How to fix C drive full on Windows 11

How to fix C drive full on Windows 11 helps you clean and free up storage space, while increasing system performance, reducing the possibility of crashes and ensuring smooth and optimal operation of your computer. In this article, TipsMake shares with you how to fix C drive full on Windows 11.

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I. Why is drive C on Windows 11 full?

Drive C is also known as the main storage drive of the operating system with all important data. During use, the C: drive is always the most active place, so capacity problems are inevitable.

1. Install many applications

The Windows 11 operating system does not have built-in applications, so users must install applications from third-party providers. By default, when installing applications, applications will choose drive C as the main storage location, for Even if you have many drives, if you do not change the storage location during the first installation, the system will still automatically select drive C.

Therefore, when installing applications on your computer, divide the drive appropriately for applications to avoid the C: drive from constantly filling up.

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2. Junk files, lots of junk files

During the process of using the computer, Win 11 generates many junk files, junk files that have not been cleaned and they also take up storage space on the C drive. Your job is to clean the computer periodically to Drive C is clean of junk, no junk files and increased storage capacity for necessary documents.

3. Low disk space

Currently, users are tending to switch to SSD storage and the investment in hard drives is increasingly being reduced. Most computer stores today suggest users use 120GB SSD. Not only that, popular laptop models on the market today often only offer 120GB laptop versions. This means that the storage capacity is reduced quite a bit because the Windows 11 operating system takes up 30-40GB of space. So users only have about 80GB of storage left and this is not enough to install heavy applications such as: AutoCAD, Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, Premiere Pro CC.

In case you are eligible to upgrade, use a 250GB drive or higher to get more storage space.

II. How to fix C drive full on Windows 11

1. Fix C drive full by cleaning trash

Step 1 : Right-click Start and select Settings to open the settings.

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Step 2 : Then, select System and press Storage to view the storage capacity on the Win 11 operating system.

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Step 3 : Next, select Cleanup recommendations to open the hard drive cleaning mode stored on your computer.

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Step 4 : Finally, select Clean up . to clean up junk data and free up C drive space on your Windows 11 computer.

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2. Uninstall unnecessary applications to fix C drive being full

In case your computer has been used for a long time and has many applications installed but rarely used, the simplest way is to remove applications on Windows 11.

Step 1 : Open Start and enter Control Panel to open.

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Step 2 : Then, select the Uninstall a program section of the Programs tab to proceed with uninstalling the application.

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Step 3 : Please check the applications on your computer. If any application is unnecessary or unused, remove it.

To remove the application on Windows 11, right-click and select Uninstall/Change .

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3. Delete Cache data on Win 11 to free up memory

During use, Win 11 generates many Cache files that are not important to the system. You can delete Cache on Windows 11 to free up drive C on your computer.

Step 1 : Press Windows + R , enter %temp% and select OK to open the Cache storage folder.

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Step 2 : Then, press Ctrl + A to select everything and select Delete to delete.

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4. How to fix C drive full with Disk Cleanup

Disk Cleanup appeared in Windows 10 and is still maintained on Windows 11. The Disk Cleanup tool helps you clean up the drive on your computer and helps free up storage space on your computer.

Step 1 : Open Start , enter Cleanup and open Disk Cleanup to clean drive C on your computer.

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Step 2 : Then, select drive C in the Drives section and click OK to start cleaning.

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Step 3 : When the system has finished scanning the drive, select Clean up system files to clean up junk on drive C and free up storage space.

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5. Install the automatic drive cleanup feature on Win 11 so that drive C does not become full

The Windows 11 operating system has a feature to automatically clean up the drive when it is full or does not have enough storage space left. When your computer constantly encounters the problem of C drive being full, install an automatic feature to solve the problem.

Step 1 : Right-click Start and select Settings to open the settings.

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Step 2 : Then, select System and select Storage to manage hard drive storage.

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Step 3 : To enable the automatic drive cleanup feature, turn on the Storage Sense feature .

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Step 4 : The Storage Sense feature setup window has many features and you set it up as follows:

1. Keep Windows running smoothly by automatically cleaning up temporary system and app files – ON
2. Automatic User content cleanup – ON
3. Run Storage Sense – During low free disk space (Activates when the drive is full)
4. Delete files in my recycle bin if they have been there for over – Time to delete the trash on the computer (Set as needed)
5. Delete files in my Downloads – Time to delete the Downloads folder on the computer (Set according to needs)

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6. Use CCleaner to clean up drives on your computer

CCleaner is the most popular computer cleaning tool in the world and is highly effective in cleaning up hard drive storage space.

1. Download CCleaner

Step 1 : Download CCleaner to your computer and install the application.

Step 2 : Open CCleaner, select Custom Clean and select Analyze to analyze data on the drive.

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Step 3 : Finally, choose Run Cleaner to delete junk data on your computer and free up space for drive C.

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In this article, TipsMake has shared with you how to fix full C drive on Win 11. Have a nice day!

Samuel Daniel

Update 09 April 2024