How to Clear Windows 7 Temporary Files in the Temp Folder

How to Clear Windows 7 Temporary Files in the Temp Folder - where .tmp, .docx, .xlsx, .pptx and .pdf are shadowed

Update - Sept 2017 - Do not use CCleaner its been hacked
Read my post on CCleaner containing malware and an alternative.

Information

The Temp folder is where Windows 7 and programs sometimes store temporary files. Sometimes these files are not deleted after Windows 7 or the program is finished with them. This can cause the temp folder to fill up with junk temp files which may cause Vista to take longer to access the Temp folder and create a slight delay.

This will show you how to clear the Windows 7 temporary files through Disk Cleanup or manually in the Temp folder.   

Note

The Windows 7 Temp folder is located at:

C:\Users\(UserName)\AppData\Local\Temp
or
cd %HOMEDRIVE%%HOMEPATH%\AppData\Local\Temp

You can obtain you current logged on UserName,
if you are not sure by Start->Run->Cmd and type 

whoami 

will return domainname\UserName

If you are browsing to this folder, you may need to show AppData and other hidden files, folders and drives. See image below.

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 Warning

While it is safe to delete these files, it is best not to do this while installing or uninstalling anything.

Tip

BleachBit is a free program that is great at keeping the temporary files cleaned up and more.

Example: Windows 7  User Account Temp Folder Location

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METHOD ONE

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Thorough Disk Cleanup (PREFERRED METHOD)

 Note

Disk Cleanup will only delete Temporary files that have not been modified in 7 days. To clear everything, see METHOD TWO below.

1. Open Disk Cleanup.

2. Check Temporary files. (See image below) 

3. Review Files to delete at my post Windows 7 Disk Cleanup - What File Categories to Delete - A detailed look  

4. After, Click on Delete Files to confirm the action.

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METHOD TWO

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Manually Clear the Temp Folder

 Note

The Temp folder is located at the hidden system folder:

C:\Users\(Your Username)\AppData\Local\Temp

If you are browsing to this folder, you may need to show Appdata and other hidden files, folders and drives.

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1. Open the Start Menu.

2. Search for Run and click.

Type %temp% and press Enter  and then do  

Type %windir%\Temp and press Enter. 

Select all files and click Shift + Del key.

NOTE: This is a shortcut and opens the Temp folder.  

3. Delete anything you want in this folder. (See image below) 

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  Warning

If you delete the Low folder, it can prevent you from printing from Internet Explorer. To fix this, close all Internet Explorer windows and reopen Internet Explorer to recreate the Low folder.

You can also manually fix this by recreating the Low folder in the Temp folder below, open a elevated command prompt (Start->Search for "CMD.exe", right-click and run as Administrator.                                                                                

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Then Copy and Paste the command below in the command prompt and press enter.

Code:

 Note

If you receive a File In Use pop-up error message while the files are being deleted, then this just means that one of the temp files is in use by a program right now.
Click check-box Do this for all current items and click Skip to continue deleting the other files, then close all open programs, and repeat the steps above.                                                                                                            

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If you still receive the message, then restart the computer or logoff and logon, and repeat the process again. Furthermore, you can run windows with run no services for hard core cleaning, in case of trojans and virus tracking.                      

4. Generally some residuals temp files will remain, if you have not closed all programs and/or services.  

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Extra: Temp folder, ideal state close all programs
 and run no services generating temporary locked files.

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Close the Temp folder when done.