Clean-up (PRO SP2)

Topic

New Reply

A perennial question (and New Year’s resolution): Can anyone suggest, especially after so much failed download activity over SP2, what Windows files or folders are safe to delete assuming all is working well? The only thing I could find and be sure of was that my System Restore setting was far too generous. I now have SP2 on CD if I need it, I will have full backups, and I’d like to know if there are Windows files that can be deleted. They’re probably small potatoes relative to the size of today’s drives, and for most this will be an academic question.

Reply | Quote

Replies

I don’t know why you would want to, but I suppose if you wanted to get back around 300MB of disk space, you could delete all the $NtUninstallKB******** folders and the $NtServicePackUninstall$ folders from the C:Windows folder.

Reply | Quote

If all is working well and you don’t forsee having to uninstall SP-2 or other patches you can delete the folders under C:Windows that begin with ‘$NtUninstall’. You can also delete the log files under C:Windows that begin with KBxxxx or Qxxxxxx – they are just text log files of the patch installation.

Joe

--Joe

Reply | Quote

If all is working well and you don’t forsee having to uninstall SP-2 or other patches you can delete the folders under C:Windows that begin with ‘$NtUninstall’. You can also delete the log files under C:Windows that begin with KBxxxx or Qxxxxxx – they are just text log files of the patch installation.

Joe

--Joe

Reply | Quote

You may have a hidden folder in your Windows folder called $hf_mig$, unlike some other folders that begin and end with dollar signs this folder and its contents should not be deleted. For details see Description of the contents of Windows XP Service Pack 2 and Windows Server 2003 software update packages

Reply | Quote

Thank you for the explanations. I was chiefly concerned about downloads that didn’t install and might still be doing nothing, and for any comment on CAB files which historically have been a topic of debate.

Reply | Quote

Which CAB files specifically?

Joe

--Joe

Reply | Quote

Which CAB files specifically?

Joe

--Joe

Reply | Quote

You may have a hidden folder in your Windows folder called $hf_mig$, unlike some other folders that begin and end with dollar signs this folder and its contents should not be deleted. For details see Description of the contents of Windows XP Service Pack 2 and Windows Server 2003 software update packages

Reply | Quote