Edge and EdgeWebView huge size (5GB) And I don't even use it! Help please!


I'm a regular Edge user and the size is less than half you mention, and some of the locations don't exist on mine, or are half the size or less.

Go in to the Edge settings and Configure Edge, look for things that may require new processes and/or extra memory. Estimated several dozens of pages.
Every time there is a feature update do that again.

Similarly with Windows any related stuff to Browsers, of course that is reviewing hundreds of settings.

It must be reasonably easy as I'm just a consumer user.

I do not use system/OS mods or associated bloatware.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11
I have all of those files as well and I have had that script for some time, but I am not going to run it. It would be nice if The US and the rest of the world Did what the EU did.! MS is the largest monopoly in history and should be broken up in the same manner as AT&T was back in the 80's.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Win11 Pro 26100.3915
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Alienware Aurora R16
    CPU
    Intel Core i9 14900F (24 -Core, 68 MB Total Cache)
    Motherboard
    Dell Alienware
    Memory
    32GB DDR5
    Graphics Card(s)
    RTX 4080 Super w/566.36
    Sound Card
    Realtec
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Corsair XENEON 32QHD165
    Screen Resolution
    2560 X 1440
    Hard Drives
    1-2TB Samsung 990 Pro PCIe NVMe M2 SSD
    1-4TB Samsung 990 Pro PCIe NVMe M2 SSD
    PSU
    1000 Watt Platinum Dell
    Case
    Alienware
    Cooling
    Liquid Closed Loop
    Keyboard
    Corsair Strafe RGB MK.2
    Mouse
    Corsair M65 Pro
    Internet Speed
    1000Gb's Down-20 Up
    Browser
    Firefox 138.0
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    Very Quiet And Fast
    CyberPower UPS CP1500PFCLCD
  • Operating System
    Linux Mint 22.1--Winindows 11 Pro Lite
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    IBuypower
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 1315u
    Motherboard
    ASRock
    Memory
    32GB DDR5
    Graphics card(s)
    PNY RTX 4017
    Sound Card
    onboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell 2419HGCF
    Screen Resolution
    1920 X 1080
    Hard Drives
    Kingston 2TB SNV2S20006 PCIe 4.0 M.2.2280
    SAMSUNG 980 PRO SSD 2TB, PCIe 4.0 M.2 2280
    PSU
    850Watt
    Case
    Small
    Cooling
    Closed loop Liquid
    Mouse
    IBP
    Keyboard
    IBP
    Internet Speed
    1GB
    Browser
    Firefox 137.0
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Noisy but fast
I tried to uninstalled it and the edgeupdate, but out of the blue, and without my consent it will be installed again, I tried to disable edgeupdate, but it will be enabled again without my consent. So I am ignoring it now. Cause it will be installed again no matter what.

As I am operatiing lots of VMs, this browser is occupying hundreds of GBs.
You don't need to give your consent for MS to reinstall anything. As already explained you DO NOT own your copy of Windows you simply license it off MS who own it who can, in theory, do whatever they like within the scope of the license agreement you agreed to when you installed and activated it.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 build 10.0.22635.4515 Beta / WSL 2 running Ubuntu
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Inspiron 14 5430
    CPU
    Intel i7-1355U
    Motherboard
    Dell 0GMW80
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel Iris XE
    Sound Card
    Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell 14", LG 32" Curved Wide screen monitor and LG Ultrawide 26"
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1200 @ 60Hz, 1920 x 1080 @ 100Hz and 2560 x 1080 @ 60Hz
    Hard Drives
    Samsung 990 Pro 1TB NVME Gen 4 M.2 SSD
    PSU
    Dell
    Case
    Dell
    Cooling
    Dell
    Keyboard
    Dell KM3322W
    Mouse
    Dell Trackpad or Dell KM3322W
    Internet Speed
    900mb down / 400mb up FTTP
    Browser
    Edge 132.0.2957.11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    Windows 365
    1TB OneDrive
    Outlook Classic
    Visual Studio Code running in WSL
    Python 3.13
    Macrium Reflect X
    Samsung Magician
    Garmin Express
    Dell TB16 Thunderbolt dock
    WSL
    WEI Score: 8.3
  • Operating System
    Windows 11
    Computer type
    Tablet
    Manufacturer/Model
    Microsoft Surface Pro 7
    CPU
    Core i5 - 1035G4
    Motherboard
    Microsoft
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Plus
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Surface touch
    Screen Resolution
    2736 x 1824
    Hard Drives
    128GB
    PSU
    Microsoft
    Case
    Microsoft Keyboard
    Cooling
    None
    Mouse
    Microsoft Arc Intellimouse
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Surface Keyboard
    Internet Speed
    900mb / 400mb FTTP
    Browser
    Edge
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\Edge About 700MB
C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeCore About 1400MB
C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeWebView About 700 MB and the same files as first folder
C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft\EdgeUpdate Will contain the installers and it is about 300MB
If you checked properties, it does not show the actual size, you need to look for allocated size. For example mine shows as 2.50GB, but in reality it is only 784MB. The same files are linked over and over, properties count those files multiple times.

