After upgrading to Windows 10, I found a Windows.old directory on my hard drive. This was surprising since I upgraded from Windows 7, which was supposedly a “clean” install. I checked my ex-Windows 8.1 computer, and it also had one, although I would have expected it there.
On one machine, I simply deleted the folder. It naturally complained a lot, and I had to fuss with permissions, but then I started to wonder: Is there a better way? What is the proper way to remove the Windows.old folder?
Turns out, thanks to the How-To Geek, it is as easy as running the disk cleanup tool. Who knew? I usually think of that tool as a way of cleaning out temporary files and the recycling bin. However, it also removes old Windows files.
Now, if only other things on Windows 10 were as easy to figure out…