Thread: Lack of free space on main hard drive

Some minor recap info:

Yes, I have 3 partitions on my HDD.
C:\ 47.5 GB
D:\ 93.1 GB
E:\ 92.2 GB

I am running XP Pro, w/SP3.

It is only the C:\ drive that is too full. Plenty of free space on D:\ and E:\.

After quite a bit of searching and following some of the instructions here
I have recovered a small amount of free space.

I now have 1.7 GB free space on C:\. Whoopee doo!
That was done by deleting some extraneous non-used programs.

Actually program files have used only 5 GB total. So, deleting unused programs is not the solution.

Since then I have determined the following space takers:

FOLDER SIZE

WINDOWS ______________ 33.4 GB
Documents and Settings ____ 5.3 GB
Program Files ____________ 4.6 GB
(files) ___________________ 1.5 GB
DATA ___________________ 0.7 GB
MSOCache _______________ 0.5 GB
RECYCLER _______________ 0.1 GB

Total of above ____________ 46.1 GB
and a bunch of much smaller stuff

Obviously the biggest culprit is WINDOWS.
Does that seem reasonable? 33.4 GB of WINDOWS ?

Looking into the WINDOWS folder in detail I find the following:

Sub-folder _______________ Size

INSTALLER _______________ 26.3 GB <-- Wow!
SYSTEM32 _______________ 1.3 GB
$hf_mgmt _______________ 1.0 GB
Temp ___________________ 0.7 GB
ServicePackFiles __________ 0.6 GB
SoftwareDistribution ______ 0.6 GB
Microsoft.NET ____________ 0.5 GB
Assembly _______________ 0.3 GB
ie8updates ______________ 0.3 GB
$NtServicePackUninstall$ __ 0.2 GB
Fonts ___________________ 0.2 GB

and many other smaller sub-folders.

The PC is set up to automatically receive program updates and they are installed only when I turn off the PC. My anti-virus program (ESET NOD32) is set to run a scan upon each PC startup.

I did run a 'search' foe photos, media, and video files on the C:\ drive and came up with over 16,000 individual files but it seems that all of them are integral parts of the various program files and do not add too the space allocated above.

Still seeking sincere and valid advice on how to gain more free space.
Are there any obvious problems in the numbers above.

Again thanking you all for your time and help.

Originally Posted by mongo1936

WINDOWS ______________ 33.4 GB

whaoo !!! something wrong here,

Originally Posted by mongo1936

INSTALLER _______________ 26.3 GB <-- Wow!

ok, you found the guilty party, good job. Take that folder and move it to D:\

These are probably the original installer files from the OEM, so you can either delete the whole folder or move it

you do no know how to move a folder ? use cut/copy if you don't

Originally Posted by mongo1936

Temp ___________________ 0.7 GB

you can also empty that one, probably full of old garbage

Originally Posted by Butterfly

These are probably the original installer files from the OEM, so you can either delete the whole folder or move it

Bad idea.

Download Windows Installer CleanUp Utility 2.5.0.1 Free - Remove Windows Installer configuration information on failed installs - Softpedia

Unless you still have a ton of applications on your C: Drive, there may be a lot of files in the Installer directory that are "orphaned" - in other words you've removed the applications but the original installation files are still in the Installer directory.

The simplest solution, and do NOTHING more than this, is to download the Installer Cleanup Utility ( MSIZAP.EXE ) and run it with the G parameter.

It is a potentially harmful tool, so ONLY run it like this:

MSIZAP G

This will identify any packages stored in the Installer directory that have no corresponding application installed, and remove them. You may read that you should use G! but that just supresses the "OK to continue messages", and I'd suggest you read them so you can see if there are any warnings that you aren't sure about.

For most people this will free up tons of space.


And Butters, this only removes the ones that are orphaned. As opposed to all of them, you retard.

Fix problems with programs that can't be installed or uninstalled

again, the usual tards think they have all the answers

it's perfectly safe to move that folder to another drive,

if you are a scared clueless user like harryb, then you can use the MS utility to remove those install files

you could actually delete them, but the repair function would be disabled, since nobody uses the repair function, it's not a big deal to delete them, it's simply a cache of the original installation files

but to be safe, moving to another drive is perfectly possible, you will probably never need those files in that folder again

Originally Posted by spudge

Originally Posted by Butterfly

These are probably the original installer files from the OEM, so you can either delete the whole folder or move it

Bad idea.

what do you know about Windows ? you are a clueless little mac user, you don't even know where are the system files on your MacOSX

Originally Posted by Butterfly

again, the usual tards think they have all the answers

it's perfectly safe to move that folder to another drive,

if you are a scared clueless user like harryb, then you can use the MS utility to remove those install files

you could actually delete them, but the repair function would be disabled, since nobody uses the repair function, it's not a big deal to delete them, it's simply a cache of the original installation files

but to be safe, moving to another drive is perfectly possible, you will probably never need those files in that folder again

You never need the orphaned ones, which is why it's safe to remove them using MSIZAP.

If you wish to move the rest you have to have the expertise to set up symbolic links to the new location, and that's clearly beyond the level of the OP. And it's quite fucking obviously beyond you, because you haven't even mentioned it.