capture_01062024_165008.jpg
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Home
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    CPU
    AMD Ryzen 5 8600G (07/24)
    Motherboard
    ASROCK B650M-HDV/M.2 3.20 (07/24)
    Memory
    2x32GB Kingston FURY DDR5 5600 MHz CL36 @5200 CL40 (07/24)
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASROCK Radeon RX 6600 Challenger D 8G @48FPS (08/24)
    Sound Card
    Creative Sound BlasterX AE-5 Plus (05/24)
    Monitor(s) Displays
    24" Philips 24M1N3200ZS/00 (05/24)
    Screen Resolution
    1920×1080@165Hz via DP1.4
    Hard Drives
    Kingston KC3000 NVMe 2TB (05/24)
    ADATA XPG GAMMIX S11 Pro 512GB (07/19)
    PSU
    Seasonic Core GM 550 Gold (04/24)
    Case
    Fractal Design Define 7 Mini with 3x Noctua NF-P14s/12@555rpm (04/24)
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-U12S with Noctua NF-P12 (04/24)
    Keyboard
    HP Pavilion Wired Keyboard 300 (07/24) + Rabalux 76017 Parker (01/24)
    Mouse
    Logitech M330 Silent Plus (04/23)
    Internet Speed
    500/100 Mbps via RouterOS (05/21) & TCP Optimizer
    Browser
    Edge & Brave for YouTube & LibreWolf for FB
    Antivirus
    NextDNS blocking 99% TLDs
    Other Info
    Backup: Hasleo Backup Suite (PreOS)
    Headphones: Sennheiser RS170 (09/10)
    Phone: Samsung Galaxy Xcover 7 (02/24)
    Chair: Huzaro Force 4.4 Grey Mesh (05/24)
    Notifier: Xiaomi Mi Band 9 Milanese (10/24)
    2nd Monitor: AOC G2460VQ6 @75Hz (02/19)
You don't need to give your consent for MS to reinstall anything. As already explained you DO NOT own your copy of Windows you simply license it off MS who own it who can, in theory, do whatever they like within the scope of the license agreement you agreed to when you installed and activated it.

Calm down Kim Jong Un.

If you checked properties, it does not show the actual size, you need to look for allocated size. For example mine shows as 2.50GB, but in reality it is only 784MB. The same files are linked over and over, properties count those files multiple times.

View attachment 83316

Not sure if you are trying to fool us or fool yourself. Compressing files, esp files that keeps updated, will cause more disk usage and fragmented files, which will decrease the lifespan of you SSD dramatically!
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 vmware
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    MSI GT83VR 7RF Titan SLI
    CPU
    i7 7820HK
    Memory
    64GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA 1080 2x SLI
    Sound Card
    Realtek Nahimic 3
I am almost 100% certain it will not come back. Here is my thread, the link is in the topmost post. 🙏


This script doesn't do anything special, it will just uninstall Edge and EdgeWebView, and remove apps that uses EdgeWebView. It will not remove Edge package from the system, so there still will be a copy of of EdgeWebView in the system32 ans WinSxS folders.

Tested in a VM. Not sure if it will prevents Edge from reinstalling. But I think it is nice to test such a script. thanks again,
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 vmware
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    MSI GT83VR 7RF Titan SLI
    CPU
    i7 7820HK
    Memory
    64GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA 1080 2x SLI
    Sound Card
    Realtek Nahimic 3
Not sure if you are trying to fool us or fool yourself. Compressing files, esp files that keeps updated, will cause more disk usage and fragmented files, which will decrease the lifespan of you SSD dramatically!
Many Windows components are deployed as hard-linked files by design. That's a normal thing, even on Linux systems.

Explorer is a bit dumb, because it's not programmed to ignore counting the same hard-linked file in multiple places. It's never had that wisdom, and is why DISM /AnalyzeComponentStore exists to report the true on-disk sizes. Some non-Explorer filesystem tools will make that distinction and report a real capacity number.

Determine the Actual Size of the WinSxS Folder
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
Just see how aggressive Microsoft includes their Apps and services into Windows since Windows 10. ;-)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7/11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP/Lenovo/Asus
    CPU
    Intel i7-11800H
    Motherboard
    Lenovo Legion 5i Pro Gen 6
    Memory
    32GB DDR4 3200MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070
    Hard Drives
    1TB PCIe SSD
Many Windows components are deployed as hard-linked files by design. That's a normal thing, even on Linux systems.

Explorer is a bit dumb, because it's not programmed to ignore counting the same hard-linked file in multiple places. It's never had that wisdom, and is why DISM /AnalyzeComponentStore exists to report the true on-disk sizes. Some non-Explorer filesystem tools will make that distinction and report a real capacity number.

