Monitor where disk space is going ?

[mistamontiel]

Hey there, is this possible ?

Because I'm not even downloading into my primary C:\ drive, yet it is almost less than a gig to full.

 

[Corazon]

One of the nicest tools to examine what's using your disk space is WinDirStat which offers a unique graphical way of displaying usage hierarchically by files and folders. Take a look:

WinDirStat - Windows Directory Statistics

 

[KimJensen]

I my experience, windows updates and internet cache can suddenly consume large quantities of hard disc space.

 

[mistamontiel]

Ya I never update and I clear cache in my Firefox browser

I was hoping for a clean legit not bulky app for this..thanks for recommending Heart I mean Corazon*

What I mean, just seeing what file is spawned by what, what file grows by how much, and such

 

[Brink]

Hello Alex,

In addition, the tutorial below may be able to help you find what is taking up the HDD space, and how to free it up if you wanted to.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/129976-hard-disk-space-free-up-recover.html

Hope this helps,
Shawn

 

[mistamontiel]

Ah, I'm a bit confused in the WinDirStat setup..do I want the ANSI option ?

 

[Brink]

Alex,

Not needed. The default options are fine to use.

 

[Corazon]

Ya I never update and I clear cache in my Firefox browser
I was hoping for a clean legit not bulky app for this..thanks for recommending Heart I mean Corazon*
What I mean, just seeing what file is spawned by what, what file grows by how much, and such

I have to wonder why you "never update." This isn't a good idea, you should always install important and critical Windows updates as they affect the security of your system a great deal.
Downloaded updates can be deleted from C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download once they are successfully installed. This will not affect their installation status or your ability to uninstall them if needed.

Generally, there are far more ways to clean up your disk and trim unneeded space besides just clearing the browser cache.

WinDirStat is far from bulky, as you will hopefully have noticed by now.

However, if you're actually interested in seeing which programs and Windows processes create files, when, where and how big, then you may be interested in Process Monitor which monitors (among other things) all filesystem activity in real-time. Be advised however that it's a very advanced tool and can be confusing if you don't understand all its options.

Process Monitor

 

[DMHolt57]

Check the System Volume Information file, it's hidden so you have to turn on show hidden and system files....also can run this command in admin, vssadmin list shadowstorage

 

[mistamontiel]

Corazon, I don't update just the fear of classic stuff not performing anymore..and Adblock Plus does its job very well, great widely used browser add-on

DMHolt57, lost me a bit there, but I was just to mention this WinDirStat seems complex to me..

That's what I want to monitor..the files spawned/grown automatically without my will..not stuff I have downloaded already..

WinDirStat took its time to scan, then I was lost poking around just to look for those specific files I don't willingly download/edit

 

[Corazon]

I'm sorry that WinDirStat didn't live up to your expectations. There's a good number of tutorials right on this site that can tell you what's safe to clean up/delete on your system, including System Restore, the pagefile, hibernation, and much more.

I still urge you to at least install all Windows updates marked as critical. Your fear is unreasonable, in very few cases would an update actually break things - and if it does, the cause is usually something else that needs fixed anyway.

Please keep in mind that updates address much more than just browser security. Using an ad blocker is by no means an adequate substitute.

 

[rubyrubyroo]

mistamontiel,

This problem could be caused by many issuse, first I'll ask how large your C:/ Drive is overall. I't could potentially be a bit smaller than you truely need.

Second, Follow the advice from the linked tutorials provided by the members/admin, if you hav not already, such as Brink's link to help you clean your drive and remove all but necessary parts, it's really straight-forward.

If you do not use HYBERNATE as a way to "turn off your computer while saving the session", you can remove a very large file that is essentially useless to you, I have no link to a tutorial, but I'll find one or explain it step-by-step if you would like to try that!

NOTE :: BE CAREFUL: don't downaload programs that promise to get rid of extra junk and clean your registry, unless they have been reccommended highly by a trusted/reputable source.

(also as a final note, if none of this helps:
1) your user profile may be oversized from lots of extra profle speficic customizations
2.) you could have a drive error, and might consider checking yor hdd for errors.
3) if you have not been updating windows, and/or other essential programs, you might have aquired some maleware.)

Use the tutorials in these forums to work through these possible issues.
Anyone here can talk you through the steps of anything i mentioned as well as link you to tutorials explaining them in very explicit details!

Good Luck,
Mike

 

[mistamontiel]

rubyrubyroo, thanks much for stepping in. Well it's a "325 gig", and there's the Recovery drive so the primary drive is a wee 288 gig capacity

I did kill the Hybernate file, it's a mere gig if I recall correctly

And yes, I only trust software from the sevenforums members