Computer hard disks are getting bigger and bigger, and you think you can load as many files as you like and never worry about running out of storage space. However, the hard disk will inevitably become full at some point, which will prevent you from saving, copying, pasting, or downloading files. How to free up space on hard disk without losing valuable files? This article describes how to use the built-in tools on Windows and Mac computers to delete unneeded files.
Step
Method 1 of 2: On Windows
Step 1. Empty the Recycle Bin
This is an easy first step to freeing up space. When you delete a file in Windows, the file is moved to the Recycle Bin, not permanently deleted. This means that many files that you thought were lost are still stored and taking up a lot of space. Empty the Recycle Bin by right-clicking the Recycle Bin icon on the desktop (shaped like a trash can), then selecting Empty Recycle Bin.
If you want to permanently delete a file without having to move it to the Recycle Bin, select the desired file, then delete the file by pressing the button Shift and Delete simultaneously.
Step 2. Remove unused programs
Do you have a lot of programs installed on your computer? Try removing unused programs to free up space. How to do it:
- Click menu Start and select Settings.
- Click Apps to bring up the applications installed on the computer.
- You can sort the list by name, date when installed, or app size via the " Sort by " drop-down menu.
- Click the program you want to remove and select Uninstall.
Step 3. Look at the storage space usage on the computer
Windows 10 has a new tool for deleting very good files (similar to Disk Cleanup, but more modern). This tool can show which files are taking up the most space on your hard disk. You can run this tool by clicking Start, choose Settings, clicked System, then click Storage in the left pane.
- In the right pane, you'll see the name of your computer's hard disk (such as "C:"), followed by the total storage space size.
- Below that is a bar that displays the total amount of space used to store the file.
- Below that again, there is a list of categories. This category reflects the types of files on your computer and the amount of space used by those files.
- Click Show more categories under the various file types to see all the available categories.
Step 4. Enable Storage Sense
Storage Sense will automatically monitor the amount of space on your hard disk being used and clean up unneeded files. This feature can be enabled via the Storage settings. How to do it:
- To have Storage Sense run on a scheduled basis, click the toggle at the top of the Storage settings. This is only optional because you can actually run Storage Sense manually if you want to skip this step.
- Click Configure Storage Sense or run it now that's under the button (even if you don't enable this feature).
- Choose the time you want Storage Sense to run (when the storage space on your hard drive is running low, or on a set schedule).
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Specify the files you want to delete at the scheduled time.
You can delete unneeded temporary application files, empty the Recycle Bin at a certain time, and/or delete files in the Downloads folder that have not been opened for a certain period of time
- Click Clean now at the bottom of the screen to launch Storage Sense.
- To return to the Storage settings, click the Back button.
Step 5. Delete other unneeded temporary files
This is another option in the Storage settings. Click category Temporary files to view files that are considered temporary (temporary). To mark the type of file you want to delete, you can click the box next to the file name and description, then click the button Remove files at the top to confirm it. Double-check to make sure no important files were accidentally deleted.
- The "Downloads" folder is where downloads are stored by default. Only check this box if you don't use the files in the Downloads folder on a regular basis.
- Anything in " Windows Update Cleanup," " Microsoft Defender Antivirus, " " Delivery Optimization Files," and " Temporary Windows installation files " are unimportant files from previous updates. You can safely delete it, unless the local admin doesn't allow it.
Step 6. Delete unnecessary and unused personal files
Files in the Documents, Pictures, Videos, Music, and Downloads folders can take up a lot of space. If you don't want to delete it permanently, try moving it to an external drive.
- A handy way to check files is to open the Storage settings by clicking on the Start, choose Settings, clicked System, and clicking Storage.
- Click Show more categories under the category in the list.
- Click Documents, Music, Videos, or whatever file types you want to manage.
- Click button View to open the folder containing the files.
- Click menu View, then select Details so you can see the file size.
- Before deleting something, open the file first to check its contents. Next, close the file so you can delete it.
- To delete a file, click the file once to select it, press the button delete on the keyboard (keyboard), and confirm when prompted.
- Deleted files will be moved to the Recycle Bin so that actually your storage space is not empty. Empty the Recycle Bin by right-clicking the desktop and selecting Empty Recycle Bin.
