System Cleanup - a discussion please

[Dr. Strangelove]

There are various methods and tools to clean up trash files, temp files,
personal settings, Office temp, restore points, IE temp, etc, etc. And,
there are a multitude of places for the trash to accumulate. However, there
is no one list of what to clean, where to clean, how to clean, and in what
order.

Let's say you have your system tuned and want to do a backup without having
all of the trash, temp, and settings be on the backup. What steps, system
tools (ie Disk Cleanup), and methods do you use?

And, for those of us paranoid about using unknown third party tools, what
manual methods can be used?

Doc

 

[Andre Da Costa[ActiveWin]]

Its simple 'Disk Cleanup'.

 

[Bob]

Using the Vista Backup utility.
What file types are not included in my backups?
The Back Up Files wizard backs up the most common file types. The following
files are not included:

a.. Files that have been encrypted using Encrypting File System (EFS)

Note
a.. EFS is not included in Windows Vista Starter, Windows Vista Home
Basic, and Windows Vista Home Premium.

b.. System files (the files that Windows needs to run)

c.. Program files

d.. Files stored on hard disks that are formatted using the FAT file
system

e.. Web-based e-mail that is not stored on your hard disk

f.. Files that are in the Recycle Bin

g.. Temporary files

h.. User profile settings

 

[Dr. Strangelove]

Sorry Andre, but Disk Cleanup only does a fraction of what is needed.

Doc

 

[Andre Da Costa[ActiveWin]]

Well, it does crucial areas of the system that often need clean up. If you
want more granular control, you could try browsing the Temp directory with
hidden files shown and clear out any unnecessary files from there.

Click Start > type %TEMP% and hit Enter

 

[Dave]

I use Disk Cleanup and CCleaner.

CCleaner scans your computer, and lists files that can be deleted. You can
look at the list before you tell it to delete them. You can also tell it
what files to ignore.

http://ccleaner.com/

 

[Dr. Strangelove]

That is the point, Andre. There is no one-stop shop to do all of the house
cleaning. How many people know about Windows\Temp, and then
AppData\Local\Temp?

There are many other areas to clean, for efficiency and for privacy. That
is why I called this a "discussion".

Doc

 

[Dr. Strangelove]

I have a script that I go through, where Disk Cleanup and Trend Micro's
"Software History Cleaner" play a major role. Still, there are a number of
other places to look and clean manually.

Doc

 

[Andre Da Costa[ActiveWin]]

Temp is listed in disk clean up anyway.

 

[Dr. Strangelove]

Not using Vista Backup for user files.

Question: Is it safe to delete "anything" in Windows\Temp?

Doc

 

[Bob]

Copy all of the contents to a new folder(a temporary temp folder?) then
delete the contents of the temp folder. Most likely this will not cause any
problems. If it does you can selectively copy things back from the temporary
temp folder to the temp folder. Give it several days without a problem and
delete the temporary temp folder as well.

 

[Dr. Strangelove]

Sounds like a good, safe way of doing it.

What about various log files from common/known programs, and registry MRU
lists?

Doc

 

[Bob]

I see no reason why you can't use the same approach.