Computer Help - Should I delete files that are old or leave them?

Question

should i delete files that are old and haven't benn modified in a long time or do i need them. i want to cealn my disk for more space.

Some files are hard to know what are needed to be run.

Answer 1

Be careful. If you are not sure what it is, leave it alone. Your operating system files have probably not been modified for a long tome, but I would not delete them.

One easy way to make space is to use CCleaner. It's free and easy to use.

Answer 2

I wouldn't delete anything just yet. If you want to start making room open your Control Panel and then Add/Remove Programs and in the upper right you have the Sort option. Sort by Date Last Used. That will give you a good idea of what you use and what you don't use. Remove what you don't use, but first write down the name. Afterwards goto the C drive..then Program Files and delete all of the folders that belong to the programs you deleted..that will get rid of lots of files and free up some space. I would download the 30 day free trial of "Tune Up Utilities" also. That program is pretty nice and it'll free up space you would never think to look at. Hope that gets you started.

Answer 3

To remove old programs, don't browse around the drive and look for file dates, go into control panel, and use Add/Remove programs. That way, the uninstaller will remove all of the appropriate components.

For example, if you have a program like Print Shop or AOL or a game like Half-Life installed and you never use them, uninstall them and you'll free up significant space. For pictures, documents and music- well, you've got to recognize which of those files you wish to keep... But if you're not an expert, then never manually delete files from operating system folders like C:\Windows, C:\Windows\system, C:\WINNT, C:\i386 - that would get you into trouble in a hurry.

Answer 4

Only if the old files that do not effect the programming or operating system should be deleted. There is no real good reason to hold on to files no longer in use.

Answer 5

With the price of HDD space I hold on to everything except duplicates.
Things I don't need often I keep on external disc drives.
I have documents going back to 1986 and am happy I don't need to keep paper copies.
I have over 30,000 pictures going back 13 years, all backed up separately.
I do not put programs on my C: drive so it stays clean for files only used by windows, including the swap file.
All my data gets backed up every 2 weeks (about 27GB at this point).
Keeps my disc space clean, up to date and protected from sudden HDD failure.

Answer 6

If you aren't using them,or can't find them, chance is they are taking up space only. I would do a disk clean up. If you aren't sure can defragment the files & that'll help the 'puter to run faster.
you can do one or both these services at start, programs, then click on system tools.
Can always restore at system restore.

Good Luck

Answer 7

i second the guy wwho suggested ccleaner. it's a great application, and will free up some hard drive space. DO NOT GO THROUGH YOUR HARD DRIVE AND JUST START DELETING FILES!!! you will destroy your windows installation if you take out one file that it needs to load and end up having to reinstall windows!

Answer 8

If you don't want it any more... delete it (AS LONG AS YOU KNOW WHAT IT IS!). If you don't... leave it. Also, you can get online storage to clear parts of your hard drive instead of storing all of your files on your hard drive. One great service is mozy ( http://mozy.com/ ) or XDrive from AOL ( http://www.xdrive.com/ ). Both of which are free.

Answer 9

If u need them leave them if u dont delete them.