How to Clear up Unnecessary Files on Your PC

Cleaning Your Disk

1. Open "My Computer." Right-click on the drive that you want to clean and select "Properties" at the bottom of the menu.

2. Select "Disk Cleanup." This can be found in the "Disk Properties Menu." Disk Cleanup is a built in feature of Windows that allows you to delete unnecessary files from your PC.

3. Identify the files you wish to delete. You will most likely want to delete things like temporary files, log files, files in your recycle bin, and other unimportant files and you can do this by ticking the box next to its name.^{[1] X Research source}

4. Delete unnecessary files. Once you have selected the files you wish to delete, select "Ok." This may prompt a window to appear that will confirm your actions. Click "Yes."

   1. There may be system files that you want to delete but they do not appear in the Disk Cleanup Menu. To access them, go to "Cleanup System Files" at the bottom of the Disk Cleanup window.

5. Go to "More Options." Once the More Options Tab appears, look under the section entitled "System Restore and Shadow Copies" and select "Clean Up." This may take a few minutes to complete.

6. Finish Up. Now that you have deleted unnecessary or temporary files on your computer, your PC should should run faster and smoother. You can determine how much space you have freed up on your hard drive by going to Computer and then selecting your hard drive. The amount of space you have will be in the bottom of the window.