HomeSystemWindows 7

How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7

This wikiHow teaches you how to remove temporary files from your Windows 7 computer. To do this, you must first enable your computer's 'Show Hidden Files' feature, after which point you can delete temporary files from your computer's App...
Part 1 of 4:

Showing Hidden Files

  1. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 1How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 1
    Close every open program that you can. Programs on your computer use files that are in the Temp folders, so you won't be able to delete some temporary files if they're being used by programs.
  2. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 2How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 2
    Open Start
    How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 3How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 3
    . Click the multicolored Windows logo in the bottom-left corner of the screen.
  3. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 4How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 4
    Click the text box. It's at the bottom of the Start window.
  4. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 5How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 5
    Type in windows explorer. Doing so will search your computer for the Windows Explorer app.
  5. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 6How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 6
    Click
    How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 7How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 7
    Windows Explorer. It's the folder-shaped option at the top of the Start window.
  6. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 8How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 8
    Click Organize. You'll find this tab in the top-left side of the window. A drop-down menu will appear.
  7. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 9How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 9
    Click Folder and search options. It's near the middle of the drop-down menu. This prompts a new window to appear.
  8. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 10How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 10
    Click the View tab. This option is at the top of the window.
  9. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 11How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 11
    Check the "Show hidden files, folders, and drives" circle. It's in the middle of the page.
    1. If this option is already checked, your computer is displaying hidden files.
  10. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 12How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 12
    Click Apply, then click OK. Doing so ensures that you can access and open the Temp folder for your apps and Windows itself.
Part 2 of 4:

Deleting Temporary App Files

  1. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 13How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 13
    Click My Computer. It's in the column of options on the left side of the window.
  2. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 14How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 14
    Double-click your computer's hard drive. This hard drive-shaped icon is under the "Devices and drives" heading. Your hard drive is usually the drive labeled "C" here.
  3. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 15How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 15
    Double-click the Users folder. You'll find it near the top of the window.
  4. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 16How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 16
    Double-click your user folder. This is the folder with the first few letters of your name (or username if you signed into your computer using an email address).
  5. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 17How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 17
    Double-click the AppData folder. It's near the top of the window.
  6. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 18How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 18
    Double-click the Local folder. This folder is at the top of the window.
  7. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 19How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 19
    Select the Temp folder. Click the Temp folder, which is near the bottom of the window, to select it.
  8. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 20How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 20
    Click Organize. This tab is in the upper-left corner of the window. A drop-down menu will appear.
  9. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 21How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 21
    Click Properties. It's at the bottom of the drop-down menu. Clicking it prompts a new window to open.
  10. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 22How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 22
    Uncheck the "Read-only" box. You'll find this near the bottom of the window.
  11. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 23How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 23
    Click Apply. It's in the bottom-right corner of the window.
  12. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 24How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 24
    Click OK when prompted. This will ensure that everything in the Temp folder is affected by the removal of the "Read-only" protection.
    1. You may have to click Continue or Skip, or otherwise verify that you want to remove read-only protection from this folder, before continuing.
  13. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 25How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 25
    Click OK. It's at the bottom of the window. You can now proceed with deleting the Temp folder's contents.
  14. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 26How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 26
    Open the Temp folder. Double-click the Temp folder to open it in Windows Explorer.
  15. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 27How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 27
    Select all of the folder's files. Click Organize again and then click Select all, or press the Ctrl and A keys at the same time.
  16. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 28How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 28
    Delete the files. Press your computer's Del key, or click Organize and then click Delete in the drop-down menu. Doing so will move the Temp folder's contents into the Recycle Bin.
    1. You'll need to empty the Recycle Bin in order to permanently remove these files from your computer.
    2. There may be a couple of system files in the Temp folder. If so, you won't be able to delete these. They'll only take up a few kilobytes of space.
Part 3 of 4:

Deleting Windows Temporary Files

  1. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 29How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 29
    Click the My Computer tab again. It's on the left side of the Windows Explorer window.
  2. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 30How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 30
    Double-click your hard drive. This will re-open your hard drive's folder.
  3. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 31How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 31
    Double-click the Windows folder. It's usually near the middle of this window.
  4. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 32How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 32
    Scroll down and select the Temp folder. You'll find this near the bottom of the window.
  5. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 33How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 33
    Remove the Temp folder's read protection. To do so:
    1. Click Organize
    2. Click Properties
    3. Uncheck the "Read-only" box.
    4. Click Apply
    5. Click OK when prompted.
    6. Click OK
  6. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 34How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 34
    Open the Temp folder. Double-click the folder to do so.
  7. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 35How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 35
    Select all of the folder's files. Click Organize again and then click Select all, or press the Ctrl and A keys at the same time.
  8. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 36How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 36
    Delete the files. Press your computer's Del key, or click Organize and then click Delete in the drop-down menu. Doing so will move the Temp folder's contents into the Recycle Bin.
    1. You'll need to empty the Recycle Bin in order to permanently remove these files from your computer.
Part 4 of 4:

Deleting Internet Explorer Temporary Files

  1. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 37How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 37
    Open Start
    How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 38How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 38
    . Click the Windows logo in the bottom-left corner of the screen.
  2. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 39How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 39
    Click the text box. It's the search field at the bottom of the Start window.
  3. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 40How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 40
    Type in internet options. Doing so will search your computer for the Internet Options program.
  4. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 41How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 41
    Click Internet Options. It's the globe-shaped icon at the top of the Start window.
  5. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 42How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 42
    Click the General tab. This option is in the top-left side of the Internet Options window.
  6. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 43How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 43
    Click Settings. It's in the lower-right corner of the "Browsing history" section of the window.
  7. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 44How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 44
    Click View files. This option is near the bottom-right corner of the window.
  8. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 45How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 45
    Select the files. Click Organize again and then click Select all, or press the Ctrl and A keys at the same time.
  9. How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 46How to Delete Temporary Files in Windows 7 Picture 46
    Delete the files. Press your computer's Del key, or click Organize and then click Delete in the drop-down menu. Doing so will send the Internet cache folder's files to the Recycle Bin.
    1. You'll need to empty the Recycle Bin in order to permanently remove these files from your computer.
5 ★ | 1 Vote
clickfolderwindowfiles

You should read it

Maybe you are interested

Windows 7