Lost 6GB free space ?


idainc

Well-known member
Local time
4:48 AM
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122
OS
windows 11 64
Without making any changes or adding software and seemingly unrelated to any update I discovered that the amount of free space on my boot drive was decreased by about 6GB. I've run disc cleanup etc. and deleted and restored system restore files and it just seems to hover around that loss. I;ve seen it in the past release that space in a day or so after an update but not in this case.

Thanks in advance for any ideas ?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 11 64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP All in One
    CPU
    i7 12700T
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia GeForce GTX1650 4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP 24" Touch
    Hard Drives
    WD 256 GB NVME
    WD 256GB SSD
    Keyboard
    USB
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Internet Speed
    500 MBS
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    MS
Download treesize from MS Store to see if you can work out reason.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 Pro + others in VHDs
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    ASUS Vivobook 14
    CPU
    I7
    Motherboard
    Yep, Laptop has one.
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Integrated Intel Iris XE
    Sound Card
    Realtek built in
    Monitor(s) Displays
    N/A
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    1 TB Optane NVME SSD, 1 TB NVME SSD
    PSU
    Yep, got one
    Case
    Yep, got one
    Cooling
    Stella Artois
    Keyboard
    Built in
    Mouse
    Bluetooth , wired
    Internet Speed
    72 Mb/s :-(
    Browser
    Edge mostly
    Antivirus
    Defender
    Other Info
    TPM 2.0
If you are using hibernate/hybrid sleep, the size of its file is approximately 40% of the amount of installed ram, which in your case is 6.4 gb. The computer uses the Hiberfil.sys file to store a copy of the system memory on the hard disk when the hybrid sleep setting is turned on. If this file is not present, the computer will not hibernate.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 22631.3296
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 7080
    CPU
    i9-10900 10 core 20 threads
    Motherboard
    DELL 0J37VM
    Memory
    32 gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    none-Intel UHD Graphics 630
    Sound Card
    Integrated Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1tb Solidigm m.2 +256gb ssd+512 gb usb m.2 sata
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell Premium
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    so slow I'm too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2 19045.3930
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 9020
    CPU
    i7-4770
    Memory
    24 gb
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    256 gb Toshiba BG4 M.2 NVE SSB and 1 tb hdd
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell factory
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Internet Speed
    still not telling
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
Thank you both. Downloaded treesize and deleted my 6.4GB hiberfile.sys file and I'm back to normal. Thanks !
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 11 64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP All in One
    CPU
    i7 12700T
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia GeForce GTX1650 4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP 24" Touch
    Hard Drives
    WD 256 GB NVME
    WD 256GB SSD
    Keyboard
    USB
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Internet Speed
    500 MBS
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    MS
Back again - my system took away the 6.4 gb and I went through the routine of powercfg -h off in elevated command prompt or power shell and I cant get it to delete. Also, I have no toggle to enable / disable hibernate. This one has me stumped. All help appreciated.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 11 64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP All in One
    CPU
    i7 12700T
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia GeForce GTX1650 4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP 24" Touch
    Hard Drives
    WD 256 GB NVME
    WD 256GB SSD
    Keyboard
    USB
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Internet Speed
    500 MBS
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    MS
Thank you both. Downloaded treesize and deleted my 6.4GB hiberfile.sys file and I'm back to normal. Thanks !
I confused at what you did. The proper method is to disable hibernate. Doing so, should automatically remove hiberfil.sys
You should not have to delete it manually. Are you saying disabling hibernate did NOT remove the file or are you saying you were unable to disable hibernate.
Open cmd as admin and type powercfg -a
Post a screenshot of result
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 22631.3296
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 7080
    CPU
    i9-10900 10 core 20 threads
    Motherboard
    DELL 0J37VM
    Memory
    32 gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    none-Intel UHD Graphics 630
    Sound Card
    Integrated Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1tb Solidigm m.2 +256gb ssd+512 gb usb m.2 sata
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell Premium
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    so slow I'm too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2 19045.3930
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 9020
    CPU
    i7-4770
    Memory
    24 gb
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    256 gb Toshiba BG4 M.2 NVE SSB and 1 tb hdd
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell factory
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Internet Speed
    still not telling
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
I am pretty sure that you can recover at least 20GB, Windows and third party softwares nowadays are just made to fill disk space like crazy, it seems like they are getting a check from storage manufacturer or they just don't care about environment, consumer resources... and the issue is that even the cleanup softwares aren't good enough to do this garbage collection... Chromium based navigator keep often old extensions, NTFS features (LZX Compresssion, SymLinks, etc) aren't used by the OS to avoid duplicates, Browser allows you to download the same F$@# file dozens of times without the slightest smartness that a simple hash check would just avoid and save hundreds of petabytes of data and space world wide (I do some technician work and help to people and I know what I am talking about)... Installer keep several copy of the .msi and other installation file all around (I am not talking about temp folder), electron based apps keep the update which an exact copy of the app itself on the disk shamelessly, something that makes no-sense... No support of JPEG XL or AVIF yet which can make JPEG and PNG obsolete and save tons of space... No implantation of AI into OS to keep things tidied up and organized so non-technical users don't have to care about their files become a big mess and that they have to pay someone who will just do a format / reinstall... and in best case scenario they have a backup of their important data.

