Folder Created by Successful Standalone-Installer Update

Rick1441 · 13 Jul 2016

Yesterday, for reasons I won't go into (but feel free to ask if interested), I installed Patch Tuesday update KB3161608 (x64) via the downloaded MS standalone installer (.msu), instead of via Windows Update. The installation was successful. (A little more detail, in case it might have any relevance: After I first started the install it seemed stuck at the "Searching for Updates" stage. Clicking cancel would not make the dialog go away. So I restarted the pc, with the "Searching for Updates" message still active. Upon restart and retry, it moved past the "Searching for Updates" stage almost instantly, and the install went smoothly.)

But now I see that, apparently as a result of the installation, Windows created a new lengthy-name locked sub-folder of C. (See screenshots of folder and contained files.)

Is this normal? What is this folder for? Can I delete or move it?

Thanks.

torchwood · 13 Jul 2016

Hi Rick,
Thats cause you downloaded via WSUS (business) servers, there are some fix's that utilise this option, NOT the normal day to day standard user servers.

Roy

EDIT

DO NOT DELETE IT

Rick1441 · 13 Jul 2016

Thanks torchwood. Do you know how the system uses the folder going forward, and why it shouldn't be deleted? And can it be moved (e.g., to the Windows folder) or renamed?

UsernameIssues · 13 Jul 2016

Rick1441 said:

...Windows created a new lengthy-name locked sub-folder of C...

Minor point:
The installer created that temp folder, not the Windows OS.

See this post with my videos:
Unnecessary files creating in External HDD

I'll let torchwood tell us why we should not manually delete them.

There is probably some reason why these installers do not create that temp folder in the Windows\Temp folder, but I don't know what that reason would be.

Rick1441 · 13 Jul 2016

Thanks. FWIW, I just did a search and found that a subfolder of Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download has a file that appears to be identical to the largest file in my screenshot, Windows6.1-KB3161608-x64.cab. It has a Created timestamp that is about an hour later than the version in the screenshot.

torchwood · 14 Jul 2016

Its the equivalent of the Windows/SXS file and contains the manifest (.mum) and catalog (.cat) folders which may be needed at a later stage if you encounter problems.
(the .cat & .mum files are used by SURT and sfc scannow)

Roy

Andyrids · 14 Jul 2016

Almost every time the Windows Installer gets stuck or you cancel it there will be a temp file with that kind of naming convention in the root of C or if you are installing an update from drive D it will be left there instead... after you have restarted and managed to successfully install the update it still does not remove the previous temp file it created...
Personally I just delete them from the root of C or if they are on D been doing this for years without any known side affects in my case...

Rick1441 · 14 Jul 2016

Thanks, Andyrids! That all makes sense.

Andyrids · 14 Jul 2016

Rick1441 said:

Thanks, Andyrids! That all makes sense.

No problem mate :)

Just as a side note, only remove the ones that fail that you find in the root of C or D don't do anything with the others... I know you understand what I meant just saying in case another person reads and does not.

UsernameIssues · 15 Jul 2016

The drive that the installer picks to create the temp folder on should be the one with the most free space. It should not matter what drive the installer was launched from.

The vast majority of these temp folders go away on their own. Some of these temp folders only exits for a few seconds. Sadly, some installers are flawed and will leave their temp folder behind every time - even if there were no errors during the installation.

I too have deleted them for years - after I look around inside the folder and any sub-folders that might be there. It might be safer to leave them be, but I would have dozens of them if I did that. torchwood, how many of these folders do you have in the root?