low hard drive space

[dmanwqal]

I apologize if this question has been asked before but I have a Dell Laptop
PC with XP Service Pack 2-Version 2002. I have 32.7 GB of used space with
only 1.46 remaining GB. I have moved all pics and music to a USB drive and
have decreased the allotted space for system restore, recycle bin, etc. as
well as uninstalling all unused programs. I had noticed that my pc was always
trying to install windows updates but it always failed. Any suggestions?

 

[JS]

The $NtUninstallKBxxxxxx$ 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.

Is it safe to delete the $NtUninstallKBxxxxxx$ folders:
http://www.pagestart.com/ntuninstall.html

Also:
$NtServicePackUninstallIDNMitigationAPIs$
$NtServicePackUninstallNLSDownlevelMapping$
Created when you installed IE7.
If you delete them you will no longer be able to uninstall IE7

$NtServicePackUninstall$
Created when you install a service pack.
If you are currently using XP with SP2
then if you remove the folder you can no longer
uninstall SP2.

When and if you install SP3 this folder grow in size
as it will contain both SP2 and SP3 uninstall files.
If you have already installed SP3 then I would leave
this folder as is until you are certain that no bugs have
cropped up after installing SP3.
Note: Once you delete this folder you are stuck with SP3

Warning: One folder you should not delete is: $hf_mig$
(and any folders that a part of/contained in $hf_mig$)
It is a necessary folder for future updates
See the "Notes" near the bottom of the following KB article:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;824994

Also See Doug Knox's page on this issue:
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/xp_hotfix_backup.htm

JS
www.pagestart.com

 

[DL]

In Internet Options, set temp files to 50mb

From the Run command type %temp%
hit return, delete all files found

Your PC wont function correctly with less than 15% free space, and you dont
mention what the drive size is.

 

[dmanwqal]

I had already moved the storage down to 50mb and I regained very little
space. I did try to delete all the temp files through the run %temp% command
but it said that it was a read only file and access was denied. You are right
though, I can't even defrag with less than 15% free space remaining. The
drive space is 34.2 GB and now I only have 4% free space left on the C drive.

 

[Lem]

I apologize if this question has been asked before but I have a Dell Laptop
PC with XP Service Pack 2-Version 2002. I have 32.7 GB of used space with
only 1.46 remaining GB. I have moved all pics and music to a USB drive and
have decreased the allotted space for system restore, recycle bin, etc. as
well as uninstalling all unused programs. I had noticed that my pc was always
trying to install windows updates but it always failed. Any suggestions?

The best solution is to buy a larger hard drive. More than likely, it
will come with utility software that will permit you to clone your
existing hard drive to the new one. If you have a laptop (or don't want
to open your desktop), buy an external USB case that you can use to
temporarily hold the new drive. After you're done, you can reformat
your original nominal 40 GB drive, put it in the case, and use it for
backup. Note that if you have an OEM computer with a "restore"
partition on the hard drive, you may want to create a restore CD from
this before doing the above.

Short of a new drive, and assuming that you have run Disk Cleanup, you
need to find out what's taking up the space. Download and run
JDiskReport: http://www.jgoodies.com/freeware/jdiskreport/

--
Lem -- MS-MVP

To the moon and back with 2K words of RAM and 36K words of ROM.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apollo_Guidance_Computer
http://history.nasa.gov/afj/compessay.htm

 

[Daave]

I apologize if this question has been asked before but I have a Dell
Laptop
PC with XP Service Pack 2-Version 2002. I have 32.7 GB of used space
with
only 1.46 remaining GB. I have moved all pics and music to a USB drive
and
have decreased the allotted space for system restore, recycle bin,
etc. as
well as uninstalling all unused programs. I had noticed that my pc was
always
trying to install windows updates but it always failed. Any
suggestions?

How many user accounts are on this laptop?

Transferring pics and music is a start, but you have tons of other data,
too, including (more than likely) word processing documents,
spreadsheets, videos, e-mails, etc. Move as much as these as possible
and see what happens.

It's crucial you remove temp files and empty the Recycle Bin. My
favorite tool for this is Ccleaner, but you can certainly use XP's own
Disk Cleanup (for each user).

Do you use the Hibernate feature? If not, be sure to turn it off. That
will free up a big chunk of your drive.

Once you are done removing the detritus, be sure to perform a defrag.

 

[DL]

You did;
Start > Run, type in, %temp%, didnt you?

