Seeking ways to free up disc space. Please help

[attillathehun]

I am using Windows XP on my computer and running very low on disc
space. I've run "Disc cleanup" and checked on any hidden internet
files but still getting a message " low on disc space".

I have 519MB left out of 40GB.

Are there ways to gain back disc space? Any free programs to use?

 

[JS]

First use Windows 'Disk Cleanup' to create more space on your C: drive.
Description of the Disk Cleanup Tool in Windows XP:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310312

Next: Empty the Recycle Bin.

You can also free up more disk space by reducing
the number of 'System Restore' points:
Select Start/Control Panel/System, then in the System Properties window
click on the System Restore tab.
Next select the drive letter where Windows is installed (usually C,
Then click on the Setting button
Now in the Drive Settings window move the Disk space usage slider to the
left to reduce the amount of drive space System Restore points will use.
This will remove some of the older restore points and free up some space.

Disable Hibernation and delete hiberfil.sys file (If you have it enabled):
http://www.mydigitallife.info/2007/...sys-hibernation-file-in-windows-xp-and-vista/
and:
http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/mobility/getstarted/hibernate.mspx

Next if you still need more space:
Remove the files used to uninstall updates to Windows
These folders and associated files in these folders are safe to remove,
however once deleted you will no longer be able to un-install a patch or
update that was associated with the deleted folder/files.
I would keep the most recent set (last two months just in case) of folders
and delete the older updates.
As a safety net I burned these folders to a CD before deleting them.
These files are located in the Windows folder and have folder names
like $NtUninstallKBXXXXXX$.
They are hidden folders so enable viewing of hidden files in Windows
Explorer.
Warning: One folder you should not delete is: $hf_mig$
Also See the following web pages on this issue:
http://www.pagestart.com/ntuninstall.html
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/spack.htm
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/xp_hotfix_backup.htm

Finally - You can reduce the size of the Internet Explorer Disk Cache:
How and Why to Clear Your Cache:
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/ie/ie6/using/howto/customizing/clearcache.mspx
Just follow the instructs but instead of increasing the size (as stated in
the article) decrease it.

If you have more than one partition or drive then:
How to Change the Default Location of Mail and News Folders:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/175037

Change the Default Location of the My Documents Folder
(Example: move it to the D drive)
See: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310147
Also:
http://www.techsupportalert.com/how_to_move_my_documents.htm

How to move the Spool folder in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;Q308666

JS

 

[DL]

Excepting Disk Cleanup probably wont run with that little free space,
generally 15% free space is required

 

[JS]

Well if there is a problem using Disk Cleanup then try CCleaner as a tool to
remove Internet history info, cookies, temp files, auto complete and other
junk. In the 'Windows' tab listing check the item types you want deleted.
Also available is customization, see Options/Custom to add any
other/additional folders you want files deleted from.

http://www.ccleaner.com/

JS

 

[attillathehun]

My apologies. I only put the post on three specific groups that I
thought people would see and be of help; I didn't think many people
would subscribe to all the microsoft Xp groups. I have received
different pieces of advice in different groups because of the
different person's background and most grateful to people sharing
their help with me.

Many thanks for pointing this out to me about cross posting.

Sorry that you may not be able to help me with my specific request and
sorry if I have offended or taken up more disc space in the process.

 

[Gerry]

Free up some disk space . You should have at least 20% free.

If your drive is formatted as NTFS another potential gain arises with
your operating system on your C drive. In the Windows Directory of
your C partition you will have some Uninstall folders in your Windows
folder typically: $NtServicePackUninstall$ and $NtUninstallKB282010$
etc. These files may be compressed or not compressed. If compressed
the text of the folder name appears in blue characters. If not
compressed you can compress them. Right click on each folder and
select Properties, General, Advanced and check the box before Compress
contents to save Disk Space. On the General Tab you can see the amount
gained by deducting the size on disk from the size. Folder
compression is only an option on a NTFS formatted drive / partition.

The default allocation to System Restore is 12% on your C partition
which is over generous. I would reduce it to 700 mb. Right click your My
Computer icon on the Desktop and select System Restore. Place the cursor
on your C drive select Settings but this time find the slider and drag
it to the left until it reads 700 mb and exit. When you get to the
Settings screen click on Apply and OK and exit.

Another default setting which could be wasteful is that for temporary
internet files, especially if you do not store offline copies on disk.
The default allocation is 3% of drive. Depending on your attitude to
offline copies you could reduce this to 1% or 2%. In Internet Explorer
select Tools, Internet Options, General, Temporary Internet Files,
Settings to make the change. At the same time look at the number of days
history is held.

