The Disk Cleanup tool, part of Windows, will perform a search on the hard disk for files that can be deleted from your computer without affecting its functionality or your personal files:
To open Disk Cleanup on a Windows Vista or Windows 7 computer, follow these steps:
Click Start
Go to All Programs > Accessories > System Tools
Click Disk Cleanup
Choose what type of files and folders to delete at the Files to delete section
Click OK
To delete system files that are no longer needed, click Clean up system files. You may be prompted by UAC (User Account Control) to confirm the action.
Click Delete Files
To free more space, go to the More options tab:
Click Clean up at the Programs and Features section to remove program files that are no longer needed
Click Clean up at the System Restore and Shadow Copies section to remove restore points, except the last one
Run from Command Prompt To open Disk Cleanup via Command Prompt (command line) on a Windows Vista or Windows 7:
Open Command Prompt
Type cleanmgr
Press Enter
Run Disk Cleanup in Windows 8 or 8.1
Run from My Computer To open Disk Cleanup on a Windows 8 or Windows 8.1 system, follow these instructions:
Click Settings > Click Control Panel > Administrative Tools
Click Disk Cleanup
At the Drives list, select which drive you want to run Disk Cleanup on
Select which files you want to delete
Click OK
Click Delete files
To delete system files that are no longer needed on your computer, click Clean up system files. Shadow copies and restore points (except the last ones) can be deleted by going to the More options tab > Click Cleanup.
If Disk Cleanup is getting stuck at a certain deletion process (deletion of temporary files or deletion of Windows updates), try any of the following tips:
Run Disk Cleanup as an Administrator
Delete the files and folders manually, but be logged in as an Administrator.If Disk Cleanup is getting stuck at deleting Internet Explorer temporary files, delete the temporary files manually. Be logged in as Administrator or as any user with administrative rights to the system when doing so.
Run a sfc /scannow command. To do so, follow these steps:
Open Command Prompt
Type sfc /scannow /offbootdir=D:\ /offwindir=D:\Windows\, where D:\ is your Windows drive letter, and D:\Windows is your Windows installation path