I wish if I can do something about this myself but I am not into a position to make a decision but I laugh every time I hear that some big corporates care about the environment while they cannot even do something about what they have the very control upon so it can collectively adds up to something meaningful.

How to know what is filling your disk if it is not a malware requires so many utilities and experience... I don't from where to begin a tutorial on the subject.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 11 Insider (Latest)
    Computer type
    Laptop
Start menu > All apps > Windows tools > Control Panel > Power Options > Choose what power buttons do (in LH column) > Change settings that are currently unavailable > untick Hibernation

(Me, I untick everything ! I'm a vindictive b4st4rd, I believe the harder MS hides a setting or makes it harder to change something, the more likely it should be changed to meet the user's requirements, not Microsoft's)
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 22H2 (latest update ... forever anal)
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Slim S01
    CPU
    Intel i5-9400
    Memory
    8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    NVIDIA GeForce GT730
    Sound Card
    OOBE
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Acer 32"
    Screen Resolution
    1920x1080
    Hard Drives
    2 x 1TB SSDs
    PSU
    OOBE
    Case
    OOBE
    Cooling
    OOBE
    Keyboard
    Logitech wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    Classic Australian w.a.p.
    Browser
    Brave
    Antivirus
    KIS
  • Operating System
    Windows 11 Pro (latest upadte ... anally always)
    Computer type
    Laptop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP Pavillion 15
    CPU
    i7-1165G7 @ 2.80GHz
    Graphics card(s)
    Intel Iris Xe Graphics
    Hard Drives
    Samsung NVMe 512GB
    + numerous/multiple SSD Type C USB enclosures
    Internet Speed
    NBN FTTN 50
    Browser
    Brave
    Antivirus
    KIS
Start menu > All apps > Windows tools > Control Panel > Power Options > Choose what power buttons do (in LH column) > Change settings that are currently unavailable > untick Hibernation

(Me, I untick everything ! I'm a vindictive b4st4rd, I believe the harder MS hides a setting or makes it harder to change something, the more likely it should be changed to meet the user's requirements, not Microsoft's)
Screenshot 2022-07-19 041833.jpg
This is one aspect of this that threw me off.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 11 64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP All in One
    CPU
    i7 12700T
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia GeForce GTX1650 4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP 24" Touch
    Hard Drives
    WD 256 GB NVME
    WD 256GB SSD
    Keyboard
    USB
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Internet Speed
    500 MBS
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    MS
I confused at what you did. The proper method is to disable hibernate. Doing so, should automatically remove hiberfil.sys
You should not have to delete it manually. Are you saying disabling hibernate did NOT remove the file or are you saying you were unable to disable hibernate.
Open cmd as admin and type powercfg -a
Post a screenshot of result
 

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My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 11 64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP All in One
    CPU
    i7 12700T
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia GeForce GTX1650 4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP 24" Touch
    Hard Drives
    WD 256 GB NVME
    WD 256GB SSD
    Keyboard
    USB
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Internet Speed
    500 MBS
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    MS
I understood what was happening from the beginning, but your statements in post 4 and 5 are what is now throwing me.
You said in post #4 "deleted my 6.4GB hiberfile.sys file and I'm back to normal."
You then said in post #5 that "my system took away the 6.4 gb....I cant get it to delete." Does the hiberfile.sys file still exist or not?

