Windows Vista forum: Running very low on space

You don't say what size your C drive is, nor that of your other drive(s).

What is the Z drive? Is it a completely different hard disk inside the system, or a 'partition' on the main hard disk, (shared with the C partition), or an external USB hard drive?

What do you mean by there is no longer a Z drive? Where did it go?

What are the details of this computer?

Mark

I tried a disc clean up & disc defragmenter many times before!!!! I went into my documents & cleared things out of there too...doesn't help!! I heard of many of programs that can help, but they really don't! One freeware that I downloaded was supposed to clean my system, but when it got to the end, it said it can only clean a little of it & for the rest of it to be cleaned out, I had to purchase another version....so I deleted that as well.....I know I'm working with a very small hard drive...but I haven't downloaded anything to it...when I DO download, I store everything onto my storage drive!! I plan on getting a bigger hard drive but until I get it, is there anything I can do?

And thank you.

With a C drive of only 22 GB you are always going to have to 'manage' the system, and your options are quite limited, especially since this is Vista, a larger Operating System, (OS), than Windows XP is.

What that means is that you will not be able to install many programs into the OS before you start running into space problems. Some software will install onto a 2nd internal hard drive, but not all, and those that do will still install certain system files and personal files onto the C drive.

Defragmenting will not free up space.

So, what other options do you have?

1] Move your Documents folders onto the E drive.

If you open Windows Explorer and navigate to C:\Users\{Your-User-Name}\Documents then right click the Documents folder, select Properties. In the Properties dialog window, choose the Location tab. You can change that location to wherever you want it to go, eg your E drive.

You can do the same for the Music, Pictures and Videos folders.

2] Be thoughtful about installing new programs/applications.

If the install process allows you to select a different drive, then see if an application will install there. If not, you may have to uninstall some other application to make room.

3] Manage your System Restore backup files.

System Restore backs up many files for each Restore Point chosen, and places these in a hidden folder called "System Volume Information". If your computer is otherwise running well, you can use "Disk Cleanup", (Start > All programs > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Cleanup), to remove all but the latest System Restore backup files.

When you click that Disk Cleanup, select "All files", then select the C drive. After a short check of compressed files a new window will display. Look at the "More Options" tab and use the "System Restore and Shadow Copies" Cleanup button. Only use this if there are no other problems with this system.


This isn't much but it will help you manage the smallish size of your hard disk.

Mark

ok...I'm gonna get a bigger hard drive to replace my main drive (C:).....I've been checking into 'Ghost' programs to image my main drive so I can transfer everything over to the new & bigger drive.....any suggestions?

ok...which one or are they both the same? ccleaner or treesize? Can I install them on my storage drive (E:)??

I am having the same problem with low disk space. Even though I added another 2 GB of RAM to the original 2 GB. I have noticed that all of the windows updates you have to download take an awful big chunk of precious space.
I have got the same message ( almost out of disk space ), I got rid of a lot of programs, some of which I probably shouldnt have.
Then one day as I sat waiting for the computer to fire up, a message came up that has saved me some time, its not for the faint of heart, but at this point I will soon be getting another pc. Heres what I did... Go to Control Panel > System > On the left side of screen click on System Protection, uncheck the drives you want ( in my case i uncheked them all ) > click ok, and Bobs your uncle. I havnt had any more low space messages. I hope this helps.

That 2 GB was probably RAM, (Memory), not hard disk space. Adding more RAM would not have prevented 'low disk space' warnings.

However, your method of turning off System Restore is good one, if the system is working well otherwise.

Be sure to re-enable it afterwards and create a new System Restore point. It might be useful in future.

Mark