Beyond what Storage Sense clears automatically, Windows accumulates several other categories of junk over time, particularly leftover files from Windows Update installations. These can quietly use up many gigabytes on an older PC that's been through several major updates, and clearing them is completely safe.
Key takeaway: The built-in Disk Cleanup tool can safely remove old Windows Update files, temporary files and system logs, often freeing several gigabytes in one go.
Using Disk Cleanup for a deep clean
- Press the Windows key, type Disk Cleanup, and open it.
- Select your main drive (usually C:) and click OK while it calculates how much space can be freed.
- Click Clean up system files – this unlocks the most useful categories, including old update files.
- Select your drive again if prompted, and wait for the second, more thorough scan to finish.
- Tick Windows Update Cleanup, Temporary files, Delivery Optimization Files, Previous Windows installation(s) (if present), and Recycle Bin.
- Click OK, then confirm by clicking Delete Files.
Before you start: Only tick "Previous Windows installation(s)" if you're happy with your current version of Windows and don't need to roll back – once removed, you can no longer revert to the version you upgraded from.
Manually clearing the temp folder
- Press Windows key + R to open Run.
- Type %temp% and press Enter – this opens your personal temporary files folder.
- Press Ctrl+A to select everything, then Shift+Delete to remove it permanently (some files in use will be skipped automatically, which is normal and safe to ignore).
- Empty the Recycle Bin afterwards to fully reclaim the space.
Clearing the Windows Update cache manually
If Disk Cleanup doesn't free as much space as expected, you can clear the Windows Update download cache directly. Open Services from the Start menu search, find Windows Update, right-click and select Stop. Then open File Explorer, navigate to C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download, and delete the contents of that folder. Finally, return to Services and start the Windows Update service again.
Tip: Run Disk Cleanup's "system files" scan every few months, particularly after installing a major Windows feature update, as these tend to leave the largest amount of recoverable space behind.
Checking your results
Once you've finished, open Settings > System > Storage to see an updated breakdown of what's using space on your drive, and compare it against how things looked before you started. On PCs that haven't had this kind of clean-up in a long time, it's common to reclaim enough space to move from a worrying "storage almost full" warning to having several gigabytes of comfortable headroom again.
Tip: Setting up Storage Sense to run automatically afterwards means you shouldn't need to repeat this full manual process often, since the day-to-day build-up of temporary files will be kept in check going forward.
This kind of clean-up is worth repeating every few months, particularly around the time of major Windows feature updates each spring and autumn, which tend to leave behind the largest recoverable leftovers of all.
Frequently asked questions
- Is it safe to delete Windows Update Cleanup files?
- Yes, these are simply leftover installation files no longer needed once an update has completed successfully, and removing them won't affect how Windows runs.
- How much space can I typically expect to free?
- It varies, but 2-10GB is common on a PC that's been through several feature updates without a clean-up, especially if a "Previous Windows installation" folder is present.
- Do I need to restart my PC after clearing temporary files?
- A restart isn't strictly required, but it's a good idea afterwards to ensure any files that were skipped because they were in use get released and can be cleared too.