How To Remove The Windows.old Folder In Windows 10

Active computer users can detect Windows.old on the system partition, which most often is in “Drive C» and it is a huge volume folder. Many are wondering what it is and is it possible to remove it. Some even try to remove it immediately in the usual way through in File Explorer, but they fail. This guide will show you how to remove the Windows.old folder in Windows 10.

You also may read: How To Pin Folders, Websites, Settings, Notes, And More To The Start Menu On Windows 10

How To Remove The Windows.old Folder In Windows 10

What and where is the Windows.old folder?

This directory will appear on the system partition after you upgrade your PC to a new version of the operating system, or after Windows reinstall without formatting of drive C. This folder, as you might guess from its name, contains the files from the previous system. Navigating to the directory, you will see there is a folder structure as on the disk C: Program Files, Users, Windows, etc. The folder designed in case if any errors appear in the new system, the user can revert a previous version. That is why, during the upgrade of Windows, Windows.old saved all important files of the old system.

Since Windows.old takes too much space on your hard drive, Windows included a mechanism that auto-delete this. If the new system works properly, the directory will be deleted automatically after 28 days. Most often, users trying to remove the Windows.old immediately. Since Microsoft has made the transition to a new version of the OS as free, easy and convenient, many use the auto-update mechanism, and that’s why they will find the directory on the C drive with the old files.

Remove the Windows.old folder

The following method is versatile and can be used to remove the Windows.old folder, not only for the Windows 10 versions of the OS but also for older versions.

Using a combination of «Win + R» Open the “Run” and type “cleanmgr” and in disk selection dialog you will need to select the system partition, “Drive C», and press «OK».

After the scan finished, “Disk Cleanup” window appears, select “Clean up system files” and then “Disk Cleanup” will appear again. Select “Disk C» and click «OK» and after a brief scan open “Disk Cleanup”, check folder “Previous Windows installation(s)”. Click «OK» and wait until it will be cleaned up.

www.img.labnol.org

www.img.labnol.org

Then, you can re-open the File Explorer and make sure that the directory isn’t there anymore.

Image source: www.superbwallpapers.com

You may also read: How To Disable Windows Defender In Windows 10

Join our newsletter

Subscribe to our newsletter and never miss out on what's happening in the tech world. It's that simple.
subsc

🚀 Trusted source for tech since 2012