A full drive clean is the process of completely removing all data from a computer’s storage drive. This includes deleting personal files such as documents, photos, downloads, and media, as well emptying the recycle bin and cache. A full drive clean goes beyond just removing personal files and also clears temporary data, system files, and frees up disk space. The end result is a blank drive containing no user data, downloaded files, or operating system information.
The purpose of performing a full drive clean is to wipe the drive back to a factory-like state. This can help improve computer performance by freeing up storage space and removing unnecessary files. It also ensures no personal data remains on the computer before donating, recycling, or selling it. Additionally, a full drive clean may be performed to resolve system issues caused by corrupted files or malware infections.
Deleting Files
When you choose to fully clean the drive during a Windows reset, it will mark all files on the computer for deletion, including personal files stored in user folders like Documents, Pictures, Music, etc. According to Quora, selecting “Clean the drive fully” means removing any existing disk partitions and files that would get in the way of a smooth Windows reinstallation.
The “Just remove my files” option only deletes personal files while keeping installed applications and system files intact. In contrast, fully cleaning the drive removes all files across all partitions and drives connected to the computer. This includes personal data as well as preinstalled Windows files, drivers, and programs stored on the C: drive and any other drives. According to Microsoft Answers, nothing is left except a blank drive after selecting the full clean option.
Emptying Recycle Bin
When you delete files on your computer, they don’t immediately disappear from your hard drive. Instead, they go to the Recycle Bin where they can easily be recovered. However, emptying the Recycle Bin will permanently delete any files stored there, freeing up disk space.
According to Office Solutions IT, when you empty the Recycle Bin in Windows, the files are not technically deleted right away [1]. The operating system simply removes the index entries that point to the data on the hard drive, making it inaccessible through normal means. The actual file contents remain on the drive until that space is overwritten by new data.
Therefore, emptying the Recycle Bin does not immediately wipe the data. It just marks the disk space as available to be written over. However, once overwritten, those original files cannot be recovered. For all practical purposes, emptying the Recycle Bin permanently deletes files.
Removing Temporary Files
When doing a full clean of your drive, one key step is removing temporary internet, system, and application files that accumulate over time. These include browser caches, downloaded program installers, temporary system files created during Windows updates or other operations, and a variety of other temporary folders and files.
According to Microsoft, the Windows Disk Cleanup utility can delete many types of temporary files, including “Temporary setup and program files, and other .TMP files.” Running Disk Cleanup and selecting the option to delete temporary files will remove these no-longer needed folders and files.
Some common temporary folder locations that may be cleared out during a full drive clean include the %temp% folder, browser caches, the Windows prefetch folder, and the Windows Downloads folder, freeing up space and removing clutter.
Overall, deleting temporary files helps free up storage space, removes potentially large downloads and installer files, clears out outdated browser caches, and contributes to the general tidying up that occurs with a full drive clean.
Clearing Cache
When you clean out the cache on your computer or mobile device, it deletes the temporary internet files stored by your web browser and apps. This includes cached data from Google Drive. Browsers like Chrome, Firefox, and Safari all keep cache files to help pages load faster on subsequent visits. The Google Drive app also caches data locally to improve performance.
Completely cleaning the drive will wipe these cached Google Drive files as well. For example, on a Mac computer, the cached Google Drive data is stored in the ~/Library/Application Support/Google/DriveFS/ folder (1). Deleting this folder will remove all locally cached Google Drive files and force the app to re-download fresh copies next time you access files.
On Windows 10 and 11, you can clear the Google Drive cache by going to Settings > Apps > Apps & features > Google Drive > Advanced options > Reset. This will reset the app and clear stored cache files (2).
The key thing is that deleting cached browser or app data does not affect the actual files stored in your Google Drive account online. The cloud versions remain intact. But clearing this local cache can help free up disk space and improve performance in some cases.
Removing Downloads
Fully cleaning the drive will remove all downloaded files from your computer. This includes any files you’ve downloaded from the internet and saved on your hard drive, such as documents, photos, videos, software installers, and more.
