Windows disk cleanup safety

Skill 717qwq/windows-disk-cleanup-safety

Use when freeing disk space on a Windows machine (C: drive full, "low disk space") and deciding what is safe to delete — telling cache apart from irreplaceable user data, and avoiding app folders that break when deleted directly.From its SKILL.md

Install

npx -y skills add 717qwq/windows-disk-cleanup-safety

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SKILL.md

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Windows Disk Cleanup Safety

Overview

Cache rebuilds itself; data does not. When freeing disk space, the only real risk is irreversibly deleting something the user can never get back. A folder is not deletable because it is big — it is deletable only once you have identified what it is. Classify every large item before touching it, and never delete an app's whole data folder when the app has its own cleanup.

Classify every large item

Tier	What it is	Rule
Cache	Rebuilds itself invisibly, zero cost (HTTP / shader / game-asset caches, `%TEMP%`)	Safe to delete the contents (keep the folder)
Reclaimable store	Rebuilds, but at a cost — re-download, slower first build, offline pain (package stores: `.nuget\packages`, conda / npm / pip / yarn stores, Docker images)	Delete only with the user aware of the cost
User data	Never regenerates (chat history, game saves, documents, browser logins/extensions, deleted files still in the Recycle Bin)	Never auto-delete — point it out, let the user decide

A big folder is not deletable because it is big. It is deletable because you identified what it is.

App-specific traps

Most "I deleted a folder and broke something" disasters are here. Never rm an app's whole data folder — use its own cleanup path.

App / area	Trap if you delete the folder	Safe approach
Messengers (WeChat, QQ, Telegram)	Corrupts the message database — chat history lost	Use the app's in-app storage management
Browsers (Edge, Chrome)	Wiping `User Data` loses logins, extensions, site data	Delete only `Cache`, `Code Cache`, `GPUCache`, `DawnCache`; never `IndexedDB`, `Extensions`, `Local Storage`, `Service Worker`
Collaboration apps (Feishu/Lark, Slack, Teams)	Forces re-login and re-download of files	Clear cache from the app's settings
Package managers (npm, pip, conda, yarn, NuGet)	Breaks the "no re-download" guarantee or corrupts the store	Official commands: `npm cache clean --force`, `pip cache purge`, `conda clean -a -y`, `yarn cache clean`, `dotnet nuget locals all --clear`
Recycle Bin	These are the user's own deleted-but-recoverable files, not cache	Confirm before emptying (`Clear-RecycleBin`)
System files (`Windows.old`, `hiberfil.sys`, `Windows\Temp`, update cache)	Manual delete fails or breaks the system; needs admin	Use built-in tools: `cleanmgr` → "Clean up system files", or `powercfg /h off` to remove the hibernation file

What ships with it: 3 files

4.9 KB alongside SKILL.md