Windows\SoftwareDistribution Folder Cleanup Automation
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Monday, August 22, 2011 6:45 PM
Hi -
I have a number of machines with a bloated Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder. I usually address this by:
- Stopping the Automatic Updates service.
- Deleting the Windows\SoftwareDistribution folder.
- Restarting the Automatic Updates service.
I'm considering using a computer startup script to perform this task automatically. Does anyone have a more elegant method of automating this task?
Thanks in advance for your input.
Answers
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Tuesday, August 23, 2011 12:12 AMModerator
I am not aware of a 'best practice' way of reducing the size of the folder
The 'best practice' is to never touch the folder.
There is NO reason, on a properly functioning system, why this folder should ever need to be touched.
The %windir%\SoftwareDistribution\Download folder is automatically maintained by the WUAgent. On the off-chance that the Datastore and the Download folder get de-synchronized, it may be necessary one-time-only to delete any content in the Download folder that is over 10 days old.
Any continued issues is evidence of a more serious client health issue.
In addition, the Datastore contains all of the Windows Update History for the client system. Destroying the SoftwareDistribution folder, except when expressly warranted due to error conditions for which destruction of the SoftwareDistribution folder is the only solution, destroys the entire Windows Update History for that client system.
It also results in longer detection times at the next detection, because the WUAgent has to re-cache howeverMany thousands of available updates, as result of the destruction of the Datastore.
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2011)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin
My Blog: http://onsitechsolutions.spaces.live.com
- Edited by Lawrence GarvinMVP, Moderator Tuesday, August 23, 2011 2:57 PM Corrected reference to retention period in Download folder. Changed "30 days" to "10 days".
- Marked As Answer by Vincent HuMicrosoft Contingent Staff, Moderator Thursday, August 25, 2011 7:05 AM
All Replies
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Monday, August 22, 2011 11:34 PM
You might want to put some timers in the following script so the commands don't overrun each other.
net stop wuauserv del c:\windows\SoftwareDistribution /q /s net start wuauserv
I am not aware of a 'best practice' way of reducing the size of the folder, but I have used methods similar to the one above. However, I do not recommend having it as a computer startup script. *Possibly* as a scheduled task that runs every quarter or bi-annually.
If you found this post helpful, please give it a "Helpful" vote. If it answered your question, remember to mark it as an "Answer".
Rich Prescott | MCITP, MCTS, MCP
Blog | Twitter: @Arposh | Powershell Client System Administration tool- Edited by Rich PrescottMicrosoft Community Contributor Monday, August 22, 2011 11:34 PM code
- Proposed As Answer by Skylink Design, Inc Tuesday, November 08, 2011 11:16 PM
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Tuesday, August 23, 2011 12:12 AMModerator
I am not aware of a 'best practice' way of reducing the size of the folder
The 'best practice' is to never touch the folder.
There is NO reason, on a properly functioning system, why this folder should ever need to be touched.
The %windir%\SoftwareDistribution\Download folder is automatically maintained by the WUAgent. On the off-chance that the Datastore and the Download folder get de-synchronized, it may be necessary one-time-only to delete any content in the Download folder that is over 10 days old.
Any continued issues is evidence of a more serious client health issue.
In addition, the Datastore contains all of the Windows Update History for the client system. Destroying the SoftwareDistribution folder, except when expressly warranted due to error conditions for which destruction of the SoftwareDistribution folder is the only solution, destroys the entire Windows Update History for that client system.
It also results in longer detection times at the next detection, because the WUAgent has to re-cache howeverMany thousands of available updates, as result of the destruction of the Datastore.
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2011)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin
My Blog: http://onsitechsolutions.spaces.live.com
- Edited by Lawrence GarvinMVP, Moderator Tuesday, August 23, 2011 2:57 PM Corrected reference to retention period in Download folder. Changed "30 days" to "10 days".
- Marked As Answer by Vincent HuMicrosoft Contingent Staff, Moderator Thursday, August 25, 2011 7:05 AM
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Tuesday, August 23, 2011 12:34 AM
While I agree with you Lawrence, the world is not a perfect place. There are some companies out there that are still struggling with 40gb drives and cannot afford to upgrade them or have the SoftwareDistribution folder hog the space. We would be much better off if everyone followed best practices, but sometimes it is just not an option. That is the reason I stated that I was not aware of any related best practices and helped him towards his goal.
If you found this post helpful, please give it a "Helpful" vote. If it answered your question, remember to mark it as an "Answer".
