How to Wipe Free Space to Improve Performance?

Wipe Free Space to Improve Performance:

As of late, more and more Windows users are attempting to clear the PC's free space to boost performance. The method is sound but frequently fails to achieve the desired result.

On a disc, free space is the empty storage of active files. No files were ever stored there, or at some point, files that are now deleted were stored there. Because the operating system does not remove the deleted file from the drive when you delete it—only the reference or link remains.

Will Performance be Enhanced by Clearing Free Space?

No, cleaning up free space doesn't make the computer run better. All that happens is that an automatically expanding file is created and deleted, and the storage is made clear. After clearing the free space, accessible storage stays the same.

How can I Use Windows to Erase the Drive's Free Space?

1. Making use of the command Cipher

• To launch Search, press Windows + S. Type Command Prompt into the text field and select Run as administrator.
• When prompted by UAC, click Yes.
• Now, copy and paste the following command, pressing Enter (for the C: drive, substitute the drive letter for C: to wipe another drive):
• Cipher/w:c:
• Hold off until the procedure is finished.
• It takes several steps to use cipher:
• It starts by making the C: drive into an EFSTMPWP folder. After that, it creates another file and populates it with zeros. It is erased after the file has grown to fill all available space.
• Currently, the command generates an additional file containing the number 255. The second file is erased once more.
• After all, a third file is made and loaded with random numbers to fill the available space. And then that gets removed, too.

To clear as much free space as possible, close all open programs before executing the Cipher command. Cipher took about 40 minutes to finish wiping our device, which had a 512 GB SSD and 120 GB of free space.

2. Using a third-party tool

• Get CCleaner by downloading.
• Launch the application, select Tools from the side menu, and press the Drive Wiper button.
• Choose the drive you wish to clean, leave the default settings in place, and click Wipe.
• Hold off until the procedure is finished.

CCleaner is your best bet to clear out free space to boost performance. You get four security levels with CCleaner:

What Advantages Does Clearing Free Space Have?

Wiping the storage drive's free space guarantees the deleted data is permanently lost. Before selling the computer, you ought to complete it.

For those who are wondering, it is safe to erase free space on a hard drive. However, the process could cause premature SSD (Solid State Drive) wearout. Thus, avoid doing it often!

Keep in mind that the wiping process won't produce additional storage. You can do that by running Disc Cleanup or configuring Storage Sense for routine cleaning!

Check out these quick tips to enhance PC performance now that you know how to wipe free space.