Try the following web sites for troubleshooting suggestions:
Visit
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_tweaks.htm and scroll
down to Line #48. In the right-hand window, click on
"Disk Cleanup - Compress Old Files Freezes"
Simply click on Kelly's fix, download the registry fix, then run it.
(Note: Disable your antivirus program before running the repair script)
[Courtesy of Kelly Theriot, MS-MVP]
Applicable Microsoft Knowledge Base Article:
Disk Cleanup Tool Stops Responding While Compressing Old Files
http://support.microsoft.com/default...b;en-us;812248
--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User
Be Smart! Protect your PC!
http://www.microsoft.com/security/protect/
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Ken" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message:
news:3b4c01c47298$bfcc01b0$(E-Mail Removed)...
|I am trying to run disk cleanup on my 80GB system hard
| drive. Each time I start, I get the dialog box telling
| me that Disk Cleanup is calculating how much space I will
| be able to free on (C

It also indicated that it
| is "Scanning : Compress old files." This will continue
| for several hours with no apparent progress, and no hard
| disk noise, but if I summon the task manager, it
| indicates that the CPU is 100% busy, with cleanmgr.exe
| using most of the resources.
|
| If I click the cancel button on the dialog box, the
| dialog box goes away, but the task manager still shows
| cleanmgr.exe running and hogging the CPU.
| The system is not frozen, just exceedingly slow until I
| reboot.
|
| Not an emergency, but I would like to clean the trash of
| my hard drive.
|
| I think I must have a registry flag set, but don't know
| how to find and fix it.
|
| Any ideas?