Description of the Disk Cleanup Tool (186099)

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When you use the Disk Cleanup tool, you can free hard disk space on your computer by:

• Deleting temporary Internet files.
• Deleting downloaded program files.
• Emptying the Recycle Bin.
• Deleting files from your temporary folder.
• Deleting files created by other Windows 98 or Windows Me tools.
• Removing optional Windows 98 or Windows Me components that you do not use.
• Removing installed programs that you do not use.
• Converting your hard disk drive to the FAT32 file system.

To free hard disk space on your computer, use any of the following methods:

Delete Stored Files

You can remove files stored on your hard disk that you do not use. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Double-click My Computer, right-click the hard disk on which you want to free space, click Properties, and then click Disk Cleanup on the General tab.
2. On the Disk Cleanup tab, click to select the check boxes of the files that you want to remove, click OK, click Yes, and then click OK.

Remove Windows Components

You can free more hard disk space by removing optional components that you do not use. To do so, use the following steps.

1. Double-click My Computer, right-click the hard disk on which you want to free space, click Properties, and then click Disk Cleanup on the General tab.
2. On the More Options tab, click Clean Up under Windows Components.
3. If a component's check box is shaded, only some of the components are installed. If you want to see what is included in the component, click to select the component, and then click Details. If you want to remove components, click to clear the check boxes of the components that you do not want to use, click OK, click OK, and then click OK.

Remove Installed Programs

You can free hard disk space by removing programs that you do not use. To do so, use the following steps:

1. Double-click My Computer, right-click the hard disk on which you want to free space, click Properties, and then click Disk Cleanup on the General tab.
2. On the More Options tab, click Clean Up under Installed Programs.
3. On the Install/Uninstall tab, click the program that you want to remove, and then click Add/Remove. Follow the instructions on your screen to remove the program.
4. Repeat step 3 to remove additional programs, click OK, click OK, and then click OK.

Convert Hard Disk to FAT32 File System

You may be able to gain additional hard disk space by converting your hard disk to the FAT32 file system. To convert your hard disk to the FAT32 file system, see the following article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base: