Local Disk C is full even though there are few applications? Here's how to clean it

The following is a solution to overcome the local disk C full but few applications. Previously the remaining storage was large, but it continued to decrease even though I never installed new applications again after that. I also experienced this problem and it turned out that the cause was the Adobe Premiere Pro application which was duplicating the file that was being edited.

How to clean the local disk c full even though the application is little? What I did is delete all cache files stored by the Adobe Premiere Pro application on local disk C. This way I can clean up more than 100 Gb of memory.

Yup! On the first try, I was also very surprised by the results obtained. The premiere pro cache file on my computer turned out to be more than 100 G, so I also answered my curiosity about why local disk C on my PC always increases even though I don't have many applications installed.

This method can be done in almost all versions of Windows that are currently widely used such as Windows 7, Windows 8, Windows 10, and Windows 11. For older versions of Windows such as Windows XP, there may be slight differences in the appearance of the menu, but in principle, everything is the same.

This full C local disk problem is different from the full RAM problem, both have the same storage (memory) but different functions. So in this discussion, we focus on storage on local disk C, not RAM. If you are looking for a way to overcome a full RAM on a laptop or PC, it will be discussed in a different article.

Also read: How to Unhide the Hibernate Menu on PC - Add Power Button Options

Why Local Disk C can be full by itself. What if Local Disk C is Full?

If the hard drive or SSD that we use is full on the local disk C, then there are some bad effects that we will feel. Instantly, our laptop or computer will have difficulty running the applications that we usually use.

Although technically the applications that have been installed have got their respective space on the local disk C, some applications still require extra space/memory when running.

For example, if we open an editing application such as Adobe Premiere, this application requires storage space that can be used to store files/videos that will be opened or edited in the Premiere Pro application. If we want to edit a video file with a size of 2 Gb, this application will duplicate the file (temporary file) and store it in the cache folder so that the editing process runs more smoothly.

If the storage space is full, it is certain that the application cannot run normally, we will encounter many errors, such as the freezing screen, slowness, etc. If it's severe the application will close itself (force close), and even the computer can also restart itself.

For that, we must always pay attention to the health of storage on the computer, and make sure extra storage space is always available so that our work process is not disturbed by annoying errors.

Also read: How to Full Test Memory RAM Health on a PC or Laptop

Local Disk C is full even though there are few applications? Here's how to clean it - Disk Cleanup

Before performing the steps for cleaning the application cache, I suggest that you do the cleaning with the Disk Clean up method first, for the method, please read the following article. If you have done so, please go directly to the method below.

1. Press the key > Start/Windows
2. type in the search field "Disk Cleanup". Please select the Disk cleanup menu
3. A popup will appear and ask us to select a drive, please select drive C then click the button > OK
4. Select or click the "Clean up system files" button at the bottom
5. Select drive C
6. Activate / Checklist in the "Previous Windows Installation(s)" column
7. Click the > OK button.
8. Wait until the cleaning process is complete. When finished, please re-check the amount of memory / free space on local disk C, if successful, the free space will increase.

Will the Disk Cleanup process delete all data?

Not. This disk cleanup process only focuses on deleting files that have been used and will no longer be used, such as windows update files that have been installed. So even if the file is deleted, it will not affect the performance of the computer or laptop.

Disk Cleanup is indeed a feature provided by Windows if we want to clean up storage space on the local disk C, where the file system is stored. So if you use it normally, then there will be no problem and no effect on computer performance.

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Local Disk C is full even though there are few applications? Here's how to clear it - Clear Cache (Adobe Premiere Pro)

This is a special way for those of you who have or often use the Adobe Premiere Pro editing application. In this way, in my experience, I can clean local disk C of more than 100 Gb (123 Gb to be exact) and have no effect on computer performance at all. For a tutorial on how to clear the Adobe application cache, please follow the steps below.

1. Please open the Adobe Premiere application as usual
2. Then go to menu > Edit > Preferences > Media
3. In the media settings, please look for the Media Cache File column and there is a statement like this "Location: C:\Users\"Computer Name"\AppData\Roaming\Adobe\Common". On some computers, the location may be different but generally like this data location. Please open the Common folder via explorer
4. Next, please open the folder >Media Cache Files. In this Media Cache Files folder, you will find copies of files/media that have been opened in Adobe applications with the original size.
5. Please PERMANENTLY DELETE (Shift + Delete) all files in this Media Cache Files folder. Before deleting these files, please select all the files (Ctrl+A) that are in the folder then please see the total size of the files there to find out how much memory will be cleaned.
   
6. If everything has been deleted, please re-check the size or space remaining on Local Disk C, if successful, the free space will increase according to the size of the deleted file. If the free space does not increase, check the Recycle bin section, make sure this section is also clean of junk files.

In my experience, this method can clean a lot of memory. In this example, I can clean as much as 123 Gb, and previously it was always above 100 Gb. This is not a permanent method, so it should be done every few months or when the storage space feels full again.

Also read: How to move Steam Games to Another Drive Without Reinstalling

What if the file/folder can't be deleted?

If during the cleaning process there are files or folders that cannot be deleted, then please close the Adobe Premiere application that is currently open. Then repeat the deletion process above, or click the "Retry/Try Again" button

If it still doesn't work, please open the Task Manager window (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) then on the Process page, please look for the Adobe application that is running.

If you have found the adobe application that is running (running) please select the application then right-click until a popup menu appears then select >End task. Wait a few moments until the application is completely closed completely, then try again to delete the cache file above.

Will it delete the original files after clearing the cache?

If you delete the cache files in the Adobe folder above, the original files or original videos that have been edited in the Adobe application will not be deleted. In the steps above we only delete the duplicate files created by Adobe applications with the aim that the editing process runs smoothly while the original files are not touched at all.

If you are still in doubt, please try to delete a video file first, then check the original file. If the original file can still be opened normally or played normally then this is a sign that there is no problem deleting all the files in the Media Cache Files folder.

In my experience, when I reopen the Adobe Premiere file that has been created, there will be additional time for the application to reload the original file to create a cached media file. However, this extra time is not that long in my experience, as is the loading time when we open the app.

Does it affect computer performance?

In my experience, after doing a Disk Cleanup and deleting the adobe cache files I had no problems. All applications run as they should, there are no errors or strange things that the computer does.

In fact, now that my computer has more free space on local disk C, the computer feels lighter. Maybe this is an effect because now there is more free space and the system is also more flexible to use it.

In the Disk Cleanup process, what is cleaned are 'used' windows update files that generally will not be used anymore. While in the Adobe cache file clean process, we only delete the backup/duplication files created by the application for editing purposes. If the editing process is complete, then the files are no longer needed.

Hopefully, this article on how to overcome Local Disk C is full even though there are few applications, and how to clean it is useful. If you have any questions, please save them in the comments column below as usual. Keep being a wise user! #beWiseUser!