CNET Editors' review
Windows' built-in Disk Cleanup tool does a pretty good job, but it's designed to be as easy and harmless as possible, and many users prefer a third-party tool. Disk Cleaner is a free, open-source, standalone hard-disk cleaning utility that's designed to be fast and easy to use yet thorough in its operation.
We ran the Windows Disk Cleanup tool before running Disk Cleaner to better gauge Disk Cleaner's supposed advantages. Amazingly, the Windows utility quit working during the cleanup process, despite a robust system that was fairly clean to begin with. We then ran Disk Cleaner, which quickly analyzed our system and listed items that could be removed in its plain dialog interface. The listing is much more comprehensive than the Windows tool, with options to clear the caches, history, and cookies of non-IE browsers like Firefox and Google Chrome as well as Adobe and Zip files, the Java Runtime Cache, and more. We checked everything we wanted cleaned up, pressed Clean, and Disk Cleaner showed a progress dialog that listed each completed stage of the process in detail. After we'd run Disk Cleaner, we ran the Windows tool again. It didn't find anything Disk Cleaner had missed, although it did work this time. Nothing stopped working on our system as a result of the files Disk Cleanup deletes, which is what we wanted to see. We can't say our system ran significantly faster after a cleanup, but at least we know that Disk Cleanup did its job as an important part of regular system maintenance. We like the ability to save your cleanup selections as presets to run later as well as the program's options for managing how it deletes system files and other functional parameters. You can even save cleanup results for later comparison.
Disk Cleaner is portable freeware that requires no installation; just click the executable file to run the program on any Windows machine. This means you can carry it around on your USB keychain drive (everybody's got one, don't they?) and run it to remove traces of your activity when you use a public or unfamiliar computer, or help out inexperienced friends by showing them how to clean up their systems.
Publisher's Description
From Robert Moerland:
Disk Cleaner is a free open source tool to quickly and easily clean your hard disk from temporary files like those in the system temporary folder, the Internet Explorer Cache and Cookies folder, and the Recycle Bin. Disk Cleaner is focused on ease of use, speed and a small size, both when downloading and when installed. It is fast, since the crucial parts are written with just the plain Windows API giving high search and remove performance. Disk Cleaner is also entirely self-contained: no other (large) DLLs are necessary to run the application, so it can even be run from a floppy without trouble. Handy to remove your junk from public machines.
More Popular Maintenance & Optimization downloads
- Windows Doctor
46,269 downloads
- WinUtilities Free Edition
14,608 downloads
- 360Amigo System Speedup Free
8,905 downloads
- Kingsoft PC Doctor
7,762 downloads
- Game Booster
5,373 downloads
-
All versions:
3.1 starsout of 11 votes
-
Current version:
0 stars Be the first to review this product -
My rating:
Write review
-
"It gets the job done."
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.6.1353
Pros
I like it's UI, very basic and cleanly laid out.
Cons
It isn't as full featured as CCleaner but still gets the job done.
-
"Simple to use and works as advertised."
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.6.1353
Pros
The software is easy to install and easy to use. Furthermore, it works as advertised. This gives me the option of doing something that would cost a lot of money, to keep my processor running smoothly.
Cons
Some of the features are limited,l wanting a bit of upgrade.
-
"Really messes up Chrome"
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.6.1353
Pros
Cleans really well
Cons
Cleans too well
Summary
I spent 2 hours recovering from the mess it created with Chrome ...
This thing really screwed me up. I'm not a happy camper. I'll be threading much more carefully on CNET recommendations from now on ...
Updated on Oct 26, 2010 -
"DO NOT DOWNLOAD - INFECTED WITH TROJAN VIRUS"
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.6.1353
Pros
DO NOT DOWNLOAD - INFECTED WITH TROJAN VIRUS
Cons
Trojan-Dropper.VBS.Agent.bi installs with this program
-
"zonealarm scanned disk cleaner as malicious software"
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.6.1353
Pros
I didnot get a chance to use it. Can you provide a response reference to the
ZoneAlarm Scan.Cons
failed my ZoneAlarm internet security scan.
-
"it definitely does what it says it does"
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.6.1353
Pros
effectively cleans HD of junk
Cons
use caution, if you're not familiar with what you want to keep, tread lightly. I used it once and it deleted files that I definitely wanted to keep. Now, lost em forever.
Summary
good tool.. use cautiously
-
"very good cleaning tool . use very little resources"
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.6.1353
Pros
very good cleaning tool . use very little resources , and is quick. easy to install and user friendly . use very little memory .
Cons
i hope it only cleans ~*.* files from the hard drive.
Summary
i highly recommend it for every user ! free of charge .
-
"very good program. I use it for several years now."
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.6.1353
Pros
Fast, easy, useful
Cons
no cons; works fine
-
"Very useful cleaning tool. Complement for CCleaner."
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.6.1353
Pros
Teh best about it is its efficiency, as well as the extreme light-weight. I even run this on an old Pentium 1 100Mhz on Windows 98 and works like a charm. I can barely install CCleaner there.
On newer PCs, it's a good complement for other tools.Cons
Too simple GUI. It's not easy to define personal locations to be cleaned.
-
"Virus in download"
Version: Disk Cleaner 1.5.7
Pros
None as virus in download
Cons
Whilst downoading a virus was detected by Norton W32 Induc A
Add Your Review
Submit your reply
E-mail this review
Report offensive content
See more CNET content tagged:
Previous Versions:
