Summary: It's not uncommon to run out of disk space. A free utility can help tell where's your disk space is going so you can determine what steps to take.
Under your previous question "How can I tell what's taking up so much disk space?" I ran chkdsk /f and this ran but didn't free up any space? Then I downloaded diruse and this wouldn't run? I wondered if you could please help me further? Our disc drive is split into a C and a D drive which both have between 30 and 40 gig on each, we only ever save on the D drive, however the C drive is up to about 31.9 Gig with 540 meg left available! Apart from about 5 gig of photo's I can't understand what is taking up all the memory? The memory seems to continually go down and is now getting to a critical level. I have run spyware and adware checks and deleted all critical errors, but still not been able to free up any memory. I can't even defrag as I need 20% free to run this option.
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I wanted to revisit the "what's taking disk space" issue so I could recommend a tool that might be better for most people than the command line tool diruse I recommended in that previous article.
However this question also gives me an opportunity to clear up some misconceptions and some terms that don't mean what you think they mean.
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CHKDSK doesn't free up disk space; at least not intentionally. CHKDSK checks for errors on the disk and attempts to repair them. Sometimes that repair can result in more free space becoming available, but it's not the point. On a disk that has no errors running CHKDSK will not result in more free space becoming available.
Defragging is the same. I've had people ask why defragging the machine didn't free up space. That's not what defragging is about. Defragging simply rearranges the information on your hard disk for more efficient access. It doesn't create any free space.
Disk space is not memory. I keep hearing people confuse these terms and it's important - particularly when asking for help - that the terms you use accurately reflect what it is you're talking about. To over-simplify a little:
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Memory is the RAM (for Random Access Memory) where your programs and data reside when they are in use. When you turn your computer off your memory is erased. To free up memory you might just run fewer programs at the same time.
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Disk space is your hard drive where data is stored permanently or until you or a program explicitly erases it. To free up disk space you delete files.
Another good difference to note is size. My machine, for example, has 2 gigabytes of memory, but 70 gigabytes of disk space. Disk space on a machine is almost always much greater than its memory.
Somehow no matter how much we have, disk space never seems enough. As we collect pictures and programs, and programs themselves collect data, more and more disk space is consumed unless files are deleted.
But what files are taking up all that space?
Space Monger (version 1.x) is a free tool that will graphically show you what's taking up all the space on your machine. (A paid version of Space Monger is available with additional features, but for what we're doing the free version will suffice.) For example, here's a display of one of my hard disks:
The concept is simple: the bigger the box, the larger the file or files that the box represents. For example, the largest file on this hard drive appears to be an episode of Dr. Who that I recorded (this is a Windows Media PC). It's contained within a folder named "Recorded TV" which contains, among other things, another episode, also fairly large. By looking at this display I can quickly see that there's a lot of disk space taken up there, and if I want to free up over 7 gigabytes of disk space I need only delete those two files.
Now, as to what's eating up the disk space on your machine, there's no way for me to know. However using a tool such as Space Monger you should be able to relatively quickly see what's taking up all that space and take appropriate action.
Related:
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Ask Leo! - Can I delete the contents of my TMP folder?
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Ask Leo! - How can I tell what's taking up so much disk space?
Article C3173 - October 8, 2007
Try going into your email program, and from one of the drop-down menus, select 'compress folders'.
Posted by: Roberts Smithem at October 28, 2008 9:45 AMIf this works, then go into 'options' in your email program, and look for a place where you can set a size to 'compress folders when it will save ___ kb on your hard drive'.
The link for SpaceMonger 1.4 no longer downloads the old free version...only the new one. Is there somewhere else I can get it?
29-Oct-2008
The link to SpaceMonger v1.4 DOES work, but it might not be obvious how to actually get it.
First, click on the SpaceMonger v1.4 link.
About 1/3 of the way down the page, there is another link that says "Download spcmn140.zip - Version 1.4.0 - Win95/98/NT/2K/XP". Click on that.
This brings up a page titled "Download", but at first all you see are buttons to download either version 2.1 or version 2.1.1.
But now click on the "Free Software" tab. This brings up a much larger list, but at the top of the list all you see is SpaceMonger PHP Scanner: version 1.5, 1.4, and so on.
Scroll almost all the way down to the bottom of the page. Aha! At last there is a button to download spcmn140.zip.
Posted by: Allan at October 30, 2008 11:46 AMI too recommend the free version of TreeSize by Jam Software, particularly for its Windows Explorer column function.
Open a folder, select View, Details, then right-click an existing column & tick the TreeSize column option which displays the sizes of any contained files or subfolders. (Why Microsoft never thought to display sizes next to subfolders I've never known.)
Posted by: Zap Coffey-Brittain at November 2, 2008 2:36 AMthank you, thank you, thank you!
i've had a good nosey around most of the site, and your information is always fantastic.
i'm nothing short of useless with computers. i can just about manage to switch the things on, and watch as it capitulates infront of my very eyes... oh the joy!
i'm currently working on speeding things up, and this tool (along with the task manager on steriods (too true, btw)) has worked a treat. very easy to use, clear, precise. couldnt ask for much more! i've managed to find year-old obsolete software that was hogging up all my disk space!
again, thank you. great work :D
Posted by: Matt at December 7, 2008 11:50 PMI really recommend WinDirStat for this kind of work - its a port of KDirStat for KDE. Anyone who's used it will fall head over heels for the program - its fantastic.
Posted by: Kushagra Udai at February 20, 2009 9:40 PMIf you use system restore delete all restore points except the latest one. This released 6 per-cent on my 20 gig C: partition.
Posted by: jim gassner at July 7, 2009 10:08 AMI have noticed some programs squirrel away files within the 'documents and settings' directory tree. One program I used to use archived files within the 'application data' folder under my log-in - a place which regularly goes unnoticed because it's not part of 'My Documents' or the original program's directory. After deleting over 2Gb of backed-up files, I kept an eye on it...
Posted by: Bob at August 26, 2009 7:36 AMin reference to:
"thank you, thank you, thank you!
i've had a good nosey around most of the site, and your information is always fantastic.
i'm nothing short of useless with computers. i can just about manage to switch the things on, and watch as it capitulates infront of my very eyes... oh the joy!
i'm currently working on speeding things up, and this tool (along with the task manager on steriods (too true, btw)) has worked a treat. very easy to use, clear, precise. couldnt ask for much more! i've managed to find year-old obsolete software that was hogging up all my disk space!
again, thank you. great work :D
Posted by: Matt at December 7, 2008 11:50 PM"
could you please state which tool you are refering to? I too am trying to speed things up & am not computer smart. Also,I don't understand your comment "task mgr. on steroids".
Posted by: suz at September 28, 2009 9:38 AMHi this may help, I have just recovered 8 gb. of space just by removing older System Restore points.I had 15 restore points which I delated.[beware-you must create a good up to date point prior to cleaning out procedure]
Posted by: Mac-Limey at November 18, 2009 3:18 AM