Where has the 10gb in my C drive gone? Phantom files

[abhiroopb]

I have a 80gb SSD which I use to store my Windows 7 OS, applications and a couple of games.

I was just checking today and I noticed that I had 24GB free. I went into my C drive, set all hidden folders to "show" and selected all the folders and hit properties. According to the "size" I am using 41GB.

So, an 80gb SSD has 74.4GB of usable space.

I am using 41GB, which means I should have 33.4GB free space. However, it only shows that I have 24GB of free space, so about 10GB of space is being used and I am unsure as to how it is being used.

I figured that system restore MAY be the culprit so I removed all the restore points except the most recent. Now I have 26GB of free space, there is still about 7-8GB unaccounted for.

Any suggestions where I should look?

I have done all the usual CCleaner clean-ups, etc. In any case if there is a file or folder I should be able to see it being used, i.e. the 41GB should read about 48GB.

 

[Nibiru2012]

Something is definitely wrong, unless you have loaded a TON of programs on it.

Check the box to show "Hidden Files & Folders" and then look for any suspicious items.

 

[Thrax]

I bet it's the swap file and the hibernate cache.

 

[clifford_cooley]

What about Restore Points, where are they being kept?

 

[abhiroopb]

Something is definitely wrong, unless you have loaded a TON of programs on it.

Check the box to show "Hidden Files & Folders" and then look for any suspicious items.

What do you mean by something is wrong? Do you think that the 41GB is too much or do you think that the "missing" 6-8GB is an issue? As I mentioned in my original post I have already "shown" my hidden files and folders and do not believe that there is anything else “hidden” on my C:\.

I obviously have no problem with the 41GB as I know exactly what it is being used for (Windows: 14GB, Games: 25GB, Remaining applications: 3-4GB).

It is the remaining 6-8GB which I am unable to "find" that I am concerned about.

I bet it's the swap file and the hibernate cache.

I have disabled hibernation (it is a desktop and sleep to ram works fine) and that saved up a lot of space. I used to have a pagefile.sys on my C:\ but that appears to have disappeared. However, I do know that my pagefile is set to 6GB so it is likely that this is the problem. However, if that were the case I should be seeing the pagefile.sys on my C:\ drive.

What about Restore Points, where are they being kept?

They are on the C:\ drive, but like I mentioned I have cleaned them up (except the most recent one).

 

[yodap]

I find this a helpful tool to find out what's on my drives.
WinDirStat.


http://windirstat.info/
http://download.cnet.com/WinDirStat/3000-2248_4-10614593.html

 

[abhiroopb]

I find this a helpful tool to find out what's on my drives.
WinDirStat.


http://windirstat.info/
http://download.cnet.com/WinDirStat/3000-2248_4-10614593.html

Thanks but as I mentioned I already know that 41GB is being taken up by my Windows, Program Files and other related folders in C:\.

There are no more folders/files in C:\ drive and that is why I am wondering where the extra 6GB is going. I don't really need to see how the 41GB is being used (i.e. which folder/file is using how much space).

 

[yodap]

I have disabled hibernation (it is a desktop and sleep to ram works fine) and that saved up a lot of space. I used to have a pagefile.sys on my C:\ but that appears to have disappeared. However, I do know that my pagefile is set to 6GB so it is likely that this is the problem. However, if that were the case I should be seeing the pagefile.sys on my C:\ drive.

I think your right. Here's mine.

 

[Nibiru2012]

You can safely set your Page File to 2GB in size.

Also, if you have another internal hard drive, put the Page File on its own partition on the extra drive. Preferably with the partition at the beginning of the extra hard drive.

Doing this will help to lessen fragmentation on the C drive and speed up (a little bit) your computer. I have done this for years on my old XP based systems and now with Windows 7.

Turn off hibernation and system restore, use a good system backup software instead such as Acronis True Image or Macrium Reflect Free.

 

[draceena]

Have you checked your Temp folder? From the Start Orb, type %temp% in the Search Area and hit enter. Anything in this folder can be deleted (some items may be locked and that's ok, just skip them).

 

[Thrax]

If you're running an SSD, the page file should be moved to another mechanical hard drive.

 

[abhiroopb]

If you're running an SSD, the page file should be moved to another mechanical hard drive.

Sorry for the long hiatus.

Why should it be on another drive? Basically, what is the logic behind that?

On another note I found out that the phantom file was the hibernate file and after disabling hibernate I immediately got my "phantom" space back.

Thanks for all the suggestions!

 

[Nibiru2012]

The page file should always be on another drive, regardless of whether you're using a hard drive or SSD.

The page file is basically virtual memory and windows will constantly read and write to it all the time. Windows since XP likes it much better when the page file is on a separate drive, with its own partition preferably at the front or beginning of the hard drive where the access is the fastest.

It prevents the C drive drive from getting fragmented as much. For SSD drives it's an absolute necessity because the page file will shorten the life of the NAND chips in the SSD with all the I/O cycles.

The page file can take a considerable toll on your system drive; by moving the page file to a separate drive, you can increase overall performance.

Go to the link below to read more about it and how to do it.

Move the Page File to Another Drive

 

[abhiroopb]

The page file should always be on another drive, regardless of whether you're using a hard drive or SSD.

The page file is basically virtual memory and windows will constantly read and write to it all the time. Windows since XP likes it much better when the page file is on a separate drive, with its own partition preferably at the front or beginning of the hard drive where the access is the fastest.

It prevents the C drive drive from getting fragmented as much. For SSD drives it's an absolute necessity because the page file will shorten the life of the NAND chips in the SSD with all the I/O cycles.

The page file can take a considerable toll on your system drive; by moving the page file to a separate drive, you can increase overall performance.

Go to the link below to read more about it and how to do it.

Move the Page File to Another Drive

The guide suggest I still keep some of the pagefile in C, won't this reduce the life of the SSD?