Rich Prescott | MCITP, MCTS, MCP
Blog | Twitter: @Arposh | Powershell Client System Administration tool -
Tuesday, August 23, 2011 1:50 AMModerator
While I agree with you Lawrence, the world is not a perfect place. There are some companies out there that are still struggling with 40gb drives and cannot afford to upgrade them or have the SoftwareDistribution folder hog the space. We would be much better off if everyone followed best practices, but sometimes it is just not an option. That is the reason I stated that I was not aware of any related best practices and helped him towards his goal.
I have rarely seen a case where the SoftwareDistribution folder requires more than a mere mimimal amout of space on any given system. On two different Win7 systems I have, the SoftwareDistribution folder consumes <100MB of disk space.
The fact is that on most systems the WinSxS folder takes up exponentially greater amounts of space, and on any given system, the %TEMP% folder typically has about 10x the amount of content that exists in the SoftwareDistribution folder, because basic everyday disk management practices do not exist.
Effective use of Disk Cleanup utilities will produce exponentially greater amounts of impact on disk management than worrying about the minimal content in the SoftwareDistribution folder.
The information you provided him, reinforcing bad information unfortunately available widespread throughout the net (despite my best efforts to counteract, like in this thread), are destructive more than helpful, and remove critical information required for the efficient operation of Windows systems.
The probem is that removing the "SoftwareDistribution" folder has become the be-all/end-all resolution to fixing WUAgent issues, and the fact is that it should be the Option Of Last Resort regarding WUAgent management. I estimate that 95% of instances where removing the "SoftwareDistribution" folder was used, was either not the correct remediation, or did not ultimately resolve the reported issue. Destruction of data is never the correct answer unless destruction of that data is the ONLY way to recover system functionality -- and even then, backup/restore/rebuild is still a preferable option in most cases -- so YES, I do have a claw up my backside about this issue. :-)
Deleting the SoftwareDistribution folder is WRONG. PERIOD.
Any questions? :-)))))
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2011)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin
My Blog: http://onsitechsolutions.spaces.live.com
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Tuesday, August 23, 2011 2:10 AM
As the user mentioned the 'Automatic Updates' service and not 'Windows Update', that suggests to me that he is using Windows XP, not Windows 7. Windows XP systems have typically been around longer than Windows 7 systems and so they will have larger SoftwareDistribution folders (3 SPs instead of 1 for Windows 7 and numerous other updates). And as mentioned before, if a user has Windows XP, they are more likely to have older hardware, meaning a smaller HD. The Disk Cleanup utility in Windows, in my experience, has been pretty useless.
Troubleshooting most Windows Updates issues comes down to the following items:
- Restart service
- Stop service, delete folder, start service
- Stop service, delete folder, delete SUS registry keys, start service, run 'wuauclt /resetauthorization /detectnow'
- Stop service, register dlls (msxml.dll, etc.), start service
There are a few other simple troubleshooting steps, including looking at the text logs and event logs, but the majority of the issues are covered above. Anything outside of those steps, I typically recommend reimaging the machine as any other troubleshooting will probably take more than 20 minutes, which is the time it takes to reimage a machine. There are certain cases where reimaging the machine is not an option, such as mission-critical devices, but that is not the majority of systems. I understand that you are an MVP on Software Distribution and most likely can figure out any issue within minutes, but for others it might be easier to reimage the machine and be done with it.
...
I realize where you are coming from and if you were working for his company, you would do things differently. But he is not you and does not have your competency with WSUS. What might be an answer for one person/company is not always the answer for another. I am a technical person by nature and prefer to troubleshoot issues so I can find the root cause to make sure they do not happen again. Others are not fortunate to have the time available to do this and must do what they can to get the user back up and running. Like I said, it is not a perfect world, but we do with what we have.
If you found this post helpful, please give it a "Helpful" vote. If it answered your question, remember to mark it as an "Answer".
Rich Prescott | MCITP, MCTS, MCP
Blog | Twitter: @Arposh | Powershell Client System Administration tool -
Tuesday, August 23, 2011 2:55 PMModerator
Windows XP systems have typically been around longer than Windows 7 systems and so they will have larger SoftwareDistribution folders (3 SPs instead of 1 for Windows 7 and numerous other updates).
No, they will not, and the SoftwareDistribution folder does not contain service pack files beyond the transient period of time required for actual installation of that service pack. Furthermore, as noted, if the ~\Download folder contains any files older than 10 days, that's an indication that something else is messed up in the synchronicity between the WUAgent datastore and the Download folder. In that situation, a ONE TIME removal of files from the Download folder that are older than 10 days may be necessary. (Note: I misspoke in my earlier post and have edited that post to change "30 days" to "10 days".)
