Bug? Misuse? Missing feature?

[Darth__KEK]

Hi. I'm on a Win 8.1 notebook with limited C drive space so I need to keep it clear. My free space took a massive tumble downwards so I investigated and tried to clean. CCleaner got the usual suspects (e.g. browser cache, yes I know I can move that away) but even so that was only a few hundred MB and not the real problem. Turns out it was a big Windows update.

Thing is CCleaner doesn't seem to erase old updates correctly?

I had to go to C drive Properties, Disk Clean-Up, then Clean Up System Files. The "Windows Update Clean-Up" had a gig and a half or so in it.

Is it by intention CCleaner does not do the various System File clean-ups? Is it is a bug? Should CCleaner at least offer an option to open the System File clean-up if it doesn't do it itself?

 

 

[Andavari]

CCleaner used to be able to clean Windows.old several versions ago but it was removed because it could break Windows 10 which two users reported.

The safest way to clean Windows.old is with the built in Windows tools: Disk Cleanup, and/or also Storage Sense in Windows 10.

[Darth__KEK]

That's a shame it does that with Win 10, but it also means CCleaner is no longer functional for space-saving in Win 8 if you have to go into system clean-up files anyway. (It might still have use for privacy and whatnot but I'm the only user of this machine and that doesn't matter to me).

[Andavari]

You can add the functionality back into it by going into:
Options > Include, then add the path the Windows.old folder is located in. I'd still call it possibly dangerous though because with Windows Updates you never know what Microsoft might change even in Win 8/8.1 they could easily inherit something from Win10, and having CCleaner remove it could mess up your system.

[nukecad]

The way Windows Updates work now with Win 10, and possibly 8 and 8.1, is to download the updates but only apply the most important. They apply others later when your machine is 'idle'.

This means it can be a few days (or if you're busy weeks) before all the updates are applied.

So if you clear out the update files before that it can cause problems.

It's more complicated than that of course but I think that's a decent explanation of why you should only use Windows to know which update files can be safely removed.

[Darth__KEK]

Sigh. I understand, but still heartbreaking.

[Andavari]

It's one of the reasons years ago they had to remove the ability to clean the SoftwareDistribution folder in Windows, because it was breaking things. I think 3rd party cleaning tools who wish to clean Windows will need to play according to what Microsoft wants because if they are breaking Windows installations they could easily get blacklisted, i.e.; the software won't install or gets uninstalled by Windows. Not that long ago Win10 was removing CCleaner, and current day it won't let anyone use a really old version like CCleaner 5.28.

[Just ME Onlyme]

On 3/15/2019 at 07:17, Darth__KEK said:

Hi. I'm on a Win 8.1 notebook with limited C drive space so I need to keep it clear. My free space took a massive tumble downwards so I investigated and tried to clean. CCleaner got the usual suspects (e.g. browser cache, yes I know I can move that away) but even so that was only a few hundred MB and not the real problem. Turns out it was a big Windows update.

Thing is CCleaner doesn't seem to erase old updates correctly?

I had to go to C drive Properties, Disk Clean-Up, then Clean Up System Files. The "Windows Update Clean-Up" had a gig and a half or so in it.

Is it by intention CCleaner does not do the various System File clean-ups? Is it is a bug? Should CCleaner at least offer an option to open the System File clean-up if it doesn't do it itself?

 

 

What notebook is it?

Can you upgrade the HDD? You can youtube search or google search for your name notebook 'xyz notebook hard drive replacement' . Especially if it is Windows 8.1.. I'm 100% sure you can change the HDD to an SSD. You can check 'Slickdeals' 'Fry's' 'Microcenter' 'Newegg' 'Amazon' for good SSD sales.

If you buy an SSD for it (which are cheap now days) the SSD's usually come with a 'clone' program to simply copy over your old hard drive to new.

Therefore you have all the space you need and your 'specific' problem is solved.

 

You will also need an enclosure for the new drive to clone the old drive. Put the new drive into the enclosure, and plug it into the laptop.. clone the old drive over to it, then swap the new drive into the laptop.

Just make sure the new drive comes with a clone software. I know the Samsung drives do. 

IF you don't care about what is on the drive, photos, etc.. then do a fresh install of windows ( your restore CD or windows download has a link to OS restore thumbdrive files with using your Windows Authenticity code on the bottom of the laptop). Then plug new drive in and fresh install windows. No need for enclosure or clone.

 

The BEST upgrade to any laptop is changing from HDD to SSD. No moving parts drive (SSD = Solid State Drive /like a thumb drive ) are SUPER fast. It is like having a new laptop.

 

Ask anybody here if it is worth changing your HDD to SSD.

It would solve your issue and boost speeds.

[Guest Stephen CCleaner]

I would strongly advise against tampering with the Windows.old folder. Windows is now designed to programatically test apps and drivers after an update and automatically fall back to legacy drivers where needed. Once this process has concluded, Windows will also clean up after itself. This is certainly true for Windows 10, but I'm not sure how far back that functionality may have been retrofitted.

A word of caution: if you remove Windows update files without fully understanding what they are needed for,  you may create serious problems for you and your PC. There are usually better options if saving space is your goal.