Utility Tool for Win 98

I am using Win 98 and feel that I have several duplicate files on my C drive. I think I had read on this forum that there was a utility tool that could detect duplicate or not needed files and clean them out. Does anyone know where I can find this tool?

Thank you

 

DoubleKiller:
http://www.bigbangenterprises.de/en/doublekiller/

or LookDisk:
http://www.fxsearch.com/ldw_eng/

Be careful what you delete.

 

jV16 Power Tools http://wwwljV16.org will also do this. It's a freeware registry cleaner and cleanup program. Be aware, though, that duplicate file searches can take a very long time (many, many hours) depending on the amount of stuff on your HD.

 

As Abraxas says "be careful ".
Removing duplicate files, especially those that have a .dll suffix,
can cause the apps that use them to malfunction.
Personally, if you are not having problems, I would leave things as they are.
regards

 

elaine--I heard--a long time ago--that if you find duplicate .dll files on your machine, to just leave them there, unless
1)you find one that is for a program you thought you had uninstalled, or
2)the version in C:\Windows\System is not the most recent date-wise. In that case, copy/substitute the most recent there. I think that situation happens only very rarely.
Would welcome comment from someone more knowledgeable.

 

Generally you need the most recent VERSION of a file in Windows\System not the most recent DATE. You check the version by right-clicking the file, selecting Properties and going to the version tab. Sometimes the most recent version of a file has an older date. For example:

I find multiple copies of msvcrt.dll
The most recent version number is 6.00.8397.0 in C:\Windows\System and the date modified is 06/06/2000

In C:\Program Files\Java\J2re1.4.0_01\bin I have another copy of msvcrt.dll with a later DATE: the date modified is 04/30/2002 but it is an earlier version: 6.00.8337.0

Some programs need older versions of dlls so leave the duplicates alone.

You would be better off leaving all duplicate files alone unless the files are in folders that are leftovers from uninstalled programs, like Jim said. Before uninstalling any program I make a note of the location of the program files by checking in the shortcut's properties for the target location. Then after the uninstall and a reboot or two I go back and delete whatever files were left behind.

 

Alice--Many thanks for the clarification--DATE vs. VERSION. But if you found an older version of a .dll file in C:\Windows\System would you replace it with the most recent version found elsewhere on your PC?

 

Not if I wasn't having any problems!

 

Normally this kind of cleanup maintenance is not recommended unless you are having frequent problems either application or space shortage related. The amount of space gained is usually to small for most users to either, "bother with" or "put forth the investigative effort this kind of cleanup takes ". Here comes the mantra we all see here so often.....

If it ain't broke don't fix it!

If you must do this kind of cleanup use a cautious approach. Don't delete anything permanently without backing it up and having the ability to restore it, in it's original location. There is software applications that are specifically geared towards doing this reasonably safely. Knowing Dos c:\ prompt procedures and commands for "copy and replace" would also be a good thing to know .

On a personal note, often accused of being fanatic when it comes to this sort of thing, I have stopped dupe dll cleanup somewhere around the second time I've had to restore files I had previously cleaned.

Additional nfo:[need acrobat reader cause this is a pdf file]
http://www.techsupportalert.com/search/e0645.pdf

 

Iwill echo the statement;

"If not having problems leave things alone." Some programs do require and use their own .DLLs and other files.

And switching them around and getting the wrong in the wrong place can be rather troublesome. ( being stated mildly )

Lesson learned a LONG time ago. The Windows re-installing hard way.

BillyBob

 

Alice reading through your replies I noticed you giving a example on duplicate Files: msvcrt.dll that brings me to a question that I would like to ask you.
What does that File do and is it a critical dll file reason is the other day when I was uninstalling a program the uninstaller stoped and informed me that this file is there and it is locked I do not know what locked Files are I left it there to be ignored and all went well. What would have happened if I had persisted in deleting it?? any idea would be appreciated.
Thanks
hawk22

 

I left it there to be ignored

Very sensible idea

If the file is shown to be in the programs own folder(s) then it is usually OK to delete it. But if it shown to be anywhere else leave it.

And sometimes and un-installer will remove it after a restart of Windows.

I used to cause myself much grief when I would go to DOS and do a DELTREE to get rid of a program. THe program left but problems came in.

The idea comes up in reverse when installing software. The file is already there do you wish to overwrite it ? I usually make a choice and hope for the best.

I usually apply the same rule as to where the files is located.

BillyBob

 

MSVCRT.dll is a critical Microsoft "Visual C Runtime Library" file that is shared by many programs. The version I have in Windows\System was installed by Internet Explorer 5.5,, going by the modified date and version number. There is a Microsoft dll data base where you can find which program installed what file version:

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=/servicedesks/fileversion/dllinfo.asp

If some program overwrites the one in Windows\System with a different version you can get all sorts of errors - runtime errors, linked to missing export errors, invalid page fault errors are some I've seen on the newsgroups. A little information can be found here: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;q197298
Microsoft Libraries Update: What, Where, Why

With MSVCRT.dll from what I've gathered, you only really need the most recent copy in Windows\System and all the others can be renamed but that's not the case with other dll files. Many dll files are not interchangeable and you really need to leave them alone since some depend on certain versions of other files to work, as
I understand it.

About the uninstaller finding the file "locked ", I didn't know but suspect that it means the file is either "read only ", in use, or otherwise protected by the OS. Be happy you couldn't remove it.

In general when an uninstall progam asks to remove shared files, NEVER let it remove anything in Windows\System. Anything from the folder of the program being uninstalled should be OK to remove but if you are ever unsure, just say NO.

 

"system mechanic" to remove dup files

Elaine,
a program called "system mechanic" has a utility to remove duplicate files.
However I would be real real carefull about performing this operation.
never hurts to backup files before deleting.
be carefull !

 

Thank you Alice and Billy Bob,
Looks like I did the right thing for a change.
I think I can say to Elaine let your duplicate files sit there they are not using up a lot of space, but can safe you a lot of Heartache.
thanks
hawk22

 

Thanks everyone...you've convinced me to leave things alone unless I start to experience problems. I downloaded Registry First Aid and ran it....I'm not sure if I'm interpreting the instructions correctly, but it produced many files with a choice to make. I did nothing due to unsurety of what to do.

Any help?