We don't always pay enough attention to our PC's hard drive storage capacity . We simply download programs and accumulate all kinds of files until one day, we suddenly discover that this space isn't infinite. In this post, we'll show you how to identify the files that take up the most space on your hard drive and what solutions you can apply.
The first warning sign is usually when, suddenly, one day, a message appears on the screen: low disk space available . This not only affects the computer's storage capacity but also its proper performance : new applications cannot be installed, the computer runs very slowly, etc.
The key to solving the problem lies in locating its source. What is taking up so much space on our hard drive? In a normal situation, the hard drive contains system files, installed applications, personal files, and backups, but it also (all too often) contains unknown files from viruses or other types of malware.
But let's take it one step at a time. The first thing we should do in these cases is check how much free space we have left on our computer . Once we've identified the files that are taking up the most space on the hard drive, we'll review the most effective methods for deleting them.
How much free space do I have on my hard drive?
To give an answer to that question, you just have to do a very simple check from Microsoft's own operating system. The steps to follow are these:
- First of all, from the Windows search bar we write "Settings" and we click on the result icon that appears.
- Then we select "System".
- From there, we access "Storage".
- Lastly, we click on the disk we want to check and all the information will appear.
What files take up the most space?
Knowing exactly how much space each item or folder on our hard drive occupies is a very slow and tedious task, as it requires manually listing each file or folder. Fortunately, there are programs specifically designed to check all the data we have stored: hard drive analyzers.
These programs execute their mission in much less time than we would do and provide us with the results in a clear and understandable way through useful graphics. They allow us to find out which files take up the most space on the hard drive.
Although there are many options available, some of the most popular and best-performing hard drive analyzers are Disksavvy , Ridnacs (pictured above), and Wiztree.
Tools to free up space on our hard drive
Knowing which files are taking up the most hard drive space is useless if we don't know how to get rid of them. There are several ways to do this without using complicated external programs. We've listed them below:
Disk Cleanup
This is a feature well-known to most Windows users. It's very simple to use. Just click on the disk you want to clean. Then, in the window that opens, select the "Properties" tab and choose the "Disk Cleanup" option . Finally, select the files you want to delete and click "OK" to permanently erase them.
However, Disk Cleanup may only be a partial solution. After a while, we may encounter space issues again, so we need to try other methods.
Uninstall obsolete or unnecessary programs
The problem of insufficient disk space almost always stems from the presence of programs and games that take up a lot of space. Furthermore, these are often programs that we no longer use or that we don't really need.
That's why it's so important to do a good clean-up every now and then . The procedure is familiar to everyone: from the Start button, go to "Settings," then to "Apps," and finally to "Apps & features ." There you can uninstall the programs you no longer want.
Delete backups and restore points
We'll never tire of emphasizing the importance of backups , although we must also admit that they take up considerable space on our hard drives. That's why it's better to use the cloud and undo everything we've done before: delete backups and restore points to free up disk space.
To delete those restore points and reduce the space used for system restore, do the following:
- First, we open the administrator and right click on "This team".
- Then, in the drop-down menu, we select the tab «Properties» and we click the button "Set up".
- Finally, we delete all system restore points and we disable system protection to free up disk space.