IMPORTANT: This module is still a work in progress!

Please use at your own risk.

This PowerShell module is for freeing up disk space on Windows computers. I frequently use this on some RDS servers, and my local machine.

You can install the ComputerCleanup module directly from the PowerShell Gallery, or my GitHub

Installation

# One time setup
Install-Module ComputerCleanup -AllowClobber -Force 
# -Force and -AllowClobber aren't necessary, but they do skip errors in case some appear.

# Import the module.
Import-Module ComputerCleanup -Force

# Get commands in the module
Get-Command -Module ComputerCleanup

# Get help for the module
Get-Help ComputerCleanup -Full

# Updating
Update-Module -Name ComputerCleanup

To install the module manually, or if you are using an earlier version of PowerShell that doesn’t support Install-Module, simply download the module from GitHub, and copy the ComputerCleanup folder into your Modules folder.

If you’re not sure where your Modules folder is, open up a PowerShell prompt and type $env:PSModulePath.

Functions\Public

  • Invoke-ComputerCleanup
    • Main controller function to invoke one or multiple cleanup functions included in this module.
  • Clear-BrowserCache
    • Removes browser cache files for all users.
    • Browsers: Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, Google Chrome and Firefox.
  • Clear-FontCache
    • Removes user font cache files located in C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local\
  • Clear-SoftwareDistribution
    • Clears the C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Downloads folder.
  • Clear-TeamsCache
    • Removes Microsoft Teams cache files for all users.
  • Invoke-CleanManager
    • Runs the Windows Disk Cleanup tool with predefined options.
  • Optimize-SystemFiles
    • Removes common system-wide temporary files and folders older than $Days old.
    • OPTIONAL: Clears Windows Recycle Bin
  • Optimize-UserProfiles
    • Removes common temporary files and folders older than $Days days old from user profiles.

Functions\Private

Examples/Usage

Generally, the only function/command you’ll need is Invoke-ComputerCleanup.

I’ll give two recommended parameter sets. One for running on a live/in-use environment, and one for outside of working hours.

LIVE environment:

Invoke-ComputerCleanup -Days 30 -UserTemp -SystemTemp -CleanManager -SoftwareDistribution -RecycleBin 

	- Runs the Windows Disk Cleanup tool.
	- Removes temp files in User profiles that are older than 30 days old.
	- Removes temp files in System that are older than 30 days old.
	- Cleans up the "C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download" folder.
	- Clears the Windows Recycle Bin

Outside of working hours:

  • ⚠️ This parameter set will close running processes! Use with caution.
Invoke-ComputerCleanup -Days 30 -UserTemp -SystemTemp -CleanManager -SoftwareDistribution -BrowserCache -TeamsCache -FontCache -RecycleBin 

	- Runs the Windows Disk Cleanup tool.
	- Removes temp files in User profiles that are older than 30 days old.
	- Removes temp files in System that are older than 30 days old.
	- Cleans up the "C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download" folder.
	- Clears cache for all browsers
	- Clears Microsoft Teams Cache
	- Clears Windows Font Cache
	- Clears the Windows Recycle Bin

You’ll be prompted for confirmation at the beginning, and there will be a report at the end.

Invoke-ComputerCleanup Invoke-ComputerCleanup

Some parameters will stop some processes, which can be impactful in live environments. Therefore, I’ve added warnings for some parameters. Example:

Invoke-ComputerCleanup -Days 30 -BrowserCache -TeamsCache -UserDownloads

paramwarnings

Invoke-ComputerCleanup parameters

-Days (Default: 30)

  • Only remove files/folders that are older than $Days old.

    • This is based on both file CreationTime AND LastWriteTime.

  • ⚠️ This parameter does NOT apply to the following options:

    • -BrowserCache
    • -TeamsCache
    • -SoftwareDistribution
    • -FontCache

-CleanManager

  • Runs the Windows Disk Cleanup tool with the following options enabled:
- Active Setup Temp Folders
- BranchCache
- Device Driver Packages
- Downloaded Program Files
- GameNewsFiles
- GameStatisticsFiles
- GameUpdateFiles
- Memory Dump Files
- Offline Pages Files
- Old ChkDsk Files
- Previous Installations
- Service Pack Cleanup
- Setup Log Files
- System error memory dump files
- System error minidump files
- Temporary Files
- Temporary Setup Files
- Thumbnail Cache
- Update Cleanup
- Upgrade Discarded Files
- Windows Defender
- Windows ESD installation files
- Windows Error Reporting Archive Files
- Windows Error Reporting Queue Files
- Windows Error Reporting System Archive Files
- Windows Error Reporting System Queue Files
- Windows Upgrade Log Files

-UserTemp

  • Removes temp files in User profiles that are older than $Days days old. Default locations:
    • <USERPROFILE>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\WER
    • <USERPROFILE>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache
    • <USERPROFILE>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\Recovery
    • <USERPROFILE>\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Terminal Server Client\Cache
    • <USERPROFILE>\AppData\Local\CrashDumps
    • <USERPROFILE>\AppData\Local\Temp

-SystemTemp

  • Removes temp files in system that are older than $Days days old. Default locations:
    • C:\Windows\Temp
    • C:\Windows\Logs\CBS
    • C:\Windows\Downloaded Program Files
    • C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\WER

-SoftwareDistribution

  • Cleans the C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Downloads folder.

-FontCache

  • Clears user font cache files located in "C:\Windows\ServiceProfiles\LocalService\AppData\Local"

-BrowserCache

⚠️ Enabling this parameter will stop ALL running browser processes. Running outside of working hours is advised!
  • Clears browser cache files for all users.
  • Browsers: Microsoft Edge, Internet Explorer, Google Chrome and Firefox.

-TeamsCache

⚠️ Enabling this parameter will stop ALL running Teams processes. Running outside of working hours is advised!
  • Clears Microsoft Teams cache files for all users.

-RecycleBin

  • Clears Recycle Bin.

I will actively maintain this module, so feel free to leave a comment or feature request in the comments or send in a pull request on GitHub.