Determine the Actual Size of the WinSxS Folder

It is not a hard link, it is a folder. Here is the icon for links Screenshot 2024-01-08 224108.png

Edge, EdgeWebView and Edge Package are different versions most of the times, and there are no links between them.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 vmware
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    MSI GT83VR 7RF Titan SLI
    CPU
    i7 7820HK
    Memory
    64GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA 1080 2x SLI
    Sound Card
    Realtek Nahimic 3
You may try tiny11, a lightweight version of Windows 11.
It's a debloated Windows 11. stripped off unnecessary Windows bloatware. saves much PC hardware resources.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7/11
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP/Lenovo/Asus
    CPU
    Intel i7-11800H
    Motherboard
    Lenovo Legion 5i Pro Gen 6
    Memory
    32GB DDR4 3200MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070
    Hard Drives
    1TB PCIe SSD
It is not a hard link, it is a folder. Here is the icon for links View attachment 83531

Edge, EdgeWebView and Edge Package are different versions most of the times, and there are no links between them.
That's a shortcut, not a hard link.

I'll quote from the MS docs link I provided, with emphasis:
Files in this folder might appear to be stored in more than one place in the operating system, but there's usually only one copy of the file and the rest of the copies are actually hard links. Some tools, such as the File Explorer, determine the size of directories without taking into account that the contained files might be hard linked, which might lead you to think that the WinSxS folder takes up more disk space than it really does.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
Just to clarify, YES when the two versions of EdgeView in the install image are DIFFERENT, they won't be hardlinked. But when the two versions are the same, they will be. The point is the there are two versions on purpose. The hardlinks do exist between the WinSxS reference copies and the installed target files.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
@antspants My friend, I am surprised in you for doing that. I would have thought you would just disable Edge from startup. It won't run until you select co-pilot which activates an Edge background process..

The OP is upset because all of the duplication uses a lot of disk space. I am not happy with this either because it increase the size of backups significantly. Just disabling it in startup doesn't help the disk space usage,
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    DIY Photoshop/Audio/Game/tinker build
    CPU
    Intel i9 13900KS P/E cores 5.7/4.4 GHz, cache 5.0 GHz
    Motherboard
    Asus ROG Maximus Z790 Dark Hero
    Memory
    96GB (2x48) G.skill Ripjaws 6800 MT/s
    Graphics Card(s)
    Asus ROG Strix 4070 Ti OC
    Sound Card
    Bowers & Wilkins 606 S3 speakers; Audiolabs 7000a integrated amp; Logan Martin Sub; Creative Pebble Pro Minimilist
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Eizo CG2730 ColorEdge, ViewSonic VP2768
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1440p x 2
    Hard Drives
    WDC SN850X 4TB nvme, SN850 1TB nvme, SK-Hynix 2 TB P41 nvme,. Sabrent USB-C DS-SC5B 5-bay docking station: 6TB WDC Black, 6TB Ironwolf Pro; 2x 2TB WDC Black HDD
    PSU
    850W Seasonic Vertex PX-850 ATX 3.0/PCI-E 5.0
    Case
    Fractal Design North XL Mesh, Black Walnut
    Cooling
    EKWB 360 Nucleus Dark AIO w/Phanteks T30-120 fans, 1 Noctua NF-A14 Chromax case fan, 1 T30-120 fan cooling memory
    Keyboard
    Keychron Q3 Max TKL with custom GMK Redsuns Red Samuri keycaps, TX Stabs
    Mouse
    Logitech G305 wireless gaming
    Internet Speed
    500 Mb/s down, 12 Mb/s up
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender, Macrium Reflect X ;-)
    Other Info
    Runs hot. LOL. SP: P116/E93/M93
    Phangkey Amaterasu V2 Desk Mat
  • Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Apple 13" Macbook Pro 2020 (m1)
    CPU
    Apple M1
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1600
    Browser
    Firefox
The OP is upset because all of the duplication uses a lot of disk space. I am not happy with this either because it increase the size of backups significantly. Just disabling it in startup doesn't help the disk space usage,
Thank you!

Do you know what is so ironic. Edge takes lots of space and it is updated at least once a week if not more, and I don't use it.

While FireFox is only 200mb and it is updated once a month.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 vmware
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    MSI GT83VR 7RF Titan SLI
    CPU
    i7 7820HK
    Memory
    64GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA 1080 2x SLI
    Sound Card
    Realtek Nahimic 3
In the build 26100 24h2 you can remove a useless duplicated Edge WebView copy from WinsSxS folder by running this command:
Code:
Remove-WindowsPackage -Online -NoRestart -PackageName "Microsoft-Edge-WebView-FOD-Package~31bf3856ad364e35~amd64~~10.0.26100.1"
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 vmware
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    MSI GT83VR 7RF Titan SLI
    CPU
    i7 7820HK
    Memory
    64GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA 1080 2x SLI
    Sound Card
    Realtek Nahimic 3
Back
Top Bottom