The default allocation for the Recycle Bin is 10 % of drive. Change to
5%, which should be sufficient. In Windows Explorer place the cursor
on your Recycle Bin, right click and select Properties, Global and
move the slider from 10% to 5%. However, try to avoid letting it get
too full as if it is full and you delete a file by mistake it will
bypass the Recycle Bin and be gone for ever.

Select Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Disk CleanUp to
Empty your Recycle Bin and Remove Temporary Internet Files. Also
select Start, All Programs, accessories, System Tools, Disk CleanUp,
More Options, System Restore and remove all but the latest System
Restore point. Run Disk Defragmenter.

Select Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, System
Information, Tools, Dr Watson and verify that the box before "Append to
existing log" is NOT checked. This means the next time the log is
written it will overwrite rather than add to the existing file.

The default maximum size setting for Event Viewer logs is too large.
Reset the maximum for each log from 512 kb to 128 kb and set it to
overwrite.
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308427/en-us



--
Regards.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[Don Phillipson]

I am using Windows XP on my computer and running very low on disc
space. I've run "Disc cleanup" and checked on any hidden internet
files but still getting a message " low on disc space".

I have 519MB left out of 40GB.

Are there ways to gain back disc space? Any free programs to use?

Answer is no, assuming you have done the obvious things,
i.e. DELete c:\temp\*.*, Internet History, empty Recycled Bin
and so on.

But hard drives are now so cheap you might as well get a
second hard drive suiitable to your needs: external connecting
via USB if you are paranoid about backups, e.g. want to clone
all C:\ and keep the backup in a separate room or building.

But you will first want to remove bulky data files (e.g. music
or video) to the new drive, because Windows requires at
least 10 per cent drivespace free to run efficiently, i.e.
5 Gb out of 40 Gb drivespace.

 

[Gerry]

Have you figured out how to cross post? It's easy using Outlook Express
but I see you are using Forte Agent. I am not you can cross posting
using Forte Agent


--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[Bruce Chambers]

I am using Windows XP on my computer and running very low on disc
space. I've run "Disc cleanup" and checked on any hidden internet
files but still getting a message " low on disc space".

I have 519MB left out of 40GB.

Are there ways to gain back disc space? Any free programs to use?

A primary space waster within each user profile would be IE's
penchant for storing copies (or significant portions thereof) of nearly
every web page you've ever visited. Try reducing the amount of
temporary Internet files cached, which is huge by default. I always
reduce it to a maximum of 50 Mb. In Internet Explorer, click Tools >
Internet Options > General, Temporary Files > Settings.

Same principle for the Java cache. Start > Control Panel > Java >
Temporary Internet Files > Settings.

The System Volume Information is the folder in which WinXP's System
Restore feature stores information used to recover from errors. By
default, WinXP sets aside a maximum of 12% of the partition's size for
storing System Volume Information, but the amount of space set aside for
this purpose can be adjusted by the user. Start > All Programs >
Accessories > System Tools > System Restore > System Restore Settings,
select the pertinent partition and click Settings. If you don't want to
use System Restore at all, and have some other backup/recovery mechanism
in place, simply turn off the System Restore feature (Start > All
Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Restore, System Restore
Settings) and reboot. This will delete all of your Restore Points,
freeing up the hard drive space.

Another great waster of space can be the Recycle Bin. By default,
this takes up to 10% of your hard drive capacity. On today's large hard
drives, this is tremendously wasteful. (It's even more wasteful,
relatively speaking, on the tiny drive you have.) It can be set to a
lower limit by right-clicking the desktop Recycle Bin icon, selecting
Properties, and using the slider bar to lower the maximum size to
something more reasonable -- 1% to 2% should be more than enough space.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:


http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot

 

[Frank Saunders MS-MVP IE,OE/WM]

Excepting Disk Cleanup probably wont run with that little free space,
generally 15% free space is required

That's for Defrag. I don't think it's the same for Clean Up.

 

[Xandros]

I hope you have a CD or DVD Writer. If so use it to copy files out of your
My Documents folder onto discs.

 

[Ken]

Have you figured out how to cross post? It's easy using Outlook Express
but I see you are using Forte Agent. I am not you can cross posting
using Forte Agent

Can one cross-post when using SeaMonkey?

