wtf is wrong with my hard drive????

Author	All Replies
me1212 join:2008-11-20 Pleasant Hill, MO	wtf is wrong with my hard drive???? its been getting smaller each day for a while by a GB or two a day. one day it had like 220GB available then 218 now 216, and I have put NOTHING on it and scanned it for viruses and such. is it dieing? please help! I asked in the microsoft forum and they told me to try here saying it could be a virus. I need this for school, it starts in a month if need be I can get a new one, but would rather not if I dont have to.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-29 21:26:21 ·
dandelion Premium,MVM join:2003-04-29 Germantown, TN kudos:4	This may help and won't hurt if you think you have a virus: »Security Cleanup FAQ »Mandatory Steps Before Requesting Assistance
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-29 21:29:41 ·
OldschoolDSL Premium join:2006-02-23 Indian Orchard, MA	reply to me1212 Wouldn't hurt to also run Ccleaner »www.piriform.com/ccleaner Could be a lot of temporary files.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-29 21:36:38 ·
therube join:2004-11-11 Randallstown, MD 1 edit	reply to me1212 What OS? (Who knows what Vista/W7 may do on their own?) This may help in pointing out large directories, TreeSize Free. W7 Find, can do something like: datemodified:earlier this week - which on its own may turn up very little, so then you need to tell to search Computer, which then spends quite a bit of time to return some not very useful information . But it may help, or you could find a better utility to search for files by time (over last number of days). > some not very useful information Ah, changing from "Content" view to "Details" presents things a bit better.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-29 21:57:10 ·
dave Premium,MVM join:2000-05-04 not in ohio kudos:7	reply to me1212 If you repeatedly change large files (or many not-large files), then the old blocks could be stored in previous versions. Could that be happening?
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-29 22:47:29 ·
Dude111 An Awesome Dude Premium join:2003-08-04 USA kudos:10	reply to me1212 Try doing a DEFRAG,if you have done alot of deleting (Especially of LARGE FILES) your index may need resetting Good luck!
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-30 00:18:27 ·
therube join:2004-11-11 Randallstown, MD	reply to dave Seems Previous Versions comes from either a Restore Point or a Windows Backup. In my case System Restore only tracks my System drive (E: as it is) & there is very limited (change) activity there.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-30 03:20:28 ·
Woody79_00 I run Linux am I still a PC? Premium join:2004-07-08 united state	reply to me1212 Welcome to Windows Vista/7 world... its most likely being caused by System Restore Points and the Volume Shadow Copy Service (which makes previous versions) Turn off System Restore and Disable the Volume Shadow Copy Service. if you wanted to backup your files, you would back them up yourself. again this is Microsoft saying "we know whats better for you" and they make it a pain the rear to turn it off. its stuff like this that made me leave Windows... good luck to you -- Raygen's Basement
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-30 10:07:01 ·
Dude111 An Awesome Dude Premium join:2003-08-04 USA kudos:10 Reviews: ·Time Warner VOIP 2 edits	reply to me1212 Well like last night I did a defrag as i watched a 50 meg file and then deleted it and some other files also...... It said i had 709Megs used ...... I did a defrag and after the defrag it said i had 729Megs used..... Defrags help in many ways,especially after alot of file deletions..
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-30 15:57:32 ·
DownTheShore Tag, you're it Premium join:2003-12-02 Beautiful NJ kudos:11	reply to me1212 Check how frequently it is set up to do a system restore. Maybe it's doing them daily.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-30 21:33:26 ·
ironwalker World Renowned Premium,MVM join:2001-08-31 Keansburg, NJ 1 edit	reply to me1212 quote: Turn off System Restore and Disable the Volume Shadow Copy Service. Worst advice ever. System restore is a must have for simple restores. Especially for non technical users who have a hard time comprehending how an OS works. I'd check all your programs for logging and also use something like WinDisStat to see what exactly is using all the space, it will give you a good starting point on where to look. Logs are sometimes turned on by default on some programs and take up space. temp files and directories would be the next culprit. When you have time get the Microsoft inside out edition books on windows 7 from the bookstore. Load the pdf version that comes with it on your desktop....use this as the number one resource when researching questions pertaining to the OS and errors or just general questions. Learn to use a manual as a tool, it is the number one tool in my arsonal next to the many search engines out there. Windows vista/7 definatly does things differently.....just have a look at how many tasks ruin task manager in vista/7. I myself believe all microsoft os' had so many tasks running in the background and vista/7 now just allows access to the tasks for manipulation or log research which is great imo. I am an analytical brained person, I love figureing things out, was an auto technician my first 10yrs in the work field and now fix pc's as a hobby on the side. The first thing taught in auto vo-tech high school was the number one tool in a mechanics toolbox should be the reference manuals. learn to read them, use them and keep them clean....my instructor was right. i hold reference manuals as my number one tool in any are of life physically or mentally if needed. -- Live Free or Die! »sidux.com/ »www.chronixradio.com
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-30 22:05:01 ·
rcdailey Dragoonfly Premium join:2005-03-29 Rialto, CA	reply to DownTheShore According to Microsoft, restore points are created daily, plus whenever software is added. Some programs automatically create restore points before either installing or uninstalling. Disk cleanup in Windows offers an option to delete all but the most recent restore point. If the system is working fine otherwise, deleting the older restore points won't hurt. The only time I have turned off system restore (which deletes all restore points) was when I was concerned that there was some malware in the restore point that might reinfect the system. -- In reality, there is no such thing as a clean human being.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-30 22:27:02 ·
La Luna Survived Ashraful Premium join:2001-07-12 Warwick, NY kudos:3 Reviews: ·Vonage ·Optimum Online	reply to me1212 I would also advise to NOT turn off system restore, bad advice. However, assuming this really is the problem, you can change the maximum disk space allocated to system restore. I currently have four restore points; as I reach my maximum allocated space, old restore points are deleted automatically. How to Change Windows 7 System Restore (System Protection) Disk Space Usage Size Limit -- The Alien in the White House 15,754 DEADLY TERROR ATTACKS SINCE 9/11
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-30 23:30:25 ·
joako Premium join:2000-09-07 /dev/null kudos:5	reply to ironwalker I ALWAYS turn off System Restore since this "feature" was introduced in Windows ME. Having it disabled never caused me a problem. -- PRescott7-2097
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-30 23:50:39 ·

