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Possible Duplicate:
Why does the /winsxs folder grow so large, and can it be made smaller?

This folder has grown to over 12GB and continues growing in size. Is there any way to clean it up without damaging the installed programs or Vista?

Community
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Joe R.
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2 Answers2

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This folder is essential for all the programs that you have installed. To prevent the "DLL hell", Windows copies required DLLs for every single installed program here. This way, installed programs do not influence each other. It is very common for this folder to grow over 10 GB and beyond.

Try uninstalling some unneeded programs, see if that helps. If you want to keep the folder small, reinstall your Windows and install as few additional programs as possible. But that maybe defies the purpose of having a personal computer at all.

So in short: it is a necessary evil to live with. It is a price we pay for compatibility.

Jakub Zaverka
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Quoting from this link:

There have been several blogs and even some “underground” tools that tell you it’s ok to delete the WinSxS directory, and it’s certainly true that after installation, you can remove it from the system and it will appear that the system boots and runs fine. But as described above, this is a very bad practice, as you’re removing the ability to reliably service, all operating system components and the ability to update or configure optional components on your system. Windows Vista only supports the WinSxS directory on the physical drive in its originally installed location. The risks far outweigh the gains removing it or relocating it from the system, given the data described above.

Anirudh Ramanathan
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