But having said that unless you have an enormous number of temp files your
unlikely to gain dramatically.
You can, provided show hidden files is enabled, in explorer delete temp
files

 

[Pete D.]

Run the windows update manually and see what the error code is. MS offers
super help on solving problems but you need the error code or word for word
message of the error. Then search MS web/Google for the error again word
for word!

 

[dmanwqal]

Thanks, now I am weary to download anything as it will eat up more space. Two
questions: how do I turn off the Hibernation feature and what is a USB case?
Is that the same as a USB drive? I have 2 USB drives. Can I just drag the C
drive onto another large capacity drive and then reformat the hard drive with
the origianl CD's that came with the PC?

 

[Daave]

message

Thanks, now I am weary to download anything as it will eat up more
space. Two
questions: how do I turn off the Hibernation feature and what is a USB
case?
Is that the same as a USB drive? I have 2 USB drives. Can I just drag
the C
drive onto another large capacity drive and then reformat the hard
drive with
the origianl CD's that came with the PC?

1. Right-click a blank area of the desktop and choose Properties. Click
Screen Saver tab. Click the Power button. Click the Hibernate tab. If
Hibernation is enabled, uncheck the box. Click OK. You will also need to
reboot. This should buy you a few GBs.

2. If you didn't already have two USB external drives but had a spare
drive without an enclosure, you could buy a USB case to house the drive
in. But you apparently don't need to be concerned about that!

3. Dragging the entire contents of C: is a waste of time. You just need
to transfer your data. You should be able to find that on your own. Be
sure to copy your broswer Favorites (mine is here: C:\Documents and
Settings\[user]\Favorites ) and e-mails, etc. If you use Outlook
Express, look here:

http://www.insideoe.com/backup/

4. IMO, a clean install is a last resort. Unless you are absolutely
convinced this is necessary, I would instead perform regular
maintenance. Make sure you are free of malware! Here are some useful
pages:

http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/slowcom.htm

http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Viruses_Malware

5. In the event you decide to perform a clean install, you may use this
page as a guide:

http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/cleanxpinstall.html

Good luck!

 

[DL]

No you cannot do that.
You use a cloning application to clone your C drive to an eg a new large
externally connected drive.
Shutdown PC immediately.
Replace the C drive with your new external drive.
Reboot PC.
Of course your new drive has to be of a physical size that will fit your
laptop.

 

[Daave]

Thanks, now I am weary to download anything as it will eat up more
space.
Two
questions: how do I turn off the Hibernation feature and what is a USB
case?
Is that the same as a USB drive? I have 2 USB drives. Can I just drag
the C
drive onto another large capacity drive and then reformat the hard
drive with
the origianl CD's that came with the PC?

I may have misunderstood that last question the other time I responded
to it. I had thought you wanted to copy everything on C: to one of your
USB drives. If instead you meant you want to purchase a larger internal
hard drive to *replace* your current 40GB drive, then all you need to do
is use the cloning software that comes with the new drive (or you could
use a program like Acronis True Image). Cloning is a different process
than merely copying files. And cloning will result in a perfect copy
(bootable, as well) of your current drive.

So, if you have another hard disk that is in an external USB enclosure
(it would have to be compatible with your laptop, too), you can clone
your current 40GB disk onto that. Once you are finished, merely remove
both disks and be sure to place the newer, larger one in your laptop.

 

[dmanwqal]

Thanks to everyone. I have one more question: it seems like the bulk of the
hard drive space is being taken up by hundreds of files under
windows/$NtUninstall. Would I be asking for trouble if I just deleted those
files?

 

[JS]

The $NtUninstall* 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.

$NtServicePackUninstallIDNMitigationAPIs$
$NtServicePackUninstallNLSDownlevelMapping$
Created when you installed IE7.
If you delete them you will no longer be able to uninstall IE7

$NtServicePackUninstall$
Created when you install a service pack.
If you are currently using XP with SP2
then if you remove the folder you can no longer
uninstall SP2.

When and if you install SP3 this folder grow in size
as it will contain both SP2 and SP3 uninstall files.
If you have already installed SP3 then I would leave
this folder as is until you are certain that no bugs have
cropped up after installing SP3.
Note: Once you delete this folder you are stuck with SP3

Warning: One folder you should not delete is: $hf_mig$
(and any folders that a part of/contained in $hf_mig$)
It is a necessary folder for future updates
See the "Notes" near the bottom of the following KB article:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;824994


Also See Doug Knox's page on this issue:
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/xp_hotfix_backup.htm

And:
http://www.pagestart.com/ntuninstall.html

JS