as default.help and other text files

  3. Amit says

    June 2, 2020 at 6:24 pm

    Thank you.. really very helpful.

  4. Frederik says

    March 13, 2020 at 12:53 pm

    Wauv, I cannot explain it but I had 7 GB in C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Downloads. That was a nice tip. Thanks, Varun and the rest of you :-)

  5. SHAMIR KWAHLIF says

    June 28, 2019 at 12:07 pm

    This post waz very helpful indeed. Thx so very muchl

  6. Varun says

    February 10, 2019 at 3:29 pm

    You can delete C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Downloads and C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Datastore without problems; the latter will be recreated by Windows however after an update.

    Use WinDirStat to get a directory tree of the largest to smallest folders/files.

  7. Emily says

    November 26, 2018 at 3:58 pm

    I have a lot of the following files, but don’t know what they are for. Can I safely delete them? and how?? 45699160-b64f-4840-a2d4-3cfdaa195e7d_v_807_0.xml and also bfb65196-4b87-2614-514d-82616e508f40_v_836_0.xml.

  8. ak says

    August 16, 2018 at 1:46 pm

    what about program data folder. how to delete stuff from there, specially if the program is uninstalled, is it safe?

  9. JaD says

    April 28, 2018 at 9:58 pm

    ha hem.,edit?,, ‘DISK’ clean up. was my reference, in disk properties.. and those image files that are 1″x1″ that Gulppy referred to are the live tile start menu images. That folder can get HUGE… turn off ‘live tiles’ if you want to stop that from accumulating.

  10. JaD says

    April 28, 2018 at 9:54 pm

    The user /appdata /local/ temp is a tricky one. Outlook stores its ‘backup.pst’ there (unless you moved it in settings). Other programs can leave “active” files and folders there. My approach to this is look at the creation and modified dates, Anything that hasn’t been modified in 2 weeks goes. Some believe that dick cleanup uses discretion when deleing files. It really doesn’t and can cause an app to hang or other problems. It also runs in administrator mode some permissions get ignored. you should always use a little patients and do diligence in investigating and not jus click and hope. Just M2C

  11. Gulppy says

    April 18, 2018 at 6:50 am

    I realize this pertains to windows-7. I am posting this just in case it applies also to windows-10. “\users\appdata\\local\microsoft\windows photo gallery\original images\” contained numerous previously deleted photo files. I deleted all entries with no subsequent computer malfunctions.

  12. Bill Haughton says

    March 13, 2018 at 4:23 pm

    How about the “Downloads” directory? Are those files needed in the future?

  13. Mel Babb says

    January 26, 2018 at 12:42 pm

    Thanks so much. I had wasted a lot of time going one by one through the folders trying to locate the culprit.

  14. Me and i says

    November 25, 2017 at 5:30 am

    this is awesome thanks

  15. Mejgan says

    September 28, 2017 at 5:20 pm

    It was helpful. Thanks

  16. Aziz says

    March 2, 2017 at 9:46 am

    thank you very helpful info…

  17. DangHieu says

    October 24, 2016 at 3:10 am

    Thanks you so much!

Did this help? Let us know! Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • Android 10: How to Adjust the Keyboard Size
  • OneNote Error Code 0xE00001AE – Fix
  • WhatsApp: How to Change Your Phone Number
  • Fix OneNote Error 0xe00001bb: Section Is Corrupted
  • Zoom: How to Show the Unread Message Icon
  • How To Calculate Tips on Android
  • What to Do If Chrome Download Needs Authorization
  • Fix OneNote Error 0xE401065D, 0xE000145C, 0xE4010640

Who’s Behind Technipages?

Baby and Daddy My name is Mitch Bartlett. I've been working in technology for over 20 years in a wide range of tech jobs from Tech Support to Software Testing. I started this site as a technical guide for myself and it has grown into what I hope is a useful reference for all.

Follow me on Twitter, or visit my personal blog.

You May Also Like

  • Windows 95/98
  • Microsoft Windows NT
  • Microsoft Windows
  • Microsoft Windows 95
  • Top 8 Itunes Alternatives for Windows
  • Windows Media Player (WMP)

© Copyright 2021 Technipages · All Rights Reserved · Privacy