Winsxs what kind of folder is this. What is the WinSxS folder and how to clean it? Is it possible to remove Winsxs?
Folder WinSxS (Windows Side By Side)- This is a component store and is found in Windows 10, Windows 7, Windows 8 systems and can reach sizes of up to 20 GB. It is located along the way C:\Windows\Winsxs and has a "system" level. This means that you do not have to manually delete anything, compress or move the data in this folder to make it smaller. I also don't recommend using third party programs to clean this folder. In the WinSxS folder, many files use a technique called Hard Linking. This "hard link" feature allows multiple files to access the same location without creating a copy of that location or data. And this is the main reason why you should not delete anything if you do not want to disrupt the operation of the system and the launch of programs.
The WinSxS folder stores multiple copies of "dll", "exe" and other files, allowing applications to run on Windows without compatibility issues. Windows update and installation files are also stored, including backup files, so that whenever the original files fail, they can be easily restored Windows system 10/8.1/7. For example, when Windows 10 is updated, a new version of the updated component is installed on the system, and the old one is stored in the WinSxS folder. This is necessary to ensure application compatibility and rollback capabilities. Over time, the WinSxS folder is constantly growing and this leads to a lack of space on the system local disk.
How to properly clean out the WinSxS folder in Windows 10/7/8.1
1 way. This method is suitable for Windows 10 And Windows 8.1. Open a command prompt as an administrator and enter the following command, which will analyze the WinSxS folder and give a cleaning recommendation, in my case it says “Yes”.
- Dism.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /AnalyzeComponentStore
Enter the following command to start cleaning.
- Dism.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup
If it seems to you that the WinSxS folder still weighs a lot after cleaning, then enter another command. It will help you remove all superseded versions of each component in the component store.
- Dism.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup /ResetBase
We can now reduce the amount of space used by the update package. To do this, enter the command below. I didn't have any old updates, you may have the same.
- Dism.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /SPSuperseded
Method 2. This method is suitable for Windows 7 and all other versions. The bottom line is a standard disk cleanup that will help you reduce the size of the WinSxS folder. Right-click on the local drive C:\ where Window 7 itself is installed and select " properties". Next click " Disk Cleanup", select all the checkboxes and click on the button below Clear system files ". You will have a new window where you essentially need to remove old Windows updates, but I recommend selecting all the checkboxes and clicking "OK"
In this article we will discuss the situation around the WinSxS folder in Windows, why it invariably grows in size, and ways to regulate its volume.
Directory C:\Windows\WinSxS is a repository of Windows OS components. It contains DLL files, binary files, XML files, necessary for the installation and operation of any Windows feature. When Windows updates are installed, new versions of Windows components appear on the system; in this case, previous versions are moved to the specified folder. This is done so that the user has the opportunity to roll back if any problems arise with the update or maintains the possibility of compatibility with previous versions.
Even without looking closely at this brief description of the purpose of the folder, you can understand that over time, an increase in the volume of the folder is inevitable. Moreover, this process is unlimited, although in its memory there are WinSxS folders larger than 20 GB I did not see.
The easiest way to reduce the folder size is to simply remove previous versions of the remaining components and outdated updates (not manually, of course). To do this, you can use the system cleanup utility built into Windows 10 or a special option of the DISM command (more on that below).
BY THE WAY
In Windows 7, the cleaning tool of the same name does not affect old updates. Default. To remove unnecessary updates in this version using cleanmgr.exe KB update 2852386 is required.
Everything would be fine, but not everything is so simple. In addition to the described functions, the WinSxS folder is a real warehouse of hard files, which are pointers to files, taking on all their functions. This means that the link and the file itself can have different names and be located in different directories of the same volume, while pointing to the same object. A file managers of all stripes display big size WinSxS folders, taking into account such hard links that lie in this directory. The actual size of the WinSxS folder can be found out, for example, using a small program D.U.(Disk Usage) from Sysinternals. You can also check the size of the system component store using the DISM command:
Dism.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /AnalyzeComponentStore
Often on forums the question of manually clearing a folder is repeated. I will support those who are smart enough to protect users from erasing WinSxS content by simply highlighting and pressing Delete. Often such actions end in damage to the system image, although sometimes (even rarely) such deletion “works.” But even if this happened, this method of freeing up space is highly not recommended. The main ways to clean WinSxS are:
- compressing a folder using NTFS compression
- deleting old versions of components from their storage (remaining versions after installing updates)
- removing unnecessary system components.
