How to Free up Disk Space in Microsoft Windows

Learn how to free up storage space on the hard drive of the computer in Microsoft Windows. If the computer is low on free space, you may notice the following symptoms - low disk space error, disk-full error, unable to install important Windows updates, warning that the disk has less than 10% free space available, or there is not enough disk space on the partition, and so on.

Run Disk Cleanup

Microsoft Windows has an integrated tool that deletes temporary files and other unimportant data. To delete temporary files using Disk Cleanup in Windows:

1. Click Start.
2. Search for Disk Cleanup, and click to open the application.
3. If the computer has multiple drives or partitions, use the Drives drop-down menu, and select the drive (C:).
4. Click OK.
5. Click the Cleanup system files.
6. If the computer has multiple drives or partitions, use the "Drives" drop-down menu, and select the drive (C:).
7. Click OK.
8. Check all the content that you want to delete to free up space, including:
   Note: The list of items may vary in your installation.
   • Windows Defender anti-virus
   • Windows upgrade log files
   • Temporary Internet files
   • System-created Windows Error Reporting files
   • DirectX Shader Cache
   • Delivery Optimization files
   • Device driver packages
   • Language Resource files
   • Previous Windows installations
   • Recycle Bin
   • Temporary files
   • Temporary Windows installation files
   • Thumbnails
9. Click OK.
10. Click Delete Files.

Delete System Restore and Shadow Copies using Disk Cleanup

Disk Cleanup utility helps delete older system restore files to reclaim additional storage. To delete the system restore points, except the recent one:

1. Click Start.
2. Search for Disk Cleanup, and click to open the application.
3. If the computer has multiple drives or partitions, use the "Drives" drop-down menu, and select the drive (C:).
4. Click OK.
5. Click the Cleanup system files.
6. If the computer has multiple drives or partitions, use the "Drives" drop-down menu, and select the drive (C:).
7. Click OK.
8. Click the More Options tab.
9. Under the System Restore and Shadow Copies section, click Clean up.
10. Click Delete.

Free up disk space with Storage Sense (Windows 10)

Storage Sense in Windows 10 helps delete temporary files from the computer drive and secondary or external drives. To free up disk space using Storage Sense:

1. Click Start and open Settings app.
2. Click System.
3. Click Storage.
4. Turn on the Storage sense toggle switch.
5. Under the Storage section, click Configure Storage Sense or run it now.
6. Under the Temporary Files section, check the Delete temporary files that apps aren't using option.
7. Click Clean now.

To delete temporary files with Storage Sense:

1. Click Start and open Settings app.
2. Click System.
3. Click Storage.
4. Under the Local Disk (C:) section, click Temporary files.
5. Check all the content that you want to delete to free up space, including:
   Note: The list of items may vary in your installation.
   • Windows Defender anti-virus
   • Windows upgrade log files
   • Temporary Internet files
   • System created Windows Error Reporting files
   • DirectX Shader Cache
   • Delivery Optimization files
   • Device driver packages
   • Language Resource files
   • Previous Windows installations
   • Recycle Bin
   • Temporary files
   • Temporary Windows installation files
   • Thumbnails
6. Click Remove files.

Manage Your System Restore Points

1. Ensure that you have Admin rights.
2. Go to the "Start" menu.
3. Type "Create restore point."
4. Locate the "Configure" Button.
5. Under "Disk Space usage," use the "Max Usage" slider to adjust the percentage (%) of the disk that is reserved for System Restore points. The lower the percentage, the fewer restore points are saved.

Uninstall non-essential applications and games

Uninstall applications that are non-essential is another way to reclaim additional storage on your computer. To uninstall applications or games:

1. Click Start and open Settings app.
2. Click Apps.
3. Click Apps & Features.
4. Click the Sort by filter, and select the Size view to quickly identify the applications and games using the most space.
5. Select the non-essential application or game.
6. Click Uninstall.
7. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the uninstallation process.
8. Repeat the steps to remove other non-essential applications and games.
9. After uninstalling all the non-essential applications and games, restart the computer.

Move personal data to an external hard drive

Personal files such as images, videos, music, documents, and so on, can take up a lot of space on the hard drive. Moving such large files to an external drive helps free up storage on the hard drive.

1. Connect an external drive such as USB drive to the computer.
2. Click Start, and open File Explorer.
3. Browse to the folder that contains the files you want to move.
4. Select the files, select the Home tab, and then click Move to and Choose Location.
5. Select the external drive that is connected, and then select Move.

Save new personal files to another hard drive

Saving new files to another drive helps prevent low disk space problems. Instead of saving all the new files on the default drive (C:\), you can save some of the large files to another drive that has more free space.

1. Connect an external drive such as USB drive to the computer.
2. Click Start and open Settings app.
3. Click System, and then select Storage.
4. Under More storage settings, select Change where new content is saved.
5. For each type of file, select a drive from the drop-down menu.

Note: The external drive must be connected to the computer before you try to save any files.

Disable hibernation in Windows

The hibernation feature in Windows saves the data in the memory to the hard drive allowing you to shut down the computer preserving the current session. This helps you pick up where you left off when you turn on the computer again. The hibernation feature requires a considerable amount of space on the hard drive to save the information inside the hiberfil.sys file. If the computer is running low on space, disabling the Hibernation feature allows you to reclaim additional storage for more critical files.

1. Click Start.
2. Search for Command Prompt, right-click the Command Prompt icon and select Run as administrator.
3. Type the following command to disable Hibernation and press Enter: powercfg /hibernate off
4. Restart the computer.

Scan your computer with an anti-virus software

Virus or other malware can consume significant hard drive space by corrupting the system files. Scanning your computer with an anti-virus application like Windows Defender, McAfee, Norton helps remove infected files from your computer.

General maintenance guidelines

See Dell Knowledge Base article General Maintenance Guidelines For a Dell Computer for information about how to keep your computer up and running at its peak.