In order to return the former speed to your PC, it is not at all necessary to increase its hardware power or reinstall the system: for this, most often it is simply necessary good program cleaning the computer from debris.

They will safely fix registry entries, delete temporary files created when browsers are running, clean HDD from components left after incorrect uninstallation of the software will help manage autoload, i.e. clean up junk and optimize PC performance

This software package includes more than 20 utilities for cleaning and optimizing a computer running Windows XP; Vista; 7; eight.

Screenshot of the main modules and features of Glary Utilites Free

As the main advantages of using this complex, it is worth noting the multifunctionality and friendly interface and the presence of the Russian language, which is undoubtedly a big plus for novice users.

In one click, the program will analyze and show the status of your PC.

To remove junk from your computer and fix performance problems, just download free version Glary Utilites Free, after which, in the main window, click the "1 click" button, everything else Glary Utilites Free will do on its own.

You can get acquainted with the functionality and download this program from the manufacturer's website by clicking on the link www.glarysoft.com/glary-utilities/.

- this is powerful program to clean your computer's hard drive from various system debris, and fix the system registry.

Screenshot of the main window of the Final Uninstaller program

This utility occupies no more than 50 MB disk space computer, undemanding to system resources and can run under Windows XP; Vista; 7. This is an advantage for users of older computers.

The main disadvantage of the utility for the domestic user is that it is free to download official version this utility is not possible.

The program is distributed on the basis of a paid license, the cost of which on the manufacturer's website is 27 USD. for 3 PCs. Nevertheless, Final Uninstaller is a fairly popular PC cleaning toolkit, despite the lack of Russian language in it. language pack.

Advice: Do not use cracked versions of Final Uninstaller. In addition to the fact that an unlicensed installer can stuff your computer with unnecessary software, you can easily bring a virus to your PC.

You can get acquainted with the possibilities, as well as download the Final Uninstaller program from the manufacturer's website, by clicking on the link: www.finaluninstaller.com/download.php.

is a great uninstaller and startup manager. The main advantage of this "cleaner" is that it finds garbage that skips most of these programs.

Screenshot of Revo Uninstaller junk file analysis window

The utility has a friendly and Russified interface, so even an inexperienced user can use it. Revo Uninstaller runs on a PC running Windows XP; Vista; 7; eight; ten.

You can download the free Revo Uninstaller program by clicking on the link: www.revouninstaller.com/revo_uninstaller_free_download.html .

CCleaner is by far the most popular utility for cleaning PCs from various system junk on computers running Windows and Android.

Screenshot of CCleaner main window

This program allows you to find and remove traces of the browser: browsing and download history, cookies, temporary files, autocomplete, etc.

In addition, the cleaner allows the user to delete data from the computer's clipboard, recycle bin, temporary files from operating system and garbage from applications.

The CCleaner utility has in its arsenal a lot of tools necessary for optimizing the operation of a PC, among which are: an uninstaller, a startup manager, and a safe registry editor.

For especially distrustful users, the program suggests doing backup deleted files, which makes it possible to restore them at any time. With CCleaner, you can manage system restore points and much more.

Consider the process of installing and cleaning a computer with this utility in more detail.

Installing CCleaner

In order to clean and optimize your computer, you need to download the original CCleaner program: www.piriform.com/ccleaner

Important: For the correct operation of this utility, you need to download it only from the official website of the developer company.

1. After starting the installer, a language selection window will appear, where you need to select the one you need and click the "OK" button.

Screenshot of CCleaner language pack selection

3. After that, the program will ask you to select installation options. By default, the utility will create shortcuts in the Start menu and on the desktop, as well as add items to the trash menu "Open CCleaner", "Run CCleaner".

While using a computer, a lot of temporary files are created in the system. One part is deleted after closing the programs and restarting the PC, and the other part remains a dead weight on the hard drive.

If you do not clean regularly, files will accumulate and take up extra storage space. But this is not the worst - they can cause the PC to freeze.

The short answer is yes! Cleaning your computer of debris should be regular so that the system does not “slow down”. This does not mean that a daily check should be carried out. 1-2 scans per month should be enough.

What to use to clean the operating system (OS)?

