How to delete windows.old folder and regain space

After installing a new version of Windows or upgrading from Vista/XP, Windows leaves a folder on your root drive called WINDOWS.OLD.  This folder can be tough to simply delete because of it retains all of the security restritions from the previous windows install.  But, really, do you need to keep it around?  Probably not.

To delete the Windows.old folder follow these steps:

  1. Click Start, type disk cleanup in the Start Search text box, and hit enter.
  2. Choose your drive, likely the C:\
  3. In the Disk Cleanup Options dialog box, click “Clean up system files” [see below].
  4. Click to select the Previous Windows installation(s) check box, and then click OK.

Clean up system files

This can also be run from the command prompt, but takes a bit longer.

  1. Click Start, click All Programs, click Accessories, right-click Command Prompt, and then click Run as administrator.
  2. In the User Account Control dialog box, click Continue.
  3. At the command prompt, enter:
    4. takeown /F c:\windows.old\* /R /A
  4. Note When you run this command, you are granted ownership of the administrator group for the folder, of all the subdirectories in the folder, and of all the files in the folder.
  5. At the command prompt, enter:
    6. cacls c:\windows.old\*.* /T /grant administrators:F
  6. Note When you run this command, administrators are granted full rights to all files and to all folders.
  7. At the command prompt, type:
    8. rmdir /S /Q c:\windows.old\
  8. Note When you run this command, all subfolders and all files in the specified folder are deleted. Additionally, the specified folder itself is deleted.
March 8, 2011 • Posted in: Tech Lessons

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