Method 2 of 2: On macOS
Step 1. Open the Storage Management tool on the Mac computer
This tool allows you to find out which files are taking up the most space. You can also use it to free up space. Once opened, this tool will show you a list of all the files on your Mac and their file sizes. How to run this tool:
- Click the Apple menu in the upper-left corner.
- Click About This Mac.
- Click Storage.
- Click Manage.
Step 2. Click Store in iCloud to save a specific file in the cloud
This feature allows you to save Photos, Messages, Documents, and Desktop files to iCloud to save space on your hard drive. You can still open and use the files you have in iCloud by double-clicking to download the file you want to view or edit, and the file will open right away. You can get 5 GB of free storage space in iCloud, and you have to pay if you want to get additional space. The cheapest plan is $0.99 per month for 50 GB of storage space. How to save files in iCloud:
- Click Desktop and Documents to move files in these two locations to iCloud Drive.
- Click Photos to save photos to iCloud Photos.
- Click Messages to store all iMessages and attachments in iCloud instead of on a Mac.
Step 3. Click Optimize to remove old television shows, movies, and email attachments
This doesn't delete the data permanently-you just back it up to cloud storage. Unlike Store in iCloud, optimized data does not reduce the storage space quota in iCloud.
If this option is selected, all optimized files will have a cloud icon next to them. If you want to re-download the optimized file, double-click the cloud icon
Step 4. Set the Trash on Mac computer to empty automatically
When you delete something on your Mac, the file is moved to the Trash to make it easier for you to recover the file at a later date. This means that deleting files will not free up space on your hard disk, unless you empty the Trash. You can click Turn On next to " Empty Trash Automatically " to let Mac computers permanently delete all files in the Trash every 30 days.
- You can also empty the Trash at any time manually, by clicking Finder and choose Empty Trash.
- If you want to permanently delete the file without having to move it to the Trash first, press the button Control while clicking on the file, then select Delete immediately.
Step 5. Click the Review Files button to sort files by clutter
The bottom button in the Storage window displays a sortable list of documents. This way, you can find out which files you don't need and can delete from your computer.
- Click a file/folder type in the left pane to view files of that type.
- Use the tabs in the top right pane (Large Files, Downloads, etc.) to browse files that may not be needed.
- Before deleting something, open the file to make sure you don't want to keep it. After that, close the application that opened the file so you can delete it.
- You can delete files by dragging them to the Trash icon on the desktop.
- Don't forget to empty the Trash so you can free up space on your hard drive.
Step 6. Delete music files and music videos
Music files downloaded through Apple Music can be periodically deleted to free up space. As long as the music is purchased through Apple Music, the files will remain in the cloud and can be downloaded at any time.
- Open the Music app on your Mac.
- Hover your mouse over the song or video you want to delete. If there's a cloud icon next to the song/video, the file isn't actually stored on your Mac and isn't taking up space on your hard drive. Never delete this file.
- Click the three dots that appear, and select Remove.
- Once the file is deleted from your Mac, a cloud icon will appear next to the file. This indicates that the file is no longer stored on the computer, but can be downloaded from the cloud storage by double-clicking on it.
Step 7. Delete unneeded junk email
If you send and receive email using the Mail app on a Mac, you may end up storing a lot of messages in the Junk folder. These email messages can take up a lot of space. How to delete emails in Junk folder:
- Run the Mail app.
- Click menu Mailbox, then select Erase Junk Mail. By doing this, the junk mail will be moved to the Trash mailbox.
- If you want to empty the contents of the Trash email box to free up space on your hard disk, click the menu Mailbox and select Erase Deleted Items.
Tips
- If you're always running out of storage space, buy an external hard drive or a USB flash drive (flash drive). You can store large files on the drive to free up space on the internal hard drive.
- When downloading software, uninstall the program's installer after you've finished installing it.
- You should often empty the Recycle Bin or Trash.
Warning
- Files deleted from the Recycle Bin will be lost forever!
- Don't delete files that don't belong to you!
- If you have any doubts about a file and the type is unknown, don't delete it. If you suspect it is a virus, use an antivirus program to scan it.