What might be an answer for one person/company is not always the answer for another.
Formatting the drive and reinstalling the Operating System is sometimes easier for some people than performing the proper procedures, but it's never an excuse. This forum provides support for a product that is designed for use in an environment with IT Professionals, so the working assumption is that all persons posting here are, in fact, IT Professionals. To that point, my working premise is that all persons here possess the ability to understand, and have the professional obligation TO understand.
This is not a consumer forum designed to help users with Automatic Updates or Microsoft Update, so I will not "dumb down" anything in this forum. My working presumption in this forum is that people posting are WSUS Server Administrators and have a functional knowledge (or SHOULD HAVE a functional knowledge of how Windows systems are patched) -- this includes the requisite understanding of how the Windows Update Agent works. When that lack of knowledge is apparent, its incumbent upon those who have that knowledge to properly educate that IT Professional -- and this is what I am doing.
Giving them BAD or INCORRECT information simply because it is "easier for them to understand" is not helpful; in fact, IMO it's somewhat condescending. As far as I'm concerned, the modus operandi in this forum is that the CORRECT ANSWER is the CORRECT ANSWER is the CORRECT ANSWER, and you can trust that I will call out INCORRECT answers anytime they appear.
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2011)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin
My Blog: http://onsitechsolutions.spaces.live.com -
Tuesday, August 23, 2011 3:20 PMModerator
Windows XP systems have typically been around longer than Windows 7 systems and so they will have larger SoftwareDistribution folders (3 SPs instead of 1 for Windows 7 and numerous other updates).
No, they will not, and the SoftwareDistribution folder does not contain service pack files beyond the transient period of time required for actual installation of that service pack.
To this point, I have a Windows XP SP3 system that has been in service since June, 2006.
The current size of the SoftwareDistribution folder is 139MB.
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2011)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin
My Blog: http://onsitechsolutions.spaces.live.com -
Tuesday, August 23, 2011 6:18 PM
Thank you both for your feedback. To clarify things a bit, the systems that are causing me pain are Windows Server 2003 servers. Updates are approved on a monthly basis and are configured to automatically install and reboot on a scheduled basis.
The systems in question are usually 5+ years old or are running SQL server. In some cases, I have found that the WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution folder exceeds 500 MB for a system that reports back to the WSUS console as being fully updated with nothing queued to install. When the system in question has less than 1 GB of free space, that's a significant issue. So it seemed to me that the issue is that, for whatever reason, the update source are not cleaning up after they have been installed.
The instances where I have stopped the service, deleted the folder structure and restarted the service significantly reduces the amount of space used by the folder even after performing a detection.
So here are my questions:
1. What are the downsides to deleting the Windows Update history? As long as I retain the log files for the updates (Windows\KB*.log) and the associated uninstall folders, under what circumstances would I need to reference the Windows Update history and how would I do it? (FYI - I'm getting pressured to move these folders and log files to another drive, which worries me but that's another discussion).
2. Under what circumstances would source content for an update that has applied successfully need to be retained in the \WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution folder?
3. Is there an alternative, such as a cleanup tool switch that will allow me to keep this folder content clean?
Thanks,
-Rob
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Tuesday, August 23, 2011 7:52 PMModerator
In some cases, I have found that the WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution folder exceeds 500 MB for a system that reports back to the WSUS console as being fully updated with nothing queued to install.
As noted, I would recommend a one-time removal of any files/folders from the Download folder that are older than ten calendar days.When the system in question has less than 1 GB of free space, that's a significant issue.
Actually, when the SYSVOL has less than 20% free space, it's a signficant issue. However, recovering a few hundred megabytes of space from the WUAgent is like using an eyedropper to fill a bucket. I would suggest you focus your efforts on more high-value targets, such as %userprofile% TEMP folders; browser caches, the %windir%\ServicePackFiles folder, and anything else identified by running the Disk Cleanup Wizard.So it seemed to me that the issue is that, for whatever reason, the update source are not cleaning up after they have been installed.
It is evidence that some content has been abandoned. Evidence that a current fault exists would be confirmed by content that is between 10-30 days old. If the July Patch Tuesday content is still there, or if the August Patch Tuesday content was installed before the 13th and is still there, that would suggest that the WUAgent is not maintaining the current content. Delete the content older than 10 days and monitor the folder.The instances where I have stopped the service, deleted the folder structure and restarted the service significantly reduces the amount of space used by the folder even after performing a detection.
