Numerous duplicate files can hog system space and make the system perform poorly. Unnecessary duplicate files can be created intentionally or accidentally by apps and stored in multiple locations and folders.
Though Windows doesn’t include an in-built duplicate file remover tool; however, Windows does include an in-built scanner that helps in finding duplicate files instantly.
Through this blog, we will enlighten you about the multiple ways in which you can delete duplicate files on Windows PC.
Delete duplicate files on Windows PC with the below methods
You can rely on manual methods and also take the help of third-party tools to get rid of duplicate files easily from your Windows PC.
Method 1. Manual Methods
In this segment, we will look at the manual methods of finding duplicate files and deleting them to clean the Windows PC and to reclaim hard drive storage space.
Via Windows File Explorer
- In the Windows Search Box, type “Indexing Options” and click on it when the app appears.
- In the new window, click on the “Modify” option and then hit the “Show all locations” button in the subsequent window.
- Ensure that all the boxes are checked and then hit the “OK” button.
- Now start File Explorer by hitting the Win + E keys together.
- Go to Local Disk C and visit your user profile by navigating to “Users.”
- Here, click on the View menu to choose the “Preview Pane.”
- Then, from the Layout section select the “Details” option.
- Finally, from the Current View tab hit the “Group By” option and then choose “Name” in the ascending order.
- With this, you have completed the sorting of files in File Explorer.
- To look for duplicate files category-wise, you can type the relevant extensions in the search bar. For example, for searching duplicate documents you can type .doc, .docx, .pdf, .txt.
- Whenever you come across duplicate files, you can select them and hit Shift+ Del to permanently delete the files.
Via Windows PowerShell
- Click Windows + I keys and launch Windows PowerShell (Admin) from the available menu.
- Now write the following command and press the Enter key.
set-location –path C:\
- Again, write the following command and press Enter.
ls “(search folder)” -recurse | get-filehash | group -property hash | where { $_.count -gt 1 } | % { $_.group } | Out-File -FilePath “(location folder)”
Note: In the Search and Location folders, enter the actual folder path.
- The searching for duplicate files will begin after this and this may take a while.
- After this, you can delete the files manually.
- However, if you want to delete the files automatically, then you can use the following command:
ls “(search folder)” -recurse | get-filehash | group -property hash | where { $_.count -gt 1 } | % { $_.group | select -skip 1 } | del
Method 2. Automatic Method (Use Duplicate Files Fixer)
Using a third-party duplicate file remover for windows pc is going to can save your time by automatically finding identical files and deleting them for you. We will explain to you how you can delete duplicate files with the help of Duplicate Files Fixer. The below steps will guide you on this better.
Step 1. Install Duplicate Files Fixer – Visit the official website and download Duplicate Files Fixer on your Windows PC. Then, run the .exe file and follow the on-screen prompts to complete the process of set-up.
Step 2. Scan for Duplicates – Launch the tool and provide the needed access. After this, click the “Scan Computer” option for the hard disk and “Scan Google Drive” or “Scan Dropbox” options for scanning the respective locations.
Step 3. Finding of Duplicate Files – Once the scanning process is complete for the respective locations or folders, you can then preview the results. The list of duplicate files will be categorized into All files, Documents, Image, Music, Videos, and Other Files.
Step 4. Delete Duplicate Files – After reviewing the results, you can click the “Automark” option to choose all the results for deletion. Finally, you can click the “Delete Marked” button to remove the identical files completely from your system and cloud storage.
Conclusion
You can remove identical files easily from your Windows computer with the above-suggested methods. The aforementioned methods also work on Windows 11. You can either use a third-party tool if you are short on time or you can find duplicates via File Explorer or Windows PowerShell. Do share your opinions and thoughts in the comments section.
