How to Delete the Windows.old Folder in Windows 10

Whenever you upgrade your computer or install a new Window the install wizard will automatically save a copy of the previous version inside of the “Windows.old” folder on your computer. This copy folder is the safe backup in case something goes wrong during the installation process. When something goes wrong with the installation the operating system can use this backup copy to get back any change automatically.

Steps to delete the Windows.old folder in Windows 10

The Windows.old folder basically resides on the C: hard drive of your computer where the operating system is currently installed. Yet you cannot just click on the delete button and to make it disappear, for deleting this folder you need to use the Disk Cleanup tool. For this, you need to follow the steps

Step-1: First you need to open the File Explorer by pressing the Windows key + E keyboard shortcut together at the same time.

Step-2: Now on the left pane click on This PC option.

Step-3: Under Devices and drive you need to right click on the drive with the Windows 10 installation, and then click on the  Properties option.

Step-4: Once you click on properties a new pop-up will open and here under General tab click on Disk Cleanup button.

Step-5: Now the disk cleanup pop-up will open and here you have click on the Cleanup system file option.

Step-6: Under Files to delete a list of the file will be open and from this list, you have to select Previous Windows Installation(s) option to delete the Windows.old folder.

From this list, you can also choose to delete other installation related files which include Windows upgrade log files and Temporary Windows installation files which can also take up several gigabytes of storage as well.

Step-7: Once you have selected the files which you want to delete now click on the Ok button.

Step-8: After that, a new pop-up dialog will open and here you have click on Delete Files button to confirm the deletion.

Step-9: Finally on the Disk Cleanup warning click on Yes button to complete the process.

after removing these files, you will no longer be able to go back to the previous version of Windows 10 using the recovery options. After deleting the Windows.old folder, the only way to go back to the previous version is by performing a clean installation of the operating system.

This is all for this article I hope these steps help you to delete the Windows.old folder on Windows 10 on your computer without any difficulty. If you liked this article, then please share it on social media and with your friends. If you want to ask any question or you want to suggest any update regarding this article, then comment below in the comment section.