La Luna Survived Ashraful Premium join:2001-07-12 Warwick, NY kudos:3	Disabling it won't "cause" a problem. However, it could become a problem if and when you might need it. It can absolutely come in handy occasionally. Saying you disable it is fine; advising others to do so is poor advice.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-31 00:42:00 ·
tdumaine join:2004-03-14 Redmond, WA	said by La Luna: Disabling it won't "cause" a problem. However, it could become a problem if and when you might need it. It can absolutely come in handy occasionally. Saying you disable it is fine; advising others to do so is poor advice. That is a matter of opinion. I also see system restore as useless. If you want that functionality, use software intended for it, not MS's hokey implementation of it.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-31 01:32:41 ·
ironwalker World Renowned Premium,MVM join:2001-08-31 Keansburg, NJ	reply to me1212 I believe most users do not know exactly, in detail how system restore works, what is restored, when a restore point is done and what in detail is restored. Its not simple bone headed option on microsofts part, it is useful.....and works as is supposed to. It is not a backup function or an uninstall utility for programs and drivers. People should really read system restore in detail at the microsoft site on it's usefulness. Sure 3rd party software may offer more options if some folks need them but imo, and yes it is just my opinion, system restore in windows is complete and works. -- Live Free or Die! »sidux.com/ »www.chronixradio.com
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-31 02:14:42 ·
Loco Obviously Insane Premium join:2002-11-09 21 Jump St. kudos:2	reply to me1212 Just buy a new hard drive.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-31 03:15:02 ·
MalwareWolf join:2010-07-31	I hope you have now taken the mandatory steps dandelion referred to: »Security Cleanup FAQ »Mandatory Steps Before Requesting Assistance A handy Disk Usage Analyzer is available with TweakNow RegCleaner which can be sourced from download.com You may want to try something like this to try ascertain where the larger files/folders are. -- My PC is not obsolete, I haven't even switched it on yet!
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-31 07:30:54 ·
dave Premium,MVM join:2000-05-04 not in ohio kudos:7 Reviews: ·Verizon FiOS ·Verizon Online DSL	reply to tdumaine said by tdumaine: If you want that functionality, use software intended for it, not MS's hokey implementation of it. Please explain why it is 'hokey'. Technical reasoning? My own opinion: tha snapshot feature ('previous versions') is worth a lot. You probably never ever need it. But if you do (say, you delete a file that you didn't want to delete), it is invaluable. It's insurance, and cheap.
	to forum · permalink · 2010-07-31 08:51:35 ·

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