By applying all three options at once in the order described below, you can achieve good results in freeing up disk space. And, if you are the owner of Windows 10, start with the command in:
Dism.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup
Copes with this and cleanmgr.exe, also run as administrator. By the way, the Windows 10 Task Scheduler provides an operation similar to DISM. It overwrites outdated updates older than 30 days. Look for a task with the name StartComponentCleanup In chapter ~\Microsoft\Windows\Servicing.
On-demand settings or removal of components
This “function” appeared in new version Windows, allowing you to delete binaries of unused system features. And it is only accessible from DISM or using the DISM cmdlet in PowerShell. Also, be aware that the DISM command is not capable of parsing dependency packages like it did in previous version with a similar possibility. In general, after removing a package using only DISM, only what is specified will be removed. And the remaining dependent packages will remain. Full list of settings and functions in Windows image You can see it by running the command in the console:
DISM.exe /Online /English /Get-Features /Format:Table
For example, we are not going to use the one that always appears in all Windows versions almost useless for a long time Internet Explorer
. It can be removed from the list of functions and capabilities, i.e. from exactly the WinSxS folder, using this command:
DISM.exe /Online /Disable-Feature /Featurename:Internet-Explorer-Optional-amd64 /Remove
Now in the list of available system functions the status of this service will change to Disabled. However, this is precisely the case when the user must be confident in his actions. You should not rashly disable all Enabled functions for obvious reasons.
NTFS compression for WinSxS
The next option to reduce the size of the WinSxS folder is to apply to the . In this case, it is strongly recommended to ensure that you create a full backup copy of the system. After its creation, launch the console and stop a couple of services:
Sc stop msiserver sc stop TrustedInstaller sc config msiserver start= disabled sc config TrustedInstaller start= disabled
Let's stock up on a backup copy of access lists assigned to folders and files (ACLs) in our directory using the utility icacls. An ACL backup is a simple test file that specifies files and folders, as well as permissions to them.
Icacls "%WINDIR%\WinSxS" /save "%WINDIR%\WinSxS_NTFS.acl" /t
Let's become the owner of the WinSxS folder itself and the folders included in it:
Takeown /f "%WINDIR%\WinSxS" /r
Let's assign full rights to this directory to our account:
Icacls "%WINDIR%\WinSxS" /grant "%USERDOMAIN%\%USERNAME%":(F) /t
Let's compress the contents of the folder with a command from the terminal. Some of the files will not be compressed (they may simply be in use by the system right now), so if you run the command without the /I flag, it will stop the process if it encounters a locked file. You can find the name of the process that is working on this file ( Ctrl + F) and stop it. However, it is worth focusing specifically on compressing those files that are not used by the system:
Compact /s:"%WINDIR%\WinSxS" /c /a /i *
After we finish, it is better to delegate the additional rights to WinSxS back to TrustedInstaller:
Icacls "%WINDIR%\WinSxS" /setowner "NT SERVICE\TrustedInstaller" /t
We restore the original ACLs to the WinSxS folder from the previously created backup file:
Icacls "%WINDIR%" /restore "%WINDIR%\WinSxS_NTFS.acl"
Now we restore autostart services Windows Installer and Windows Module Installer:
Sc config msiserver start= demand sc config TrustedInstaller start= demand
You can check the size of the WinSxS folder:
In my case, using compression, I was able to reduce the folder size by almost 4 GB. God knows what, however... On one of my machines I have a small SSD - for it even this amount of space is serious. And, if you like this scenario, I can suggest replacing the commands in this paragraph with this batch file:
Before starting, close Windows Explorer. Before starting, unzip the file from the archive, unlock it in properties and run as administrator. It will take a lot of time.
How will compression affect the operation of the WinSxS folder and the system as a whole?
