Deleting Windows-Temp folders (Home Premium)

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Norton Antivirus seems to take incredibly long on WindowsTemp folders such as 000005FF.
1. Can I delete the entire Temp directory?
2. Can I delete the contents of each folder/subfolder in this directory? (If so, please tell me how)
Internet research seems to turn up older versions of Windows and also all disagree with how much to safely delete.

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I regularly delete all the files in my %TEMP% folder, there are always one or two files in use that can’t be deleted, but I get rid of the rest with no adverse effects.

StuartR

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You say %Temp%, I assume that’s the same as C:WindowsTemp
Thanks Stuart.

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No it is not. The %TEMP% variable refers to the TEMP folder for your user logon. You should be able to select anything you wish to delete in C:WindowsTemp and delete it. If Windows says something is in use you’ll just have to try again some other time. You should NOT delete the TEMP folder itself.

Joe

--Joe

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Joe, thanks MUCH for the clarifications!

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%TEMP% is an environment variable that points to a folder that applications can use for temporary storage. It regularly fills up with large numbers of files and can cause problems if not emptied.

C:WindowsTemp is typically used for temporary storage during software installations, and can also be emptied without causing any harm.

StuartR

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Does Windows’ Disk Cleanup applet empty the folder(s) %temp% points to (these folders)?
How do I find the folder(s) that %temp% points to?

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Open a Windows Explorer window and enter %temp% in the address field.

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If you want to know more about environmental variables see Environment variable – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. To see what the settings are for your user open a command window and type “set” (without the quotation marks).

Joe

--Joe

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