How to Effectively Free Up Storage Space on Windows 10 (5 Ways)

If your computer is running out of storage space, it can cause problems like not being able to install important updates for Windows. This can slow down your computer or even make it crash randomly. To prevent these issues, here are some simple ways to do Windows 10 free up stprage space so it can stay updated and work well.

5 ways to free up storage space on Windows 10

To do Windows 10 free up storage space, you can utilize Windows 10 inbuilt tools like disable Hibernation, run Disk Cleanup, and turn off System restore. Or you can also try to move apps to another drive or wipe partition to thoroughly free up drive space.

Way 1. Disable Hibernation

Hibernate is a useful feature that allows for quick computer startup by saving its state in memory onto the hard disk. However, it can consume a significant amount of hard drive space, equivalent to the computer's RAM size. Typically enabled by default and not harmful, you can disable Hibernate to reclaim this space if needed.

Step 1. Click the Start button and type "cmd".

Step 2. Right-click the item that appears and select "Run as administrator".

Step 3. In the opened DOS command prompt window type "powercfg.exe /hibernate off"and press Enter.

Afterward, the hibernate.sys file will be removed, and you'll recover storage space equivalent to your RAM's size.

Way 2. Perform a Disk Cleanup

Windows provides several useful tools to maintain your computer's storage efficiently, with Disk Cleanup being a primary tool. It's specifically designed to help you remove temporary files and other unnecessary data, which can sometimes accumulate to occupy several gigabytes of space on your hard drive. Regularly using Disk Cleanup is a simple and effective method to free up storage space in your Windows computer, ensuring your computer runs smoothly and efficiently.

Step 1. Double-click "My Computer" to open File Explorer. Then right-click the D drive and select "Properties".

Step 2. Under the "General" tab, click "Disk Cleanup". Next, Windows will scan your drive and calculate how much space you can save by running Disk Cleanup.

Step 3. Select the files that you wish to delete from the drive, and hit "OK".

To free up more space, you can use “Clean up system files”. With this function you can remove older Windows restore points from your drive, leaving only the most recent one.

Way 3. Turn off System Restore

System Restore is a tool that saves important computer system files, so you can fix problems easily if something goes wrong. However, it's not always the best option, and experts often recommend using special free software to make a full copy of your system. The problem is, that System Restore can take up a lot of space on your computer, so turning it off can give you back some storage room.

Step 1. Right-click "Computer" and then click "Properties". In the left pane click "System Protection".

Step 2. Select the disk you want to turn off System Protection for and click "Configure".

Step 3. Select “Turn off system protection”, click OK, and then click OK again.

Way 4. Move installed programs to another drive

When some users face storage full on Windows 10, their initial response often involves uninstalling large and infrequently used apps. However, this can be inconvenient since they have to reinstall and reconfigure these apps if needed later. Fortunately, there's a solution to get more disk space on Windows 10 without losing your apps.

AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional includes a handy tool called "App Mover". With this feature, you can move installed applications from a full drive to another one that has enough space. The best part is that it retains all your data and settings, allowing you to use the apps as usual while easily clearing up space on a Windows 10 computer.

Step 1. Run the installed software. Select “Free Up” on the top pane, and click the “App Mover” option.

Step 2. In this new interface, you can choose the partition with the game you want to move.

Step 3. Now, the programs on the C drive will be displayed in this small window. You can choose one or multiple games for transferring.

Step 4. While you finish the selection, please choose the destination drive, like D drive. Then choose“Move”, please don’t click “Cancel” during this process.

Step 5. Click “Finish”, then try your game to check if it is going well or not.

Way 5. Wipe your drive completely to free up storage space

Storage full on Windows 10 is a frequent occurrence when using a compact storage disk. If you're willing to erase your data and want to completely free up storage space, you can try the "Wipe Partition" feature available in AOMEI Partition Assistant.

Step 1. Run this powerful software, then right-click the drive that you need to free up space on Windows 10.

Step 2. In the new interface, you can try the methods that suit you most to wipe the partition.

Note:

"Filling sectors with zeros" completely replaces all sectors with zeros, a standard method for erasing a personal hard disk. It's a safe and speedy approach.

"Filling sectors with random data" involves overwriting the hard disk with random data, offering greater safety compared to the previous method.

"DoD 5220.22-M" is a more secure erasure method compared to both "zero-filling" and "random data filling," commonly adopted by businesses and organizations for its enhanced security.

"Gutmann" surpasses other methods in safety by overwriting a hard disk 35 times, albeit it is the most time-consuming approach.

Step 3. Click Apply to commit the pending operations.

Conclusion

There are 5 methods that can be used to free up storage space on Windows 10. If you want to explore more solutions to fix storage full on Windows 10, functions like Allocate Free Space, PC Cleaner, and Merge Partitions provided by AOMEI Partition Assistant can all be helpful. For Windows Server users, kindly please choose the Server Edition.