Windows 10: 32GB hard drive on laptop, why does free space vary so much?

Sometimes there's <1GB free, sometimes >5GB, usually about 2. I have a 64 GB usb drive that I leave attached all the time, but what I don't understand is why the free space varies so much?

It's an ssd hd, windows 10, about a year old.

I think the Windows updates are an issue, and the latest one won't even install because there isn't enough space. But about 15 have installed since I bought it and I think they take up multiple GB's (~4), and I'm wondering if I should just uninstall them?

I run disk cleanup regularly, and store everything I can on the usb drive, but am still trying to figure out whether it's possible to get the computer to use the usb drive more.

:)

 

Space in hard drive

I have 3 laptops with 32GB hard drives. These hard drives are soldered in and not able to be changed. After spending a lot of time and trying a lot of tricks including uninstalling all programs not part of the laptop's operating system (e.g. leave manufacturers
screen optimising program etc) I found that the 1709 feature update would JUST have space to install. On the 3rd laptop it won't install because there is not enough space even after all my efforts. My conclusion 32gb is not enough space for Windows 10 to upgrade
smoothly. An ingenious user may be able to squeeze upgrades through. Microsoft should stop leading users up the garden path with a view that a 32gb computer is a practical Windows 10 proposition.

 

Lenovo N22 80S6 laptop 32GB Windows 10 Pro not enough hard drive space

I bought a Lenovo N22 80S6 laptop. It has a 32GB hard drive and 4GB of RAM, with Windows 10 Pro. When new the computer had very little free hard drive space, due to the very large size of the Windows 10 Pro operating system.

As the Windows updates have taken place, the available drive space is down to a bit over 4GB. I have no files, music, photos on the hard drive at all, and only a couple of very small additional programs.

The laptop will no longer install Windows updates, nor can I re-install a fresh copy of Windows 10 , even with a thumb drive attached, because Windows tells me I do not have the required 8GB of free hard drive space.

Lenovo refused to help me because they say their hardware is functioning normally, and this is a Microsoft issue.

Why did MIcrosoft allow the Windows 10 Pro system on a 32GB hard drive, it this computer was bound to accumulate updates and cease to be able to then install future updates, or anything else for that matter, because of a lack of available hard drive space?
The Windows file is 27.9GB, and 22.4GB on the disk. And the total usable hard drive capacity is 27.8GB. This is insane!

Otherwise this 7 month old laptop is ready for the garbage can.

I asked Lenovo if there was a way I could downgrade to Windows 10 Home. they said no.

Does anyone have a suggestion? Again, I have already done a disk cleanup, have absolutely no personal files of any kind on the computer, have only a few hundred MB of additional programs on the hard drive, yet only have 4GB of available hard drive space,
so even new Windows updates will no longer install. And a fresh copy of Windows requires 8GB of free space, which I cannot do.

Help!

***Post moved by the moderator to the appropriate forum category.***

 

Lenovo N22 80S6 laptop 32GB Windows 10 Pro not enough hard drive space

Well pjc123, I wish I could say that your suggestion helped, but using the media creation tool in the way you described was the very first thing I tried, then I tried it again, again, again and again. Same result - even with several fresh, new 32 or 64GB
flash drives attached, and selecting the option to install the download on the external device, the media creation tool program continues - again and again - to tell me that it cannot perform the task due to the lack at least 8GB of free space on my C: drive.
It tells me to delete files or programs to have that much space. But it is impossible - the Windows 10 PRO system on this Lenovo with a 32GB hard drive leaves less that 8 GB free if absolutely everything except for Windows 10 is deleted. The program is too
large for a 32GB hard drive. The geniuses at Microsoft should have realized this, and if they only now know it, should offer a solution, as this laptop, only several months old, is becoming useless. And Lenovo gave me the cold shoulder - they said if the
hardware is working, it is not their problem. In other words, the largest computer manufacturer in the world also had no clue that taking up nearly an entire hard drive with an operating system, leaving virtually no free space, would cause a problem. Dumb
and dumber.

I appreciate you trying to help me, but your suggestion certainly did not yield the results that it seems to have done for you.