Yes, but it has other negative consequences that you have not yet had occasion to notice, including significantly increasing the system resources required to perform update scans, excessive network bandwidth utilization re-caching the ~100mb of content that is probably the DataStore.EDB, and destroying that machine's Windows Update History.So here are my questions:
Other than being absolutely unnecessary? Hard to say. If you NEVER need to refer to that Update History, then the downsides are nil; however, if you destroy information you might need at a later time to troubleshoot some other issue, you can't use what you don't have.1. What are the downsides to deleting the Windows Update history?
As long as I retain the log files for the updates (Windows\KB*.log)
Ironicaly, that's the JUNK you should be deleting! :-)and the associated uninstall folders
Which are all generally useless more than 60 days after the update is installed IMO(FYI - I'm getting pressured to move these folders and log files to another drive, which worries me but that's another discussion).
As noted, the KB*.log files and the NTUninstall folders can be safely deleted. I typically remove mine 60-90 days after update installation, as by that point, either the update is working (in which case the installation log and uninstallation folder has no real value), or it's already failed.2. Under what circumstances would source content for an update that has applied successfully need to be retained in the \WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution folder?
As long as it is a VALID (i.e. Not Declined) update, it is retained in the DataStore.EDB so that the WUAgent can continue to report valid state/event data for that update. If an installed update gets uninstalled, and that update is not in the DataStore, how would the WUAgent know that the update was, once again, needed? It's really a moot point, though, as you cannot control this. The WUAgent caches update metadata for all relevant updates. That is one of the primary purposes of the DataStore, along with the installation history for those updates. If you destroy the DataStore, the cache (for hundreds, if not thousands) of updates must be rebuilt; the installation history cannot be rebuilt.3. Is there an alternative, such as a cleanup tool switch that will allow me to keep this folder content clean?
As I've already said -- a properly functioning WUAgent environment SELF-MAINTAINS this folder and there is no need to script maintenance activities on this folder. It is a SYSTEM folder and the SYSTEM should be left to manage the folder.
If you really want to engage in disk maintenance activities to free up disk space, focus on the USER FOLDERS, which typically (in my experiences) will yield upwards of 10% of the capacity of the disk drive in deletable junk files.
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2011)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin
My Blog: http://onsitechsolutions.spaces.live.com -
Tuesday, November 08, 2011 11:16 PMThank you Rich. This is exactly the information I was looking for as I have an XP system, in service since November 2007. The SoftwareDistribution directory is 1.2Gb. While I do have plenty of free space, I generally dislike bloat when it can be trimmed.
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Monday, November 14, 2011 11:25 PM
Lawrence,
I have a server with a 35 GB partition that continues to grow uncontrollably:
C:\windows\installer - 3.4 GB
C:\windows\softwareDistribution - 2.3 GB
C:\windows\winsxs - 9.1 GBI just moved our 6 GB swap file to a different partition to stablize the server giving me exactly 6.5 GB of free space on the C: partition. Usage in temp directories is minimal. I cannot find a straight answer on how to clean up the winsxs directory.
Any guidence on where to go next once the server fills up again?
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Tuesday, November 15, 2011 4:07 AMThe WinSXS can be safely deleted. The (large) caveat to this is that you are deleting the backup files for Windows Updates and Service Packs. If you delete them, you will be unable to roll back updates. Be VERY sure that you are ok with the currently installed updates and service packs before you delete anything in the WinSXS folder.
Rich Prescott | Infrastructure Architect, Windows Engineer and PowerShell blogger | MCITP, MCTS, MCP
Engineering Efficiency
@Rich_Prescott
Client System Administration tool
AD User Creation tool -
Friday, November 18, 2011 4:59 PM
WOW! NICE TRICK! Unfortunately, Microsoft often doesn't listen to his customers. I wanted a clean install. I did the updates... Why so much failed updates?? Anyway after doing all of them, I just wanted to clean Win updates and minimize the image I will create after that.
This is just a matter of staying clean. Why windows folders are always so messy? with plenty of fails?
If you have other tricks like that, I would like to know.
5 stars! You definitivly are earing our call lol
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Sunday, November 20, 2011 12:27 PMThis happens because windows update lets you select updates that are part of other updates. These smaller updates later fail to install because they no longer apply.
