Learn how to format your hard drive to keep it tidy and efficient, and consider whether an SSD or HDD is best for your storage needs. Just like your closet does when you constantly shuffle clothes around, your hard drive becomes messy after a while. But unless you overwrite the space, the remnants of all your (potentially sensitive) files are available in the event that dangerous hackers come looking. This is faster than actually deleting every piece, and also offers insurance in case you delete a folder or file by mistake. When you delete a file on an HDD, your hard drive registers where the pieces were and marks the space as available. When you access a file on an HDD, the hard drive scans its contents mechanically, reassembles your data, and presents it to you.

Delete files from an HDDĪn HDD (hard disk drive) saves space by dividing files into pieces and fitting them wherever it can.

If you use an SSD, deleting temporary files can also help to fix or prevent 100% disk usage. The SSD approach is faster but makes data more vulnerable - most SSDs require a password to access storage. If you delete a file from an SSD, it’s erased completely to make room for a new file. SSDs use non-mechanical flash memory, which reads a file all at once for near-instant deployment. Delete files from an SSDĪn SSD (solid state drive) removes files completely the first time you delete them. Both Windows and Mac computers can use either SSDs (solid state drives) or HDDs (hard disk drives) for data storage, and each type of drive handles deletion differently.

You should permanently delete files on Mac you don’t want hanging around, too. If you’re on Windows 10, we can show you how to delete files forever. But if you want to erase files permanently, you need to use a tool to securely delete them.Īfter months or years of downloading, moving, and deleting data, your computer becomes overloaded with junk files, bloatware, and other Potentially Unwanted Programs (PUPs).įollow our guide to cleaning up your PC for some computer hygiene tips or learn how to clean your Mac if that’s your platform of choice.

You can recover deleted files from Windows if they haven’t been overwritten. Even if you delete temporary files from the Recycle Bin, Windows marks the space those files occupied, making it possible for any computer expert (or hacker) to piece your files back together. When you delete a folder or file, it goes to the Recycle Bin as a temporary file.

File deletion programs