Again: This is STUPID advice to give a noob.

But quite what we can expect from you, Buttplug.

my hard drives
almost full again
i cannot be arsed fine tuning for a few GBs I was thinking about
just buying a ''portable external hard drive ''
is it just like a USB memory stick but with bigger capacity ?
or something different ?

see some more expensive ones have USB 3
might that be needed?

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

which is why it's safe to remove them using MSIZAP.

MSIZAP is actually not safe, it is known to have broken more than fix things, so it's best to avoid, above all for a newbie

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

If you wish to move the rest you have to have the expertise to set up symbolic links to the new location, and that's clearly beyond the level of the OP.

yeah, creating a symbolic is super hard and need expert knowledge

he doesn't even need a symbolic link, the cache files are for "repair" or "adding options" in certain packages, if he is a newbie, he will never go that far

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

And it's quite fucking obviously beyond you, because you haven't even mentioned it.

what is clearly beyond you is that you need some fucking MS utility to remove some fucking useless files, you clueless little tart

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Again: This is STUPID advice to give a noob.

no it's not, using a broken utility like yours is though.

Originally Posted by blue

my hard drives almost full again i cannot be arsed fine tuning for a few GBs I was thinking about just buying a ''portable external hard drive '' is it just like a USB memory stick but with bigger capacity ? or something different ?

Those are good for backup. You have a problem with your drive C: capacity. Buy a new bigger internal harddrive. If you cannot install it on your own then let the shop do it. They can also transfer the OS to the new drive. Internal is cheaper and runs much faster so your OS will speed up using that new drive.

You probably still have an IDE-drive but those should still be available.

Buttplug struggles with Win 7, so all I can say is listen to the retards advice at your peril. Also, he likes sucking ladyboy cock. I've always found such fags to be somewhat distracted.

Do not listen to a word the Gallic retard says.

Mongo, I have a better solution for you.

If your Installer directory is so out of hand, you probably haven't done a refresh install for how long?

The easiest way to free up space, assuming you have copies of the applications you need, is to re-install Windows from scratch.

Then in future, install your applications on drive D:, and keep all your movies and shit on drive E:

The clean install will create a fresh copy of all Windows system directories and overwrite the crap you've got now, freeing up the space.

The only downsides I can see are (a) if it's an old PC you might need to have the drivers handy, and (b) You'll have to do a bit of work reinstalling your applications. However, it's a good opportunity to do a bit of spring cleaning, if you can't be arsed to install something you obviously don't need it anyway.

The upside is that witless Belgian fag won't lead you up the garden path with his idiotic advice.

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

The easiest way to free up space, assuming you have copies of the applications you need, is to re-install Windows from scratch.

typical braindead solution for retards with no clue

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

The easiest way to free up space, assuming you have copies of the applications you need, is to re-install Windows from scratch.

typical braindead solution for retards with no clue

Yes, we should take the Buttplug approach of fucking up his PC.

Surprised you haven't told him how to fix it through the registry yet.

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Yes, we should take the Buttplug approach of fucking up his PC.

jesus, harryb, if moving a folder is to fuck up a PC, then wtf are you recommending a full install to save space ?

go back to rooting phone gadgets will you ? apparently twitting WinXP is beyond your comprehension level

Originally Posted by Butterfly

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Yes, we should take the Buttplug approach of fucking up his PC.

jesus, harryb, if moving a folder is to fuck up a PC, then wtf are you recommending a full install to save space ?

go back to rooting phone gadgets will you ? apparently twitting WinXP is beyond your comprehension level

Actually I'd recommend he does a clean install for all sorts of reasons, but as most of them would go over your head, it's pointless trying to explain it to you.

Retard.

windows halflife 71 up, 4 down

The logarythmic degradation of a windows operating system. The longer you use windows, the slower it gets. Windows changes from operational to sluggish, to annoying, to unusable.

Windows XP has a half-life of about 9 months, after which it becomes annoying to use and a format is in need to make it run properly

Urban Dictionary: windows halflife

The longer you use windows, the slower it gets.

I think the same applies to Buttplug's peanut-sized brain.

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Actually I'd recommend he does a clean install for all sorts of reasons, but as most of them would go over your head, it's pointless trying to explain it to you.

you sound like an Indian at a MS call center. Please reboot, please re-install, please upgrade, please buy a new PC etc... no fucking clue, reading a script like a retard.

Originally Posted by Mid

windows halflife 71 up, 4 down

The logarythmic degradation of a windows operating system. The longer you use windows, the slower it gets. Windows changes from operational to sluggish, to annoying, to unusable.

Windows XP has a half-life of about 9 months, after which it becomes annoying to use and a format is in need to make it run properly

Urban Dictionary: windows halflife

I have WinXP running for 10 years, never had a problem, not even slow down

of course I don't install root kits for gay porn like harryb is doing every week-end to see if his SGII can play in full HD cocksucking men doing each other

Originally Posted by Butterfly

I have WinXP running for 10 years, never had a problem, not even slow down

He doesn't actually do anything on it, it just runs.