Windows 8 is duplicating files
100andthirty
Posts: 445
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I have discovered that my HDD usage is increasing and on examination of the file structure I have discovered that two very large folders have popped up: Windows\system32\config\systemprofile\ and C:\Windows\SysWOW64\config\systemprofile\. Both are about 66GB in size and include duplicates of many (but not all) files in My Documents, My Music, My Pictures etc.
I'm not sure why they're there, and can I delete them? I've searched extensively but can't find anything relevant on-line to explain why they're there.
If anyone can help, I'd be very grateful.
I'm not sure why they're there, and can I delete them? I've searched extensively but can't find anything relevant on-line to explain why they're there.
If anyone can help, I'd be very grateful.
0
Comments
WoW64 stands for "Windows on 64-bit Windows", and it contains all the 32-bit binary files required for compatibility, which run on top of the 64 bit Windows.WOW64 knows that the Setup wizard is a 32-bit application running within an emulator. It also knows that 64- and 32-bit code cannot be mixed. As such, the WOW64 emulator aliases an alias to the \Windows\SysWOW64 folder. This means that any time a 32-bit application needs to read or write anything to or from the \Windows\System32 folder, the WOW64 emulator transparently redirects the request to the \Windows\SysWOW64 folder.
Not sure it helps though
http://windowssecrets.com
Whilst Windows 8 isn't perfect, Microsoft are not stupid enough to duplicate your files for no reason. I would leave it alone unless you really know what you are doing.
The best thing to do would have been to check the remaining amount on the HDD in the 'My Computer' window.