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Monday, January 16, 2012 6:51 AM
No offense, but standard MS response to these issues seems to be similarly unhelpful. I have been reading for days now, looking for ways to reduce the unreasonably large and continually growing footprint of Windows 7, without any real answers. My Software Distribution folder is currently 1.3GB. That's completely unacceptable. The WinSxS folder is 6.5GB, which is also insane, but that's another entire kettle of stinking fish which I won't muddy this thread with. My install is exactly 2 days old, and I have very few programs on top of it (Microsoft Word and Photoshop are the main ones). Right now the install size is 17GB after employing every "best practice" tactic possible including not only everything discussed on these forums, but everywhere else on the internet that I can find, no kidding. Yesterday it was 10.5GB.
The reality is these folders take up too much space, and users need an elegant way to deal with them. Reiterating what is unhelpful MS rhetoric (in bold and italics to emphasize that it's all been said before) isn't the answer. Best practice is to not create such clunky, inelegant OS systems, so "best practice" went out the window when we chose to install Win 7 etc. What we need are workable solutions, and a willingness from those so empowered to find them.
- Edited by t0lkien Monday, January 16, 2012 6:58 AM
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Monday, January 16, 2012 7:19 AM
The WinSXS can be safely deleted. The (large) caveat to this is that you are deleting the backup files for Windows Updates and Service Packs. If you delete them, you will be unable to roll back updates. Be VERY sure that you are ok with the currently installed updates and service packs before you delete anything in the WinSXS folder.
Rich Prescott | Infrastructure Architect, Windows Engineer and PowerShell blogger | MCITP, MCTS, MCP
Engineering Efficiency
@Rich_Prescott
Client System Administration tool
AD User Creation tool
Rich, are you certain about this? Everything I have read over the past 2+ days indicates in the strongest terms that deleting the WinSXS files is an absolute no-go, and will irrevocably break your Windows install. Have you tried doing this yourself? If so, what did you/did you not delete?
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Monday, January 16, 2012 7:30 PMModerator
My Software Distribution folder is currently 1.3GB.
My install is exactly 2 days old
A couple of questions here:
Did you install a base image of Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (released Spring 2011),
or did you install a base image of Windows 7 (RTM) (released Fall 2009).
If you installed the RTM version of Windows 7, and then applied a year-and-a-half worth of updates to the machine in 2 days, then a 1.3GB Download folder is **NORMAL** and **EXPECTED** -- particularly if you also then installed the Service Pack! If all of the updates have been installed successfully, then you can either wait another week and that folder will clean itself up, or you can delete the contents of the \Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download folder -- but frankly, I don't think freeing up 1.3GB of disk space is going to make one whit of difference in the operation of your system.
Fact is that Microsoft is very clear about the disk requirements to install an operating system, and the WINDOWS folder on a Windows 7 system is going to require upwards of 10GB of space. Disk space is **CHEAP**, so I'm not really inclined to be too sympathetic about people whining about a few GB of space they can't get back. If you're short on free space, buy a bigger drive. A 250GB drive is $80 at BestBuy; even cheaper on eBay. I run Win7 on an 80GB drive, with 50% free space on the machine I'm posting from, and I also have a copy running on a 40GB drive which is 90% full -- the point being that a 50GB drive is the minimum functional requirement to install a working Win7 system.
Having said that, I'll also note that this thread has wandered excessively off-topic for this forum, so I would ask the participants to take the discussion of disk utilization by the Windows operating system to the appropriate Setup/Deployment forums, where those discussions are on-topic.
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2012)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin -
Friday, February 03, 2012 6:23 PM
I have a different view coming from desktop administration. 1.3 gb of space is a big difference when you are deploying images over the network. I try to keep the master image as small as possible to reduce bandwith and image times. I only delete the files inside the downloads folder under softwaredistribution. I test the image and make sure it works fine, so no need to uninstall the updates and I have a smaller desktop image size.
Adam J. -
Friday, February 03, 2012 10:44 PMModerator
I have a different view coming from desktop administration. 1.3 gb of space is a big difference when you are deploying images over the network.
Your point is well taken; however, 1.3GB of content in an image is a completely different topic from 1.3GB of content in the ~\SoftwareDistribution\Download folder -- unless that content got there because it was erroneously burned into the master image.
Fact is, on a Gigabit LAN backbone, 1.3GB of content is about 18 seconds of file transfer time. (1.3GBytes x 8 = 10.4 gigabits @ 600mb/sec practical throughput is 10.4 / 0.6 = 17.33 seconds.
On a 100mbit/sec LAN backbone, assuming a practical throughput of about 60mb/sec, it would take a few minutes, worst case scenario.
But this conversation is not about network utilization, it's about DISK utilization.