Windows works with compressed files in the so-called transparent mode (data transfer mode). But data compression/decompression always takes time. And this is what the user sometimes notices: not all of us have a “modern stone” attached under the hood. But, by the way, in the case of the compression function, having a powerful processor is much more effective than a fast one HDD– in some cases, I personally even noted an increase in speed when working with compressed files. So users of older computer models will not experience any slowdown, but owners of “older” computers should use the compression function carefully in relation to any compressed files and folders.
Removing old versions: cleanmgr.exe
Another reliable way to free up disk space (including in the WinSxS folder) is the cleaning utility cleanmgr.exe. In Windows 10 it can do a little more than the previous ones in Vista/7. Let's launch:
cleaning winsxs folder windows 7
Good day. This week the site received a new record for traffic - 5407 unique visitors per day, for which we thank you very much. Although I rarely write lately, the site is still growing :)
Now let's talk about our problem. What is this WinSxS folder? This is the folder in which the Windows updates and components file is stored. Why does she weigh so much? Hmm... In fact, it weighs much less :) Files from Windows and System32 folders are projected into this folder using , which is why all file managers show such a large size - they do not see the difference between real files and symbolic links. Based on the same, it is highly not recommended to go into this folder through Explorer and try to delete everything manually. There are a few standard means, which will help you safely and efficiently clean this folder. And, by the way, as updates are installed, it constantly grows, so it is recommended to repeat these steps periodically. By the way, I recommend using method No. 2.
Method number 1. Cleaning Windows updates using the Disk Cleanup utility (also works on Windows 7 SP1 with the KB2852386 update installed).
A very simple method and does not require any decisions from the user. But file evaluation works mediocrely, it makes mistakes both up and down. But this is not very important to us.
1) We need the “Run” utility, so press the key combination Win+R and enter cleanmgr in the window that opens.
3) Wait for the free space estimate and click the “Clean up system files” button.
4) Put a tick on “Cleaning Windows updates" And click OK. The process of cleaning update files will begin. 
But this way you can only delete part of the files; more precise cleaning can be done using method No. 2.
Method number 2. Clear Windows updates, disabled features, and Windows cache stored in the WinSxS folder using the DISM utility. (I recommend)
This method allows you to clear not only update files, but also all other garbage from the WinSxS folder.
1) Open the command line as administrator, to do this press the keyboard shortcut Win+X and select " Command line(administrator)«.
Dism.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /AnalyzeComponentStore
As you can see, 4.77GB of all occupied is in Windows folder and are in no way superfluous, since these are files necessary for the operation of the system. But here backups(needed in case your system does not boot after installing updates) and the cache with temporary files can be cleared. Well, let’s carefully read the penultimate line “ Component Store Cleanup Recommended: Yes". Therefore, let's move on to the next step.
Dism.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup
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(in particular in Windows 7 and Windows 8), you will notice that the folder takes up the most space winsxs. It is located in the system folder WINDOWS.
What's in the winsxs folder and why does it take up so much space?
Microsoft developers decided to make sure that all old system updates (component files and libraries) are not deleted, but remain in the system “just in case,” more precisely, so that if the game/program needs old files, they will be found in this folder.
Therefore, already at Windows installation it takes up a lot of space, and in the future, when you update the system, the size of this folder will increase more and more.
It’s good if you have a lot of space on your system disk, then you may not notice the constantly growing (especially after an update) disk space, but what if you already have little space and need to clear it?
How to delete/clean/clean/reduce winsxs folder size?
First of all, you need to know that you cannot delete this folder! Because you will delete everything - both necessary and unnecessary.
The best option would be to remove old Windows updates. Clear folder winsxs possible using a special command.
So, let's launch and enter into it
DISM.exe /online /Cleanup-Image /spsuperseded
We wait and do not close the window until the following message appears:
After this, the folder size should decrease. For example, I initially had 8.01 GB free, but after this operation 17.2 GB became free.
If this is not enough for you, you can also clean the disk of debris.
To do this, right-click on the disk and select Properties. Click there Disk Cleanup
We are waiting for the information on the disk to be collected:
Select the files marked in the screenshot ( Memory dump files And Debug Dump Files)