There are two types of programs - for complex cleaning and for cleaning the system registry. Most applications are distributed free of charge, so they are always available to users. Consider the best services.

Programs for complex cleaning of the OS

To get started, let's look at 3 applications for comprehensive Windows cleaning.

This utility is designed to improve the performance and speed up your computer. It is possible to optimize random access memory and game mode « turbo boost» , which will be of particular interest to gamers.

First you need to download the program from the official website of the developers - iobit.com. Click on the green button "Download" and install "Advanced System Care".

Before installation, be sure to uncheck the box "Install for free driver booster"We don't need this software. The application will ask you to enter your E-mail to receive newsletters from developers with different bonuses.

The first window will offer scanning options. Select one, several or all items with a checkmark and click "Start".

Next, the device will be checked, after which the results will be displayed on the screen. The user will be shown in detail each problem found. If you do not understand this, click "Fix" without changing any items.

After that, unnecessary and problematic files will be cleaned. For best results, it is recommended that you restart your computer.

One of the most functional programs. can clean the system registry, defragment the disk, create backups, search for and remove duplicates and malware, optimize RAM and much more.

First you need to download and install the utility from the official website glarysoft.com. Next, launch the application in any way. A window with all the possibilities will immediately open.

The easiest way to start scanning is to click on the button "1-click", which is at the top center. After that, a window of suggested points for examination will open.

Click on the green button "Find Problems" and we are waiting for the results. All detected problems will be displayed on the main screen. Click "To correct".

Additionally, it should be noted that the utility copes with its task very quickly and gives recommendations on updating other important programs.

This application specializes in the complete optimization of the Windows OS. This is a kind of assistant that will not only save the storage from temporary files, but also help with updating installed utilities and drivers.

First you need to download and install . It is paid on the official website systweak.com, so if you don’t want to spend money, you can download the “cracked” version on a third-party resource.

It includes more than 30 tools for customization, optimization and Windows protection. To clean the system from garbage, you need to go to the section "Intelligent Service", after which you will need to tick off the necessary items.

Click on the blue button in the lower right corner "Start Scan". The results of the examination will be displayed on the main screen, where the button will be available. "To correct".

It also offers optimization hard drive, RAM, set up a game mode and secure your device. Availability huge amount useful utilities allows the application to cope with most tasks.

Programs for cleaning the system registry

The system registry stores an important Windows Information. The slightest changes, even changing the background on the desktop, are made to it. But over time, unnecessary, outdated rubbish accumulates there, due to which the computer freezes. Consider utilities for cleaning the system registry.

Auslogics Registry Cleaner

The download is available on the official website of the developer. Auslogics Registry Cleaner allows the user to first scan the registry for errors, and then manually select what to delete.

Button Scan available immediately after launching the utility.

After the detected problems and the risk level are displayed, the user must check which ones should be fixed. It is important to be careful here, as deleting an important system file can cause Windows to crash. Click "Repair" and automatic cleaning will take place.

Auslogics Registry Cleaner creates backup points before making any changes. This will allow you to quickly restore your computer in case of problems.

You should also be careful when installing this program and remove unnecessary checkmarks - third-party software is often loaded with it.

Available for download on the official website of the developers - vitsoft.net.

The utility consists of four components:

  • system registry optimizer;
  • garbage cleaning applications;
  • startup manager;
  • uninstaller.

Installation is no different previous programs. After starting, in the main menu, select the item "Scan".

A list of detected problems will be displayed. You can tick off what you want to delete, after which you need to click on the icon in the form of a basket.

If something goes wrong and a system failure is noticed, it is recommended to use a backup copy.

To do this, go to the appropriate section and click "Reestablish".

Outcome

In order for your computer to please you with performance and quality of work, you need to periodically clean the registry. To be 100% sure that the removal will not bring any harm, you should have a slightly advanced understanding of how a computer works. When using such software be sure to make backups. If something went wrong, be sure to write in the comments and we will provide you with all possible assistance!

In the course of its operation, the operating system creates a lot of temporary data that is stored on the disk (usually drive C) in the form of files and registry entries. These can be service pack files, archivers, shadow copies, content downloaded from the Internet, etc. They behave similarly third party programs, such as browsers that store website data in a cache. Some temporary files are deleted automatically after a certain time, others remain on the disk until they are deleted forcibly.