When you download a file in Windows, it gets saved to the Downloads folder by default. So when you do a full clean, everything in the Downloads folder gets permanently deleted.
In addition to the main Downloads folder, a full clean will also clear out any files downloaded and saved in other locations on your drives. For example, if you have a folder for storing downloaded music or images elsewhere, those will be removed as well.
Cleaning the drive doesn’t just delete shortcuts to downloads, it removes the actual files themselves. This frees up a lot of disk space since downloads can build up over time and take up a large chunk of storage.
According to experts, the full drive clean removes downloads more aggressively than simply deleting your personal files [1]. The clean option overwrites downloaded file data so it can’t be recovered.
So if you want to wipe your hard drive clean of all downloads, a full clean is the way to go. It gives you a fresh start by erasing even your download history and temporary internet files.
Deleting System Files
When you choose the “Fully clean the drive” option during a Windows reset, it will delete various unnecessary system files to free up disk space. This includes temporary files, cached data, downloads folder content, and other files that are safe to remove without impacting the core Windows operating system.
Specifically, the following types of system files may be deleted during a full drive clean according to (source):
- Temporary files stored in C:\Windows\Temp
- Cached data from web browsing stored in C:\Users\%USERNAME%\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\INetCache
- Downloaded program files and updates in C:\Users\%USERNAME%\Downloads
- Various log files and databases that accumulate over time
Removing these unnecessary system files helps free up storage space on the drive and gives a performance boost by eliminating cruft. However, a full drive clean does not delete any files required for Windows to function properly. The core system files, Windows folder, program files, and user data outside the folders mentioned above will remain intact.
Freeing Disk Space
When you delete files on your hard drive, the space those files occupied is marked as “available” but the contents of the files are not actually erased. This means the files can be “undeleted” as long as the space they occupied hasn’t been overwritten with new data. Performing a full drive clean will ensure all deleted files are completely erased and can no longer be recovered. This frees up all the disk space those deleted files were taking up. According to Microsoft, enabling Storage Sense and running it regularly will ensure your deleted files are removed and that disk space is freed up [1]. You can also manually run the Disk Cleanup utility to purge all deleted files and free up substantial disk space [2].
Improving Performance
After thoroughly cleaning and deleting unnecessary files from your hard drive, you will likely notice performance improvements on your computer. Removing things like temporary files, cached data, downloads, and more can free up valuable storage space and system resources. According to cdg.com, “Over time, your computer’s hard drive accumulates unnecessary files—temporary files, old downloads, and more. Use the Disk Cleanup utility to delete these files and free up needed space on your hard drive” [1]. The more free space available on your hard drive, the faster your computer can access and retrieve data needed for running programs and applications.
In addition, clearing out cache, cookies, and other temporary internet files forces your browser to re-download fresh versions of website assets. This removes corrupted files or outdated data that could be slowing things down. Simply cleaning your hard drive and freeing up space will not directly increase the speed of your CPU or other hardware components. However, by clearing storage space and removing unnecessary files, your computer has more resources available to function optimally [2]. So while a full clean does not inherently boost hardware performance, it can significantly improve the overall speed and responsiveness of day-to-day computer use.
[1] https://www.cdw.com/content/cdw/en/articles/hardware/tips-to-speed-up-slow-computer.html
[2] https://www.quora.com/Does-wiping-free-space-improve-the-performance-of-a-computer-Why-or-why-not
Conclusion
Cleaning your drive fully is a multi-step process that requires deleting files, emptying the recycle bin, clearing caches and temporary files, removing unneeded downloads, and deleting unneeded system files.
Taking these steps frees up valuable disk space, removes clutter, and can significantly improve your computer’s performance. After a full cleaning, your drive will operate faster, boot up quicker, and have more available storage for the files you need.
The time investment required pays off with a more optimized, smoother performing computer. Your applications will run faster, and you may even extend the usable lifespan of an older machine.
Just be sure to double check before permanently deleting any files, and have backups available of your important data. Used properly, fully cleaning your hard drive can be an easy and highly effective way to boost your computer’s speed and functionality.