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2012)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin- Edited by Lawrence GarvinMVP, Moderator Friday, February 03, 2012 10:44 PM
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Saturday, February 11, 2012 9:48 AM
My Software Distribution folder is currently 1.3GB.
My install is exactly 2 days old
A couple of questions here:
Did you install a base image of Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (released Spring 2011),
or did you install a base image of Windows 7 (RTM) (released Fall 2009).
If you installed the RTM version of Windows 7, and then applied a year-and-a-half worth of updates to the machine in 2 days, then a 1.3GB Download folder is **NORMAL** and **EXPECTED** -- particularly if you also then installed the Service Pack! If all of the updates have been installed successfully, then you can either wait another week and that folder will clean itself up, or you can delete the contents of the \Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download folder -- but frankly, I don't think freeing up 1.3GB of disk space is going to make one whit of difference in the operation of your system.
Fact is that Microsoft is very clear about the disk requirements to install an operating system, and the WINDOWS folder on a Windows 7 system is going to require upwards of 10GB of space. Disk space is **CHEAP**, so I'm not really inclined to be too sympathetic about people whining about a few GB of space they can't get back. If you're short on free space, buy a bigger drive. A 250GB drive is $80 at BestBuy; even cheaper on eBay. I run Win7 on an 80GB drive, with 50% free space on the machine I'm posting from, and I also have a copy running on a 40GB drive which is 90% full -- the point being that a 50GB drive is the minimum functional requirement to install a working Win7 system.
Having said that, I'll also note that this thread has wandered excessively off-topic for this forum, so I would ask the participants to take the discussion of disk utilization by the Windows operating system to the appropriate Setup/Deployment forums, where those discussions are on-topic.
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2012)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.GarvinDear Lawrence,
I believe your opinion about disk space being **CHEAP** is a bit short sighted. I am a professional audio engineer and work on a Macbook Pro with a solid state drive installed. As you know a solid state is quite NOT **CHEAP** per Gb. Needing both Windows7 and OSX for my job, I want both OS systems to be as efficient as possible and not slurping up my disk space like candy...
Rodger
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Sunday, February 12, 2012 3:12 AMModerator
As you know a solid state is quite NOT **CHEAP** per Gb.
And gasoline is not cheap for the owner of a Maserati, either, but I have little sympathy for their economic woes, as well. ;-)Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2012)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin -
Wednesday, February 15, 2012 8:56 PM
I am a Microsoft Trainer and have recently rebuilt an XP SP3 VPC for demonstration purposes.
The C:\WINDOWS\SoftwareDistribution folder is currently 700MB+ and contains cabinet files for SP1 and SP3.You seem to be saying that the folder regulates itself and it will reduce in size after 10 days or so. Am I understanding you correctly?
Regards
Simon -
Thursday, February 16, 2012 5:46 AMModerator
You seem to be saying that the folder regulates itself and it will reduce in size after 10 days or so. Am I understanding you correctly?
Yes.Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2012)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.Garvin -
Monday, February 20, 2012 7:36 AM
My Software Distribution folder is currently 1.3GB.
My install is exactly 2 days old
A couple of questions here:
Did you install a base image of Windows 7 Service Pack 1 (released Spring 2011),
or did you install a base image of Windows 7 (RTM) (released Fall 2009).
If you installed the RTM version of Windows 7, and then applied a year-and-a-half worth of updates to the machine in 2 days, then a 1.3GB Download folder is **NORMAL** and **EXPECTED** -- particularly if you also then installed the Service Pack! If all of the updates have been installed successfully, then you can either wait another week and that folder will clean itself up, or you can delete the contents of the \Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download folder -- but frankly, I don't think freeing up 1.3GB of disk space is going to make one whit of difference in the operation of your system.
Fact is that Microsoft is very clear about the disk requirements to install an operating system, and the WINDOWS folder on a Windows 7 system is going to require upwards of 10GB of space. Disk space is **CHEAP**, so I'm not really inclined to be too sympathetic about people whining about a few GB of space they can't get back. If you're short on free space, buy a bigger drive. A 250GB drive is $80 at BestBuy; even cheaper on eBay. I run Win7 on an 80GB drive, with 50% free space on the machine I'm posting from, and I also have a copy running on a 40GB drive which is 90% full -- the point being that a 50GB drive is the minimum functional requirement to install a working Win7 system.
Having said that, I'll also note that this thread has wandered excessively off-topic for this forum, so I would ask the participants to take the discussion of disk utilization by the Windows operating system to the appropriate Setup/Deployment forums, where those discussions are on-topic.