 

[Gerry]

Ken

Don't know! Ask here:
http://snipurl.com/2rkv4 [forums_mozillazine_org]

--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[peter]

Sounds like you need a bigger HD..........and install it as the slave drive.
Then save all of your work to the new drive...set Mail folder to new
drive...set IE cache to new drive.
If necesary uninstall some programs from old drive and reinstall on new
drive.
All new programs can be installed on the new drive...most if not all allow
this during the installation process..

One can only clean up so much and I doubt if you will gain a lot....unless
you have programs that you are really not using and uninstall them.

peter

 

[attillathehun]

Thanks for this suggestion. When you suggest a "slave" drive, are you
saying I should consider putting in another hard drive or another
external drive?

It seems that this is a good solution to solving some of my problems
if programs are dumping info on my hard drive without me realising it.

 

[Nihang Shah]

I am using Windows XP on my computer and running very low on disc
space. I've run "Disc cleanup" and checked on any hidden internet
files but still getting a message " low on disc space".

I have 519MB left out of 40GB.

Are there ways to gain back disc space? Any free programs to use?

I suggest you use CCleaner, to clean out extra disk space.

 

[Shenan Stanley]

I am using Windows XP on my computer and running very low on disc
space. I've run "Disc cleanup" and checked on any hidden internet
files but still getting a message " low on disc space".

I have 519MB left out of 40GB.

Are there ways to gain back disc space? Any free programs to use?

If you are comfortable with the stability of your system, you can delete the
uninstall files for the patches that Windows XP has installed...
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/spack.htm

You can run Disk Cleanup - built into Windows XP - to erase all but your
latest restore point and cleanup even more "loose files"..

How to use Disk Cleanup
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310312

You can turn off hibernation if it is on and you don't use it..

When you hibernate your computer, Windows saves the contents of the system's
memory to the hiberfil.sys file. As a result, the size of the hiberfil.sys
file will always equal the amount of physical memory in your system. If you
don't use the hibernate feature and want to recapture the space that Windows
uses for the hiberfil.sys file, perform the following steps:

- Start the Control Panel Power Options applet (go to Start, Settings,
Control Panel, and click Power Options).
- Select the Hibernate tab, clear the "Enable hibernation" check box, then
click OK; although you might think otherwise, selecting Never under the
"System hibernates" option on the Power Schemes tab doesn't delete the
hiberfil.sys file.
- Windows will remove the "System hibernates" option from the Power Schemes
tab and delete the hiberfil.sys file.

You can control how much space your System Restore can use...

1. Click Start, right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.
2. Click the System Restore tab.
3. Highlight one of your drives (or C: if you only have one) and click on
the "Settings" button.
4. Change the percentage of disk space you wish to allow.. I suggest moving
the slider until you have just about 1GB (1024MB or close to that...)
5. Click OK.. Then Click OK again.

You can control how much space your Temporary Internet Files can utilize...

Empty your Temporary Internet Files and shrink the size it stores to a
size between 64MB and 128MB..

- Open ONE copy of Internet Explorer.
- Select TOOLS -> Internet Options.
- Under the General tab in the "Temporary Internet Files" section, do the
following:
- Click on "Delete Cookies" (click OK)
- Click on "Settings" and change the "Amount of disk space to use:" to
something between 64MB and 128MB. (It may be MUCH larger right
now.)
- Click OK.
- Click on "Delete Files" and select to "Delete all offline contents"
(the checkbox) and click OK. (If you had a LOT, this could take 2-10
minutes or more.)
- Once it is done, click OK, close Internet Explorer, re-open Internet
Explorer.

You can use an application that scans your system for log files and
temporary files and use that to get rid of those:

Ccleaner (Free!)
http://www.ccleaner.com/

Other ways to free up space..

SequoiaView
http://www.win.tue.nl/sequoiaview/

JDiskReport
http://www.jgoodies.com/freeware/jdiskreport/index.html

Those can help you visually discover where all the space is being used.

If you are concerned over less than 5GB of space total at any given time
being freed up on your hard disk drive - then something is wrong and
you would be better off spending a little and putting in a drive that is
likely 3-8 times as large as what you have not and not concerning
yourself over such a small amount of space OR you seriously need
to consider what you really need on the system and what should be
archived.

Basic housekeeping 101... - in an actual home, if your storage area gets
full - you either have to decide what you really should have in the storage
area and what could go or you have to find a new place to store stuff
that will accommodate everything you need. You don't walk into a
warehouse of cars, look at the filing cabinet in the corner where
you keep all the records for the cars and decide that if you move it out of
the warehouse - you will have more room for cars. ;-)