Hi,
Thanks for your post.
The WinSXS folder contains all Windows system components. In fact, component files elsewhere in Windows are just links to files contained in the WinSXS folder. The WinSXS folder contains every operating system file. When Windows installs updates, it drops
the new Windows component in the WinSXS folder and keeps the old component in the WinSXS folder. This means that every Windows Update you install increases the size of your WinSXS folder.
For example, the following command will uninstall all previous versions of components without the scheduled task’s 30-day grace period:
DISM.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup
The following command will remove files needed for uninstallation of service packs. You won’t be able to uninstall any currently installed service packs after running this command:
DISM.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /SPSuperseded
The following command will remove all old versions of every component. You won’t be able to uninstall any currently installed service packs or updates after this completes:
DISM.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup /ResetBase
You could use this guide to free up space:
How to Clean up the WinSxS Directory and Free Up Disk Space on Windows Server 2008 R2 with New Update
http://blogs.technet.com/b/askpfeplat/archive/2014/05/13/how-to-clean-up-the-winsxs-directory-and-free-up-disk-space-on-windows-server-2008-r2-with-new-update.aspx
Some articles for your reference:
How to address disk space issues that are caused by a large Windows component store (WinSxS) directory
https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/kb/2795190
Best Regards,
Alvin Wang
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