Windows 10: Windows Update Clean-up files 3.99TB

Windows 10 just installed the latest update. It did take a little longer than usual to restart.

I went to do a clean-up and backup before shutting down for the night and it claims I have 3.99TB of old Windows Update files. The fact I only have a 500gb SSD drive, I find that impossible. Anyway, I did the clean-up which took almost 15 minutes to complete.





So where did Windows manage to put the 3.99TB files? Where are my Windows backup files stored so I can take a look to see what is in the folder?

:)

 

3.99TB of Windows Update files to be cleaned, as indicated in Disk Cleanup

Hello,

I just ran Disk Cleanup and it says I have 3.99TB of Windows Update files to be cleaned, which of course cannot be possible since Windows is on a SSD of 256GB.

I also ran sfc /scannow on my C:\ drive to be extra safe and all is is good.

My question is: Should i proceed to delete those '3.99TB' of Windows Update files?

Thanks,

Marco

 

Disk Cleanup

I have this exact same issue on my S3 with a 128GB drive running W10, fully updated, with 3.99TB showing against 'Windows Update Clean-up'. First time I've ever seen this as of today.

 

The folder is WinSxS and the apparently impossible size (unless you actually do have a >4TB HDD) is due to hard links.

https://technet.microsoft.com/en-GB/.../dn251566.aspx

Apparently Disk Clean-up is another of those tools that doesn't check for hard links when calculating sizes. It is safe to continue and let Disk Clean-up delete these files because the actual physical copy of the file only gets deleted when the last of its hard links is deleted.

PS: don't forget to restart your PC. Disk Clean-up really means it when it says "(you might need to restart your computer.)" for the Windows Update Clean-up. It won't prompt you for a restart, but you will more than likely see the blue 'Windows is configuring uppdates' screens and followed by a lengthy 'Cleaning up...' screen when you shut down, Only then is the clean up complete.

 

It is okay, just run drive clean up and check system with sfc /scannow run command after. This clean yields back about 1.xx gb.

 

Many thanks for the really detailed explanation. I will ensure I restart directly after the cleanup. I've noticed in the past that Win10 shows the 'Windows is configuring uppdates' after a restart and disk cleanup. I always assumed this was a glitch of Win10. I had manually pressed the on/off button in the past to bypass it. I will leave it to 'do its thing' in future.

Thanks again both of you.

 

I assume that, as with an update, some files are in use and can only be removed when no longer open - ie. during a restart.

 

Thanks, Bree for the explanation and resource. It provided the inspiration for my blog post today. You rock!
--Ed--

 

Out of curiosity I have just checked mine... 1.3GB *Smile must be lucky Lol

 

I am having the same issue (3.99 TB to delete) guys with such a tiny HP laptop 29gb memory hard drive. After an hour is still ''Cleaning up''. Any ideas how to complete the process? Many Thanks in advance

 

I am having the same issue (3.99 TB to delete) guys with such a tiny HP laptop 29gb memory hard drive. After an hour is still ''Cleaning up''. Any ideas how to complete the process? Many Thanks in advance

 

3.9TB on one PC, Zero on the one I have set on metered connection, which I did update by checking for updates and downloading now and installing.

 

Welcome to TenForums @Reducto

It will complete (eventually), just leave it to run its course. If you can't wait, you could cancel the cleanup (though in my experience it takes nearly as long to cancel as it does to complete). For future reference, you can use @Cliff S's faster way to clean up just the Windows Update. See:
Cumulative Update KB3194798 for Windows 10 PC & Mobile build 14393.321

 

I have seen a lot of peoples posted an image about this on r/softwaregore

 

I know, this is not a critical issue, but common MS, 5 months and still no fix?
It is all about disk cleaner ignoring hard links, so it should not be that hard.

[Windows 10 Bug] Windows Update Files Taking 3.99 TB Space in Disk Cleanup - AskVG