How to Remove Junk Files From PC

Disorganized and unsanitary places accumulate clutter. It’s no different when it comes to your computer. The more you use your computer, the more waste it accumulates.

On slow drives like traditional hard disks, junk files can slow your operating system to a crawl. Therefore, cleaning them frequently can help improve performance. Windows 10 features built-in tools to remove most junk files, and if something remains, you can manually clean it up. We’ll show you How to Remove Junk Files From PC.

Why Should You Clean Your Junk Files in Windows?

Junk files, like junk food, are of no use. Instead, it will make your system very difficult to manage. On computers with small SSD drives, you may experience insufficient storage and performance issues.

Removing the Trash can help you keep your files and folders organized, save valuable storage space, and improve system performance because your computer no longer has to rummage through such files. Which do nothing for you.

Different Types of Junk Files in a Windows Computer

All kinds of sources can create a junk file on your computer, from leftovers from uninstalled programs to that beloved wallpaper you downloaded years ago but eventually got bored of. Here are some types of junk files that most systems have:

Pre-files in the Recycle Bin. The files discarded in your Recycle Bin are probably unnecessary but remain in the folder, sometimes taking up gigabytes of storage.

Windows temporary files. These are junk files whose use is temporary and become redundant after the current task is completed.

Windows and third-party software remain. When you uninstall a program, not all files associated with the software are deleted. This can often conflict with other programs you are trying to work with.

Download. The Downloads folder usually takes up a portion of your storage space. Usually, it contains unwanted installers, images, videos, and other unused documents that accumulate inside it over time.

Thumbnails and thumbnail images may be considered junk files. However, you don’t need to clean them unless absolutely necessary. If cleared, your system will have to recreate the thumbnails, which can slow things down.

Create some restore points before cleaning junk files

System Restore in Windows allows you to undo system changes by taking your computer back to a previous restore point. This is useful if you delete an important system file and run into problems.

1. To free up space First empty the Recycle Bin.

Recycle Bin stores all the files you delete from your computer. This is a handy utility because you can recover deleted files if you accidentally delete one. However, if not cleaned frequently, it can accumulate gigabytes of files that eat up your storage space.

Luckily, cleaning the Recycle Bin is very easy. You can permanently select and delete individual files or empty them all at once.

• Open Recycle Bin from the desktop. If you don’t have a desktop shortcut available, type Recycle Bin in the Windows search bar and click the best match.
• Go through deleted files. If you want to restore one, right-click and select Restore.
• To delete all, right-click inside the folder and select Empty Recycle Bin.
• You can also perform this process from the desktop. Right-click the Recycle Bin shortcut and select Empty Recycle Bin. Click Yes to confirm the process.

2. Delete junk files to remove junk.

Temporary files are automatically created to hold file information in use. After the job is done, these files are deleted. Temporary files are kept in the Windows Worker folder, and you may manually stop working on temporary files to free up space in Windows.

• To clear temporary files:
• Press Win + R to open Run.
• Type %temp% and click OK.
• In the temporary folder, press Ctrl + A to select all files and press the Delete key. Click Skip for any files that appear in use.

3. Remove Junk Files With the Disk Cleanup Tool

The Disk Cleanup tool in Windows is a one-stop solution to clean junk files from your computer. It scans and calculates how much space you can free up on the selected drive.

Using Disk Cleanup, you can get rid of junk files like downloads, temporary Windows installation files, temporary internet files, delivery optimization files, recycle bins, etc.

How to use the Disk Cleanup tool

• Type disk cleanup in the Windows search bar and press Enter to launch the utility.
• Select a drive you want to wipe and click OK. It will scan the selected drive for junk files from various usual sources.
• After that, the tool will populate the screen showing how much space you can free up by deleting various junk files.
• Check the box to select the file you want to clean. To see which files will be removed, click View files.
• Click Cleanup system files to view temporary Windows installation files and device driver packages.
• Click OK to remove junk files. Select Delete files to confirm the process.

Remove junk files to further improve Windows performance.

Junk files are not a pretty sight and can negatively affect your system’s performance. However, you can either manually clean up the junk or run Disk Cleanup periodically to keep your system clean.

To free up more space, delete unnecessary programs such as bloatware, third-party system cleanup utilities, and other redundant applications from your system. Hope now you learn How to Remove Junk Files From PC?