Win Clean

Win Clean

Use this skill when the user asks to understand or clean Windows disk space, especially C:. Start with a read-only storage analysis. Clean known low-risk caches in safe mode; discuss other user-directory candidates with the user before deleting them.

Goals

• Show before/after free and used space.
• Map the main C: consumers, including root files and top-level directories.
• Analyze C:\Users and the active user profile, including hidden folders and AppData.
• Rank cleanup candidates by size, data type, and recency signals.
• Separate rebuildable caches from configuration, development environments, and personal data.
• Use an exact-target plan and user choice before removing non-trivial user data.

Safety Rules

• Validate every destructive target as an exact path before deletion. Never use a broad root, unresolved variable, or recursive wildcard as the deletion target.
• Do not delete from personal data folders by default: Desktop, Documents, Pictures, Videos, and Downloads. Aggregate their sizes without listing filenames unless the user asks for that detail.
• Do not delete app install trees by default: C:\Program Files, C:\Program Files (x86), or C:\ProgramData except a specifically identified cache subpath.
• Never manually delete inside C:\Windows\WinSxS.
• Keep Codex runtime and cache untouched unless the user explicitly includes them.
• Treat LastWriteTime as supporting evidence only. LastAccessTime may be disabled or unreliable, and an old timestamp does not prove that a directory is unused. Do not delete a directory solely because it has not changed recently.
• Before changing app data, check whether the related process is running. Ask the user to close it or skip locked files; do not force-close an app with possible unsaved work.
• Prefer moving to a recoverable location when practical. If permanent deletion is authorized and used, report that it does not go to the Recycle Bin.
• For each delete operation, tolerate in-use files and report exact skipped paths.

Default Workflow (Safe Mode)

1. Baseline and distribution (read-only)

   • Read free and used space for C:.
   • Measure the main top-level directories: C:\Users, C:\Windows, C:\Program Files, C:\Program Files (x86), and C:\ProgramData.
   • Measure large root files such as pagefile.sys, hiberfil.sys, and swapfile.sys.
   • Explain that apparent WinSxS size can overstate reclaimable space because of hard links.

2. User-profile analysis (read-only)

   • Enumerate profiles under C:\Users and identify the active profile without assuming a fixed username.
   • Measure the active profile's hidden directories and normal directories separately.
   • Break down AppData\Local, AppData\Roaming, and AppData\LocalLow, then rank their largest immediate children.
   • For each likely candidate, report size, file count when useful, newest file time, and counts of files changed in the last 30/90/180/365 days. Use these as review signals, not proof of usage.
   • Do not enumerate filenames from personal folders in the default report. Check running processes before proposing app-data deletion.

3. Classify and discuss candidates

   • Present a compact table with: path, size, category, recency signal, likely impact, and proposed action.
   • Known rebuildable caches: user temp, Windows temp, Windows update download cache, Delivery Optimization cache, NVIDIA App update artifacts, CrashDumps, *-updater, and npm-cache when present. These may be cleaned in safe mode after the baseline.
   • Review before deletion: browser profiles, IDE system/cache directories, app caches, stale logs, and old version directories. Explain what will be rebuilt or lost.
   • Protect by default: configuration and plugin directories, app binaries, developer toolchains such as Rust/Maven/NuGet/Gradle stores, project files, and personal data. Require the user's choice for these.
   • If a candidate is old but has no reliable usage evidence, label it needs review rather than unused.

4. Plan and approval boundary

   • After the user selects candidates, list the exact paths, estimated reclaimable space, expected side effects, and whether the operation is recoverable.
   • Execute known low-risk cache cleanup without a second prompt in safe mode. For any other user-directory path, obtain explicit approval for that exact path or category immediately before deletion.

5. Execute and verify

   • Clean approved targets, preferably their contents while retaining the parent directory when an application expects it.
   • Run Dism.exe /Online /Cleanup-Image /StartComponentCleanup. If it returns error 740 or is blocked by pending actions, report the condition and advise an elevated prompt or restart; do not retry destructively.
   • Re-read C: free/used space, rescan affected paths, and report recovered space, locked files, skipped items, and remaining major consumers.

Mode Switch

safe (default)

• Always perform the distribution and user-profile analysis first.
• Clean only the known rebuildable caches listed above automatically.
• Do not delete personal data, configuration, plugins, developer stores, or directories selected only by age.
• Do not change hibernation settings or purge Codex/developer caches unless the user explicitly asks for those targets.

aggressive (explicit user request only)

• Includes safe-mode analysis and cleanup.
• Still requires clear confirmation of each higher-impact category before execution.
• May include hibernation removal, developer-cache cleanup, stale logs, or stale directories when the user approves the exact targets and impact.

Optional Actions (Explicit Confirmation Required)

• Disable hibernation to remove hiberfil.sys: powercfg /h off. This disables Hibernate and Fast Startup.
• Clear developer caches such as C:\Users\<user>\.m2\repository, C:\Users\<user>\.nuget\packages, C:\Users\<user>\.gradle\caches, Rust registry caches, npm/Yarn/uv caches, or IDE system directories. State whether the data will be redownloaded or rebuilt.
• Remove old large logs while keeping active logs.
• Remove stale empty directories only after validating ownership, age, and that no installed app or project refers to them. Age alone is insufficient.

Output Format

Return a compact report with:

• Before: free/used GB
• Distribution: largest C: directories and root files
• User profile: largest hidden/AppData and normal directories
• Candidates: category, evidence, estimated reclaim, and proposed action
• Actions: exact cleaned paths and notes on failures/in-use files
• After: free/used GB
• Recovered: total GB gained
• Skipped: protected, uncertain, or locked items
• Next: optional targets awaiting user choice

Notes

• Configuration, plugins, caches, logs, and local history may live in different AppData subtrees; inspect the application-specific layout before classifying a path.
• A directory's apparent size can differ from reclaimable space because of hard links, sparse files, junctions, or files held open by a process.
• Prefer repeatable, explainable cleanup over one-off deletion based on a timestamp alone.