Why should removing $NtUninstall directories DECREASE my disk spac

[Guest]

Based on the advise given in this forum I have moved a number of $NtUninstall
directories (about 370Meg worth) to another drive. Now I find that my C
drive space has actually decreased! Any ideas?

 

[Gordon]

Based on the advise given in this forum I have moved a number of
$NtUninstall
directories (about 370Meg worth) to another drive.

I can't imagine who would have given you such advice - why would you want to
MOVE them? If the updates are not causing any problems, delete them!

 

[R. McCarty]

Just be sure when selecting them you don't inadvertently get the top level
entry $hf_mig$. It's important to leave that folder in place.

 

[Tom Porterfield]

Based on the advise given in this forum I have moved a number of
$NtUninstall directories (about 370Meg worth) to another drive. Now I
find that my C drive space has actually decreased! Any ideas?

Such a large move might have triggered the creation of a restore point that
would now be storing that diff. Another possibility is did you move them,
or did you copy them and then delete, in which case the files are in the
recycle bin.

 

[Guest]

Will someone please just tell me how to free up my drive!

I have not gone anywhere near the '$hf_mig$' directory. Until 5 minutes ago
I didn't even know it existed! All I did was cut and paste a batch of
$NtUninstall directories (from the Windows directory). I do not see how
cutting a directory out of a drive is one bit different from deleting it!

Will someone please explain!

(And if there are any other booby-traps hidden in Windows XP, please feel
free to let me know about them as well.)

 

[Tom Porterfield]

Will someone please just tell me how to free up my drive!

I have not gone anywhere near the '$hf_mig$' directory. Until 5 minutes
ago I didn't even know it existed! All I did was cut and paste a batch of
$NtUninstall directories (from the Windows directory). I do not see how
cutting a directory out of a drive is one bit different from deleting it!

Will someone please explain!

As I said, such a large move might have triggered the creation of a restore
point that
would now be storing that diff. A utility such as WinDirStat from
http://windirstat.info/ can help you identify what folders are taking up the
space on your drive. If you see the System Volume Information folder taking
up a large amount of space, that is where your restorepoints are stored.
You can use Disk Cleanup to remove all but the most recent restore point to
trim that down.

 

[MAP]

Based on the advise given in this forum I have moved a number of
$NtUninstall directories (about 370Meg worth) to another drive. Now
I find that my C drive space has actually decreased! Any ideas?

Next time try this.
http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/xp_hotfix_backup.htm

If you read the link above if backs up Tom's statement about system restore
creating a checkpoint so no space saving is noticeable at first.

 

[Doug Knox - [MS-MVP]]

Actually, its the fact that these folders contain EXE and other "protected"
files, that when you delete or move them, they either get a new restore
point, or get shoved into a current one. This behavior is consistent with
what's been observed when using the utility I wrote to remove hotfix
backups. An existing, recent Restore point will increase in size, or a new
one may be triggered.

--
Doug Knox, MS-MVP Windows Media Center\Windows Powered Smart
Display\Security
Win 95/98/Me/XP Tweaks and Fixes
http://www.dougknox.com

 

[Doug Knox - [MS-MVP]]

You're correct. See my previous reply to Tom.

--
Doug Knox, MS-MVP Windows Media Center\Windows Powered Smart
Display\Security
Win 95/98/Me/XP Tweaks and Fixes
http://www.dougknox.com