If the user does not regularly maintain and clean drive C, free space it becomes smaller and smaller, to the point that the disk eventually turns out to be filled with temporary files to the eyeballs, which excludes further writing of any data to it and reduces its performance. There are two ways out of this situation - either increase the size system partition at the expense of the user volume, or perform its comprehensive cleaning, which is more preferable. Let's see how to free up space on Windows 7/10 local disk C.

What can be removed if the disk is full

The system volume contains many important files that ensure normal Windows work, therefore, its deep cleaning should be approached with the utmost care. What can be removed from the C drive to free up space and not break the system? All its content can be conditionally divided into three groups. The first includes files that can be deleted without any fear. The second consists of files, the removal of which, although it will not harm the system, but under certain circumstances can still cause certain problems. The third group includes files that cannot be deleted, as this can make programs and the system inoperative. You can clean drive C without negative consequences by deleting:

  • Contents of the Cart.
  • Library catalogs.
  • Folders and Downloaded Program Files in the Windows directory.
  • Cache of browsers and some third-party programs.
  • Icon sketches.
  • Logs and memory dumps for system errors.
  • Old Chkdsk utility files.
  • Bug reports.
  • Files created by the Windows debugger.

With some care, you can delete shadow copies () created during the installation of updates and stored in backup copies, files of previous system installations (Windows.old folder), unnecessary components and applications, folders of uninstalled programs in the ProgramData, Program Files and Roaming directories, MSOCache folder Microsoft Office. If quick start is not used, you can delete the file hiberfil.sys in the root of drive C, after disabling these functions in the settings. It is acceptable, but not desirable, to remove the swap file pagefile.sys. Other files and folders on the C drive must not be deleted so as not to disrupt the system.

Cleaning up junk and temporary files using Windows tools

To begin with, let's see how to clear the C drive of unnecessary files in Windows 7/10 using the operating system itself. For this purpose, Windows has a built-in utility. cleanmgr.exe, which can be launched both through the properties of the section being cleared, and through the Run dialog box. After the utility scans the disk for obsolete files, check the boxes on the Disk Cleanup tab and click OK.

If you click the "Clean up system files" button, reports, device driver packages, error dumps, and additionally, restore points, with the exception of the latest one, will become available for deletion.

For a deeper and more thorough cleaning of disk C from garbage, you can use the built-in console utilities Dism and vssadmin. The first allows you to delete temporary data from WinSxS folders, including backups created before installing Windows updates. To do this, use the following commands, executed in the CMD console launched as an administrator:

  1. DISM.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup
  2. DISM.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /SPSuperseded
  3. vssadmin delete shadows /all /quiet

The first command does the same as the cleanmgr.exe utility, only more carefully.

The second removes all standby updates from the WinSxS folder.

With the third command, you can delete all restore points, including the last one.

However, you should use these tools with caution, because after executing the indicated commands, you will no longer be able to roll back the system to a working state or previous version.

Note: before clearing the WinSxS folder, it is recommended to set it to its true size, thereby making sure that it really needs to be cleared. To do this, you need to execute command line command Dism.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /AnalyzeComponentStore and compare the actual size of the component store with the size indicator in the Explorer properties.

After windows updates up to more new version a folder appears in the root of drive C Windows.old, which can take up a lot of disk space.

The contents of this directory are represented by copies system files installation of the previous Windows versions. If you are determined not to return to old version system, the Windows.old folder can be deleted. This is done again either using cleanmgr.exe or using the command line. In the first case, you need to find and mark on the "Advanced" tab the item "Previous Windows installation", in the second - run in the console running as administrator cmd command rd /s /q c:/windows.old.

You can get some extra space on the C drive by removing unused components, the same ones that the classic Add/Remove Programs applet provides access to.

The regular Dism utility is also involved here. To select and uninstall an unused Windows component, run the following two commands in an elevated CMD console:

  1. DISM.exe /Online /English /Get-Features /Format:Table
  2. DISM.exe /Online /Disable-Feature /featurename:NAME /Remove

The first command lists all components in the system, the second deletes the selected item. AT this example its name must be substituted for the element of the string NAME.


