Hard Disk Space doesn't decrease after deleting files?

On WinXP Home when I delete windows temporary files or empty recycle bin and then go to Disk "C" properties to "clean" disk, the "used" Disk space increases instead of decreasing (free). I thought that the more files or debris you remove, the more free space on disk will show but this is exactly the opposite and I don't have an explanation for this. (???)

 

PeteC

Thanks for replying. I have Ad-Aware and all kind of specialized tools and diagnostics. This is not a hardware or software related problem. It is simply the way Windows XP handles the "used" and "free" spaces on the HDD(s). This pertains to all WinXP Users.
I am trying to find an explanation as to why, when my C:/properties show (for example) 6.5 used space and 9.5 free space and I clean or remove all windows temp. files and empty recycle bin, etc. the properties then shows 7.4 used and 8.6 free INSTEAD of the other way around (more free space above the initial 9.5 after cleaning). Try it yourself, write down the initial ratio of used and free and then empty Recycle bin, remove temp. files clean and defrag., etc reboot and go to C;/properties again and look at the amount of free space to se if it has changed for the better (+) or the worse(-)

 

I checked, just like Pete did, with the same results. I gained space by deleting almost a gig of junk on my OS partition. Then, for fun, I copied about 2 gigs of a database onto my first partition, and "lost" about that much space. Space was restored after deleting, again. FWIW, my pagefile is on "C ", and Windows set the size, not me. I have to work on an XP Home comp tomorrow, and I'll try it again. I don't know why you are having this "problem "...keep us posted!

Johanna

 

mazaprin,

Would it show the reverse when you add big files on?

 

That seems odd.

Download TreeSize (or another disk space mapping tool) and establish where these files are stored.

http://www.ultratech-llc.com/KB/?File=DiskSpace.TXT

 

TO ALL THAT RESPONDED

It seems that I did not explain myself correctly when I posted this topic. I am correcting it now:
I have the same results that you have when I do the things you have done (adding or deleting files from the partition). I double checked and I noticed that the problem is only when you go to My Computer/C:/properties/ Disk Cleanup and after the old files are being compressed and the cleaning finished that's when I see that the "used" space INCREASES (depending on the amount of cleaned and compressed files) while the "Free" space DECREASES accordingly. BUT sometimes I get the opposite result and after cleaning I gain free space. So... I can't understand why sometimes the FREE space decreases or increases when it is supposed to INCREASE only. I still have to find out the reason, BUT I am not saying that there is something wrong with my system, it is only the WAY windows REPORTS the FREE space.

 

Just a thought... do you have System Restore turned on? If a restore point was set that could explain the increase in used space. HTH

B

 

Hi, Mr. B:
Thanks so much for your help. You might be right. My system Restore is ON and I use it frequently as a precaution and also it creates restore points by itself automatically every 24 hours of computer use, so... maybe the system was creating a restore point exactly at the same time that I cleaned the HD and it could explain the increase in used space as opposed to gain free space.
I will take this into account next time I check it.

 

From Pete's post:

From Johanna's:

Could it be that when you delete the files, Windows writes a bunch of stuff to the pagefile and, if you have Windows set to manage the size of it, it increases the size of the pagefile accordingly. This could account for the extra space used on Johanna's and not on Pete's.

 

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