Per the screenshot, hibernation is disabled and there should be no hiberfil.sys file on your system. The only sleep state available is s3 sleep.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 22631.3296
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 7080
    CPU
    i9-10900 10 core 20 threads
    Motherboard
    DELL 0J37VM
    Memory
    32 gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    none-Intel UHD Graphics 630
    Sound Card
    Integrated Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1tb Solidigm m.2 +256gb ssd+512 gb usb m.2 sata
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell Premium
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    so slow I'm too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2 19045.3930
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 9020
    CPU
    i7-4770
    Memory
    24 gb
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    256 gb Toshiba BG4 M.2 NVE SSB and 1 tb hdd
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell factory
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Internet Speed
    still not telling
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
I understood what was happening from the beginning, but your statements in post 4 and 5 are what is now throwing me.
You said in post #4 "deleted my 6.4GB hiberfile.sys file and I'm back to normal."
You then said in post #5 that "my system took away the 6.4 gb....I cant get it to delete." Does the hiberfile.sys file still exist or not?

Per the screenshot, hibernation is disabled and there should be no hiberfil.sys file on your system. The only sleep state available is s3 sleep.
Thanks for your reply. Yes, about 4 weeks ago I was able to delete the hiberfile.sys file. and regained the 6.4GB and after the update last week I lost it. I no longer have the hiberfile.sys file on the machine and hibernate is not running but have lost the 6.4GB. I ran treefile and it is not reporting anything in that size range and I'm pretty familar with the drive ( C is about 100GB of which 50 is used) and I am now stumped.

FWIW I have in the past regained that much after an update gets deleted but that was in W 10.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 11 64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    HP All in One
    CPU
    i7 12700T
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia GeForce GTX1650 4GB
    Monitor(s) Displays
    HP 24" Touch
    Hard Drives
    WD 256 GB NVME
    WD 256GB SSD
    Keyboard
    USB
    Mouse
    Bluetooth
    Internet Speed
    500 MBS
    Browser
    Chrome
    Antivirus
    MS
From your specs I see only a 256gb ssd listed. Are you saying you have partitioned this drive into more than one partition and allowed only 100 gb for C: and that C: is already using 50 gb of this partition? IMO that is not sufficient space allotted to C: Assuming, wyou're running the release version of 11, when a version upgrade comes down the pike like we're going to see 22H2 in Sept, it will create a windows. old folder. You're cutting it too close for the needed space to create this folder.

Ways to reclaim disk space:

At the root of C: drive is there already a windows.old folder? Run disk cleanup as administrator which will remove windows.old (if there is one) as well as other temporary system files. If there is a windows.old at root of C, in the disk cleanup procedure several boxes are automatically selected. However, you have to manually check the box by 'previous windows installations' to recover its space as well as any of the other unchecked boxes for items you want to delete.

Manage your downloads folder efficiently. Move the ones you want to keep to external media and delete the others.

Remove duplicate files.

Regularly clear the cache for all browsers. Cached web pages can add up to gigabytes in size rather quickly. Delete cookies regularly. Clear recycle bin. I optimize with Ccleaner Free Version and have for many, many years. It does these things for me.

Uninstall any apps you do not use, especially bloatware.

Move some or all of your personal files to another storage drive.
 

My Computers

System One System Two

  • OS
    Windows 11 Pro 23H2 22631.3296
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 7080
    CPU
    i9-10900 10 core 20 threads
    Motherboard
    DELL 0J37VM
    Memory
    32 gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    none-Intel UHD Graphics 630
    Sound Card
    Integrated Realtek
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    1tb Solidigm m.2 +256gb ssd+512 gb usb m.2 sata
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell Premium
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    so slow I'm too embarrassed to tell
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium
  • Operating System
    Windows 10 Pro 22H2 19045.3930
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    Manufacturer/Model
    Dell Optiplex 9020
    CPU
    i7-4770
    Memory
    24 gb
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Benq 27
    Screen Resolution
    2560x1440
    Hard Drives
    256 gb Toshiba BG4 M.2 NVE SSB and 1 tb hdd
    PSU
    500w
    Case
    MT
    Cooling
    Dell factory
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Keyboard
    Logitech wired
    Internet Speed
    still not telling
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    Defender+MWB Premium

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