Manual removal of programs and files

Except for universal Windows applications 8.1 and 10, almost all desktop programs are installed in the folder Program Files. If the program is no longer needed, it should be deleted so that it does not take up space on the disk, but you need to do this either with the help of a standard uninstaller or with the help of special third-party programs. However, after uninstalling applications, their folders with configuration files, the weight of which can reach several hundred megabytes. Such data must be deleted manually.

Let's say you removed Microsoft computer Office or Skype and you also want to get rid of all their "tails" remaining on the C drive. To do this, carefully check the Program Files and ProgramData directories in the root of drive C, as well as the folders C:/Users/UserName/AppData. If the folder name is the same as remote application, it can be removed.

With the AppData folder, things are a little more complicated. This hidden directory contains three subfolders: Local, LocalLow, and Roaming. The first stores files created during the operation of various programs. You cannot clear it entirely, as this will certainly lead to the loss of saved application settings, however, half-empty folders of uninstalled programs can be safely deleted. You can also safely clear the contents of the folder located in it. Temp.

The same applies to the LocalLow and Roaming folders, only those directories that belonged to previously uninstalled applications can be deleted from them.

Note: clearing the contents of the Local, LocalLow and Roaming folders, you lose user settings and data stored in their cache. For example, after deleting its folders in the user profile, you will lose the current messenger settings and part of the message history.

As for the removal of universal applications, they are uninstalled by regular means of the system itself or CCleaner, which will be discussed below. You can also move some universal applications from drive C to drive D if they support this feature.

Transferring desktop programs to another volume is also possible, for these purposes there is special utility Steam Mover, which you can download from the developer's site www.traynier.com/software/steammover.

Using CCleaner

Many novice users are interested in how to remove junk files from drive C, using third-party programs, as well as which of these programs are more efficient and safe in this regard. These can be recommended CCleaner is a simple, fast, convenient, and most importantly safe Windows disk and registry cleaner. This program allows you to delete temporary data from the Internet and Windows itself, the contents of the thumbnail cache and DNS, Index.dat files, memory dumps, fragments of chkdsk files, various system logs, obsolete prefetch files, and a lot of minor data.

With CCleaner you can clean up invalid entries system registry, optimize , enable, disable or remove browser extensions, analyze content hard drives, search for duplicates and, of course, uninstall unnecessary applications, including universal ones.

The interface of CCleaner is very simple, so even a novice user can easily figure out its simple functionality.

Considering, however, that the main purpose of CCleaner is still cleaning, all its additional tools have limited functionality. If your C drive is clogged with something incomprehensible, and you want to find out what exactly, then for these purposes it is better to use specific utilities, for example, Scanner, JdiskReport or their analogues, showing more accurate information about the file structure of the media with the ability to navigate through subdirectories.

Other ways to free up space on the C drive

Clearing the Driver Store

The actions described above are usually enough to free up enough space on the system volume, but what if the C drive is still full? What else can you do to get more space? One option is to clear the contents of the folder FileRepository located at C:/Windows/System32/DriverStore.

This directory contains copies of device drivers that have ever been connected to the computer, and may also contain outdated versions of drivers. Before deleting driver packages from the FileRepository folder, it is highly advisable to create a complete list of them and find only obsolete versions in it, and leave the rest untouched. It also does not hurt to create a complete copy of all drivers installed on the system. To list the DriverStore drivers in a file, run the following command from an elevated command prompt:

pnputil.exe /e > C:/drivers.log

Compare the driver versions in the list and remove only the outdated ones.

To remove the selected driver, immediately execute the command in the console pnputil.exe /d oem#.inf, where # is the name of the driver in the list.

If you get an error in the console when uninstalling the driver, then the driver is in use by the system. It is not necessary to touch such a component.

As an alternative to the command line, you can use free utility Driver Store Explorer, just designed to remove old unused device drivers.

Disabling hibernation

Thanks to the hibernation mode, the user can quickly return to work in running applications, on the other hand, its use requires the allocation of system drive a significant amount of space slightly less than or equal to the amount of RAM. If the availability of free space on the hard drive is a priority for you, hibernation can be disabled by deleting the hiberfil.sys container file.