Lawrence Garvin, M.S., MCITP:EA, MCDBA, MCSA
Principal/CTO, Onsite Technology Solutions, Houston, Texas
Microsoft MVP - Software Distribution (2005-2012)
My MVP Profile: http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/profile/Lawrence.GarvinMr. Garvin, when people come to a forum they are looking for help solving an issue. Not a condescending, asinine tirade detailing how people are whiners about disk space and gasoline in their fancy sports car. Furthermore, I was intrigued by your arrogance and decided to look up your credentials...impressed I am not. Of 7,951 posts, only 631 people thought they were helpful and that figures up to 8% of the time which means...wait for it...not much. In fact, I wondered how a CTO could post replies like that and still retain their position within the company. Then I looked up your company and I laughed so hard that I spit coffee all over my desk. What did you edit that website with??? FrontPage 98? I can say that it makes my top 10 all-time list of things to NOT do when creating a website. Please spare the internet from your future incompetence of web programming.
And the fact that you tell people that this thread has wandered excessively off-topic and they should go post somewhere else is frankly irritating. That is exactly what this topic is about! The excessive disk space usage by the Windows OS! Just so all you people out there know, MVP means Microsoft Valued Professional which is a fancy term for someone that posts to the forum frequently. MVPs are independent of Microsoft, with separate opinions and perspectives, and are able to represent the views of the community members with whom they engage every day. So Mr. Garvin has no authority granted by the Microsoft Corporation to tell anyone anything. The only people that actually represent the company have the title, Microsoft, MSFT.
Now I am a Senior Programmer/Analyst with a MS in Computer Science (woohoo) and I can tell you that when Windows 7 is using 80% or more of a 64GB SSD, there is an issue. Regarding the WinSXS directory, it is full of files you may or may not require to run applications that were designed for an older operating system. It is a .dll repository of sorts. I have an i7 Intel processor and there are many files within WinSXS that refer to an AMD64 processor. I find it hard to believe I need those files, but you never know. I can tell you that if you delete all the files in this folder, you will probably create yourself some issues with backward compatibility of applications designed for previous operating systems. I will continue to research this issue and update my findings if they are helpful.
For those of you that are using the AVG Internet Security toolbar, a bug was introduced in version 9.0.027 that allows the log file for this application to grow to enormous sizes....sometimes 11GB in size. It continues to do so in AVG 2012. This hidden file is located at C:/Users/<username>/AppData/Local/toolbar_log.txt. The only way to get rid of it is to get rid of the AVG toolbar and then delete it.
Also, you can use a folder migrating utility to move directories and files to a secondary hard drive. You can can also move the LocalLow and Roaming folders from AppData over to your secondary hard drive to keep some applications from writing to precious SSD space. Unfortunately, moving the Local folder is extremely difficult and should be left alone unless you are comfortable with editing the registry.
And for those of you that would like a good laugh, stroll on over to Mr.Garvin's corporation website located at:
http://www.onsitechsolutions.com/
It's spew worthy after reading a few of his posts and all that MC this and that after his name.
Bahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
L. Skywalker
- Edited by ElderJedi Monday, February 20, 2012 8:04 AM
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Monday, February 20, 2012 3:01 PMI was originally just going to ignore the guy you mentioned. But when I read your message I thought Bravo! someone putting him in his place. I thought the same exact thing about the poster. Arrogant and condencending. However, I know he will proabably reply back saying the question is off topic. Which I agree completely with, he has changed the subject matter with his Arrogant answers.
Adam J.
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Wednesday, March 21, 2012 10:18 AM
Though I understand Lawrence's concerns, my SoftwareDistribution\Download folder takes more than 1 Gb of my HDD. That's not a "minimal amount of space"...
I have a 50 Gb partition and I can't expand it any more. My temp folders are empty and in a different disk drive, and I use the Disk Cleanup utility each and every day because I get constant warnings about my disk space running out. I've even created scripts to delete Visual Studio debug and trace files, but that doesn't fix that my Windows folder is taking 30 out of my 50 Gbs (Most of it comes from the WinSxS, Installer, Assembly and SoftwareDistribution subfolders).
And lots of people like Lawrence keep saying that those folders CAN'T be touched, but they don't give an alternative solution (The "use the Cleanup utility" solution makes me laugh). In the end, I'll have to format and install everything all over again because Windows overfeeds with time and there's no real way of making it thiner... Next time, I'll deactivate automatic Windows updates. Oh wait! That's not 'best practice' either! I guess I'll just throw my laptop off the window, then.
