Windows System Restore creates ‘snapshots’ of your PC’s system files, registry keys, installed programs, etc., making it possible to roll back to a previous state in the event of system malfunction or failure. It works most of the time but this post is not about that.
The problem with System Restore is that the snapshots, called Restore Points, it stores on your hard drive can take up a lot of space. Over time and because this Windows feature works in the background, you wake up one day surprised that suddenly your hard drive has a lot less free space available.
To recover hard drive space, the traditional method is to delete previous Restore Points using Window’s built-in Disk Cleaner. (Right-click on your hard drive, Properties > Disk cleanup)
Another problem with this method is that it’s really slow and take up system resources. A faster alternative is to use Piriform’s CCleaner. It’s one of the most popular tools in cleaning up PCs. Just follow the steps:
- Open CCleaner
- Select the Tools tab
- Select System Restore
- Remove all the Restore points, the most current one is locked for safety
CCleaner removes all those previous Restore Points and recovering valuable hard drive space a lot faster than before.
The best part is, CCleaner is a free tool. Go ahead and give it a download, you’d be impressed by it.
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Julius aka "Jhay" Rocas has been blogging since 2006. He is a certified geek. New Media publisher/Professional blogger and Internet ninja. Youth activist. He blogs about tech news, gadgets and social commentary. 
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
Well written tutorial!
I've had the CCleaner installer on my USB drive as part of my utilities but I've never actually used it on my own computer/laptop. I think I haven't found the need for it because I use Ubuntu most of the time, not Windows. But anyways, I'll give CCleaner a try. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks dude! I actually stumbled upon this feature a month or two ago when I wandered off from the Registry cleanup tab. And I've been using it to delete old restore points ever since.
Though it would be needed less as I'm rarely using Windows too now that I'm back on Ubuntu. Even my fiancé has found it very usable.
i’ve been using Piriform CCleaner for a long time now to clean up my temporary files and internet trash but never realized that it also deletes restore points.amazing!
i can attest, it really free spaces on your hard drive and its really easy and fast to download and install this software. =))
Glad you've found a new use for CCleaner. It could also keep your PC running smoothly by cleaning up your Registry. Don't be worried in using this feature. It's perfectly safe and it really works.