Launch the CMD console as an administrator and run the command in it powercfg -h off. Hibernation will be disabled and the cumbersome hiberfil.sys file removed.

Note: the hibernation file can be compressed by a maximum of two times with the command powercfg hibernate size 50.

Disabling the paging file

In addition to other hidden system objects, there is another file in the root of drive C, which, when certain conditions may be removed. This is the swap file pagefile.sys. This file plays the role of a RAM buffer and if some application does not have enough RAM for its work, its data is temporarily written to . Accordingly, if there is no swap file, a heavy application will slow down a lot or simply hang, waiting for faster RAM to be released. Therefore, disabling and deleting the paging file is not recommended, unless the computer has a very large amount of RAM.

If your PC has more than 10 GB of memory or you are not going to run resource-intensive applications, you can try to carefully disable swap. To do this, open Extra options system and on the "Advanced" tab in the "Performance" block, click the "Settings" button.

This will open another window. Switch to the "Advanced" tab in it, and then click the Change button in the "Virtual memory" block.

Uncheck the "Automatically select the size of the paging file" checkbox, turn on the "No paging file" radio button, save the settings and reboot. The pagefile.sys file will be deleted.

Deleting the MSOcache folder

Users who have installed the Microsoft Office suite have a hidden folder MSOcache, the weight of which can reach several gigabytes.

This folder is the cache office suite and contains files that you may need to restore Microsoft Office if it becomes corrupted. The MSOcache folder is not involved in starting Microsoft Office or working with documents, so it can be deleted in a standard way. Please note that if Microsoft Office is damaged for some reason, you will have to restore the package from the installation disk with its distribution.

Compressing the contents of the system volume

You can free up some free space on drive C without deleting anything at all. Instead, all system files can be compressed. To do this, just open the properties of drive C, on the "General" tab, check the box "Compress this drive to save space" and click "OK".

To compress system files in Windows 10, you can use the function Compact OS by executing one of two commands in the CMD console launched as an administrator:

  • compact /CompactOs:query
  • compact /CompactOs:always

The second command performs the same actions as the first, but in forced mode. It is used if you really want to compress system volume, and the first team rejects the operation, considering it inappropriate. The compression is completely reversible and to return file system to the normal state, it is enough to execute the reverse command compact /CompactOs:never.

In addition to NTFS compression, LZX compression is available in Windows 10, but it has a number of drawbacks, due to which it is not widely used. LZX compression is applicable to read-only files and directories, but an entire system volume cannot be compressed with it due to the risk of resulting in an unbootable system.

The speed of your PC can slow down significantly due to the growing list of files that are stored on your hard drive. Especially if it's the same drive that contains your operating system. Windows system.

Of course, modern drives may not suffer the same performance loss as older models with less throughput. Regardless, it's a good idea to work on unnecessary file growth on all of your PC's drives in a timely manner.

How to Use Disk Cleanup to Remove Junk Files

By using the Disk Cleanup instructions and charts below, you will learn how to effectively remove junk files from your computer. If you have multiple drives, just repeat the steps for each one. Please note that on the disk with installed Windows there will usually be more folders to delete unless you are an advanced user and have moved them to another drive.

Cleaning open partitions

Drive selection

Select the drive or partition you want to clean up. The drive (C 🙂 is usually your main drive, which contains the Windows operating system and your program files. Once your selection is made, simply click the OK button. A window will appear showing that Disk Cleanup is currently scanning your drive.

Select files to delete

Finally, the real Disk Cleanup panel appears. Look at the "Files to delete" box (highlighted in red), if you click on each of them, a description will be shown below it. More detailed descriptions for each category. See the section below for which files to select for deletion. In some categories (not all), you can click the View Files button to navigate to a folder and view each individual file.

Permanent removal of files

After checking the categories you want to delete, left click on the OK button. You will be prompted to enter a box asking "Are you sure you want to permanently delete these files?". If you want to continue, left click on the "Delete Files" button. A progress window will open and after deleting the files you have selected, Disk Cleanup will close automatically. Congratulations, your Disk Drive has just been cleaned up and is now optimized for performance.

Which files should be selected for deletion?

