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Fix

Disk C is full

Step 1 of 4

Empty the Recycle Bin

Right-click Recycle Bin on the desktop, choose Empty Recycle Bin, then Yes.

The simulation shows Windows in English, like most laptops.

  1. Empty the Recycle Bin

    Right-click Recycle Bin on the desktop, choose Empty Recycle Bin, then Yes.

  2. Delete temporary files

    Open this menu, then Temporary files, and press Remove files.

    SettingsSystemStorageTemporary files

  3. Switch on Storage Sense

    On the same Storage page, switch Storage Sense on. Windows will then clean junk files by itself.

    SettingsSystemStorageStorage Sense

  4. Uninstall apps you don’t use

    Open this menu, click ··· next to an app you don’t use, then Uninstall.

    SettingsAppsInstalled apps

From basic to technician

BasicUninstall an app on the laptop
FixDisk C is fullYou are here
Technician fixes (advanced)

The simple steps didn’t help? A technician would try these next, in this order. Stop as soon as the problem is fixed. Commands marked “as administrator”: right-click Start › Terminal (Admin).

  1. Clean up system files

    Press Win + R, run cleanmgr, choose C: › Clean up system files › C: again. Tick Windows Update Cleanup, Delivery Optimization Files, Temporary files and Recycle Bin. This often frees 5–20 GB.

    Leave “Downloads” unticked: those are your own files.

  2. Shrink the Windows component store (as administrator)

    Removes old versions of system components replaced by updates. Safe; takes a few minutes.

    DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup

  3. Remove the hibernation file (as administrator)

    The hidden file C:\hiberfil.sys › is about as big as your RAM (often 6–16 GB). Turning hibernation off deletes it. Sleep still works; only Hibernate and Fast Startup are switched off. To undo: powercfg /hibernate on.

    powercfg /hibernate off

  4. Find your biggest folders

    Read-only: it lists the folders in your user profile by size. Usually Downloads, Videos or a WhatsApp/phone backup folder is huge. Move big personal files to an external drive or cloud; uninstall big games you no longer play (Settings › Apps › Installed apps › Sort by size).

    Get-ChildItem $env:USERPROFILE -Directory | ForEach-Object { $s = (Get-ChildItem $_.FullName -Recurse -File -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue | Measure-Object Length -Sum).Sum; "{0,8:N1} GB  {1}" -f ($s / 1GB), $_.Name } | Sort-Object -Descending

  5. Restore points and the long-term fix

    System Properties › System Protection › Configure: restore points may use 5–10% of the disk; 3–5% is enough. If C: is a small SSD (128–256 GB), the real fix is a bigger SSD; a shop can clone your disk so nothing needs reinstalling.

Coming soon

Still not fixed?

In the next update you can tell us what happened, and our AI helper will suggest another way. Until then, restart the device and go through the steps once more.