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Monday, March 26, 2012 6:37 PM
SD Downloads is auto cleaned after a couple of weeks. Purging more often than that can be done by stopping the service, clearing the downloads dir, then restarting WAU.
SxS should not be purged entirely, but you can clean up older and duplicate cache files with DISM:
dism /online /cleanup-image /spsuperseded
Then, cleaning up temp spaces, such as with DiskCleanup helps.
You're still left with remnants of uninstalled programs (MS and third party), plus various caches, duplicates etc.
As has always been the case, an occasional clean reinstall from properly slipstreamed media is the best choice.
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Monday, April 16, 2012 9:01 AM
... And the fact that you tell people that this thread has wandered excessively off-topic and they should go post somewhere else is frankly irritating. That is exactly what this topic is about! The excessive disk space usage by the Windows OS!
Hello
I came here looking for an answer to "why my softwaredistribution folder has 1.3GB?" and I get engaged by Mr Garvin answers :o)
I agree with you, ElderJedi, except in that quoted thing. I think this topic is about a technical person living in his own world and real people trying to find answers in the real world.
Good luck
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Thursday, April 19, 2012 10:16 AM
... And the fact that you tell people that this thread has wandered excessively off-topic and they should go post somewhere else is frankly irritating. That is exactly what this topic is about! The excessive disk space usage by the Windows OS!
Hello
I came here looking for an answer to "why my softwaredistribution folder has 1.3GB?" and I get engaged by Mr Garvin answers :o)
I agree with you, ElderJedi, except in that quoted thing. I think this topic is about a technical person living in his own world and real people trying to find answers in the real world.
Good luck
Oh how true
same problem here... and all you get are smoke blowers.... Thanks for the real answers chaps, stop service, delete folder, start service, jobs a good un.
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Thursday, May 03, 2012 8:48 AM
ElderJedi,
You rock. I'm not sure I ever read a better right-hook in a forum.
The guy is down, the ref has finished counting.
For the record, I totally agreed with Rich Prescotts original advice as an "every day" solution, but then *certain* people started getting anal about... well everything.
Yes, I'm qualified, a global IT Manager and very tech savvy. Mr Lawrence needs to learn to calm the hell down - or at least phrase things differently. But - given the photo and website.... can't see that happening any time soon.
Well done Jedi - an excellent KO for the little guys ;)
Sith
PS - OMG that truly is a terrible website..... The links... erm... well, they don't link?- Edited by Lord Sith the Third Thursday, May 03, 2012 8:57 AM Update
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Friday, May 04, 2012 9:27 AM
Dear Lawrence,
I have no idea which world you live in but in the real world, this folder gets absurdly bloated on even clean machines. I found this thread when looking for a reminder of which services to stop because my three week clean install of Windows 7 x64 has a 3GB SoftwareDistribution folder, something the IT company that I run sees all the times.
Ultimately, the user wasn't asking for advice on when or if he should empty this folder either - just a way to script it (because it IS something that needs to be done regularly).
Regards
Bob
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Tuesday, May 08, 2012 4:12 PM
Just when I thought nobody could beat my story, you did, Bob. I'll post it anyway -- I have a Windows Server 2008 R2 machine built only a year and a half ago. All it does is run SQL Server. It now has 2.2 GB in the SoftwareDistribution\Downloads folder (in 333 files). So yes, in the real world it does build up -- and it's also endangering the free disk space on that drive (all the actual data is on another, large drive).
And nearly half of that space is in a single file, dated a year ago. Another 40% is in another single file about 6 months old. So no, the files don't necessarily get automatically deleted after 10 days.
- Edited by phantomflash Tuesday, May 08, 2012 4:16 PM
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Friday, May 11, 2012 3:29 AM
I hope I'm not going off topic but this is easily one of the most hilarious threads I've read in quite a while. I was looking to clean up a recent XP install on a laptop with a 20GB drive. I had a bloated SoftwareDistribution folder and only about 5GB left so I was kinda panicking.
For a few of the posts there, I was starting to buy into the shpiel by Fred Garvin (actually, you might want to goog that version of the name for another laugh) and was resigned to just leaving the damn thing until it basically exploded. Anyways, the one part of his advice I took was that I only deleted the contents of the download folder (ten days be danged), and I went out there and deleted some of the other folders mentioned. Everything seems to be running fine.
I think the problem was that the guy's attitude blew up on his face. He was offering an option, and for some reason he chose to issue it as some sort of directive. Anyways, I can't stop laughing after seeing his site. One of the jokers in the office says it was made before the internet.
- Edited by pcdropper Friday, May 11, 2012 3:30 AM
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