Sometimes, you're out of disk space and you need to free up some room now. Let's take a quick look at some of the most effective techniques you can use to free up disk space as quickly on Windows as possible.
Empty the Recycle Bin
The Windows Recycle Bin can take up a lot of space. Make sure to regularly empty it to free up space.
Uninstall Unnecessary Applications
Go through your installed applications and uninstall any that you no longer use. In Windows, you can do this through the "Add or remove programs" tool. This tool lists all installed applications and shows the amount of space they take up. Certain software application types, such as video games, can take up a lot of space.
Find and Delete, Archive, or Move Large Files
Use a tool like FolderSizes to quickly identify the largest files on your system. You can then decide whether to delete, archive or move them. Sometimes finding and removing just a few large files (such as crash dumps, log files, etc.) can free up a significant amount of space.
Use the Windows Disk Cleanup Tool
Windows has a built-in tool called Disk Cleanup that can help you free up space by deleting temporary files, system files, and other unnecessary files.
Remove Temporary Files
Temporary files are created by the operating system and some applications. They can take up a significant amount of space and can be safely deleted. Note that the Disk Cleanup tool (mentioned above) can also help with this.
Move Files to External (or Cloud) Storage
If you have large files that you don’t need to access frequently, consider moving them to an external storage device (or a cloud storage service) to free up space on your main drive. Good candidates for this are large media files, such as videos.
Use a Disk Space Analyzer
Tools like FolderSizes can provide a detailed view of what's taking up space on your hard drive. You can then make informed decisions about what to delete or move. FolderSizes is free and can assist with many of the disk space recovery strategies mentioned in this article.
Remove Duplicate Files
There are tools available that can help you find and remove duplicate files. These can free up a surprising amount of space, especially if you have a lot of media files.
Clear Browser Cache
Your web browser stores temporary internet files to speed up browsing. Over time, these can take up a lot of space. Clearing your browser cache can free up some space.
Delete Old Backups
If you have old backups of your system or files, these can take up a lot of space. Consider deleting old backups or moving them to external storage.
Delete Windows System Restore Points
While we wouldn't recommend this as a first option, you can delete old Windows System Restore Points (if you're confident you won't need them) to free up space. Be aware that this will prevent you from restoring your system to a previous state. To do this, open the System Properties dialog (Run "sysdm.cpl"), go to the System Protection tab, and click the Configure button. You can then delete old restore points.
Conclusion
Remember, before deleting any files, make sure you won’t need them in the future or that they’re backed up somewhere else. It’s always better to be safe than sorry when dealing with data.