  1. Since the needs of each user will be different, there are no absolutes in the suggestions we can make here. We can provide information to help you decide which files to remove, but you will ultimately have to make the final decision yourself.
  2. Downloaded program files. When you surf the Internet, websites typically place Java and ActiveX data on your disk. This may slow down your next visit to these sites if you remove them. We prefer to clear it as it has data from websites that we will probably never visit again on our hard drive. In addition, ActiveX and Java can pose a security risk due to the nature of the files and the way they are used.
  3. Temporary Internet files. Every web page you visit is placed here for easy retrieval on subsequent visits. You may notice that when you go to a web page that takes a long time, when you click the back button, it loads instantly. This is the result of your browser retrieving the saved page directly from your hard drive. Deleting Temporary Internet Files will NOT delete saved passwords and login information.
  4. Offline web pages. If you save your web pages for offline viewing, they are stored in this folder. If you delete them, you will need to visit the site to sync them again.
  5. Basket. Everything is clear here without comment.
  6. Service Pack Backup Files - If you completed a major update update windows update, these are the old files that have been saved, so you can uninstall the update package.
  7. Temporary files - used to store temporary data while the program is running. The data is then deleted when the program closes. Sometimes leftover data will still be used by the program after a restart.
  8. Miniatures. When you open a folder such as the Pictures folder, you will see small thumbnails for each image. They are stored here for immediate loading when the folder is opened. If you delete them, then the next time you open the folder, they will be re-created on the fly, slowing down the display speed as if it were the first time.

Video: MAXIMUM CLEANING DISK C from JUST, remove the extra 20-50 gig

As you know, timely Windows cleaning, will become the key to the high performance of your computer and the versatility of its software resources. We have considered best programs capable of performing a complete cleaning of the system. Which of the above utilities should you choose?

The undisputed leader among programs for cleaning the computer system is Computer Accelerator. This program has amazing features that are only partially available for other analogues. Control the cleaning process, optimize as much as possible Windows registry and get rid of any software failures and malfunctions for a long time disturbing your computer. Computer Accelerator is able to quickly increase the performance of all computer resources, providing reliable stability and versatility of all its important system resources!

System Mechanic can be recommended for both beginners and professionals, however, specialists will like the product more. Its reliability and quality conquer, only slightly hinders English language on the menu. In the west, the utility package is widespread and popular, development has been going on for more than 20 years, so all functions have been honed to perfection.

An inexpensive alternative is Wise Care 365. The software is distinguished by the most convenient controls in comparison with analogues, powerful tools for ridding the system of computer debris, as well as the optimal ratio of the cost of a license and the high quality of the productivity tools offered by the developer.

CCleaner is one of the most widely used computer junk cleaners in the world. The utility gained its popularity thanks to user-friendly interface and rich built-in features. Owners of CCleaner receive virtually the entire list of most paid modern counterparts among the "cleaners" and "optimizers" of the operating system. Using Advanced SystemCare Free, will help you not only clean the platform, but also seriously overclock your computer's power indicators. Thanks to the presence of a whole range of specialized tools, the program can increase the level of RAM and processor performance, which will have a great effect on the performance of the entire OS.

In addition to the common functions for cleaning the system of unnecessary and damaged files, Glary Utilities, will provide you with the proper protection of all sensitive data, improving not only performance but also the security level of the operating system. The program is able to fix even incorrectly entered links, as well as find any errors in the registry and correct them correctly. If you have to share your computer with several other users, Comodo System Cleaner will help you get rid of even the slightest suspicion of stealing your information, the utility can delete any confidential data without the possibility of their subsequent recovery. Komodo System Cleaner has a simple interface and will quickly remove all unnecessary files, in addition, it will analyze the system for duplicate files.

Wise Registry Cleaner is one of the leading registry cleaners. The program does not have such extensive functionality against the background of its main competitors, but it will perfectly cope with its direct duty. The application will give you the possibility of both manual and automatic control mode. Do not worry that Weiss Register Cleaner will clean anything important in automatic mode, because the developer has introduced a convenient option to create backup register. Using Wise Care 365 Free, you can quickly clear the cache and cookies within web browsers. The utility has a convenient configuration option (already simple interface) according to your preference. Weiss Care 365 will protect user personal data, defragment the required disks and clean the system of excess garbage.