Is Is your computer stuffed? Are there junk files gobbling up space on your hard drive? As the holiday season is fast approaching, you’ll need more space on your PC for pictures, videos, and holiday music. Here are three simple methods to clear out disk space on your computer: 

First Step: Uninstall Junk Programs

 There are plenty of programs that come bundled with other software or that we forget we’ve installed. This first step simply involves going through a list of our existing programs and uninstalling the ones we no longer need. 

Windows 7

• Click the Start button. 
• In the search box, type "Programs and Features" and press Enter. 
• Select Programs and Features from the list. 
• This gives you a list of the programs installed on your computer. Review the list and if you come across a program that you no longer require, or find redundant software such as multiple PDF readers, select the program you don't want from the menu, right-click, and choose Uninstall.

Windows 8

• Right-click the Start Screen button at the bottom-left corner of the Desktop. At the top of the menu, click Programs and Features. 
• This gives you a list of the programs installed on your computer. Review the list and if you come across a program that you no longer require, or find redundant software such as multiple PDF readers, select the program you don't want from the menu, right-click, and choose Uninstall.
• A dialog box will open asking if you’re sure you want to completely remove the program – click Yes. 
• Once the program has finished uninstalling, a dialog window opens to inform you of its completion.  

The Basics: Disk Cleanup Utility

The Disk Cleanup utility is a program built-in to Windows designed to help you clean out useless files. To clear out hard drive space using the Disk Cleanup utility: 

Windows 7

• Click the Start button. 
• In the search box, type "Disk Cleanup." Click on Disk Cleanup when it appears at the top of the list of available items. 
• In the list of drives, select the disk drive that you want to clean up (typically the C: drive).
• In the Disk Cleanup dialog box, on the Disk Cleanup tab, check the boxes for the file types you want to delete. We recommend selecting all of them – ensure that you haven’t thrown any files in the Recycling Bin that you want to get back! Then click OK. 
• When the Disk Cleanup prompt asks “Are you sure you want to permanently delete these files?” click Delete Files.

Windows 8

• To clear out hard drive space using the Disk Cleanup utility: 
• Point to the lower-right corner of the screen, move the mouse pointer up, click the gear icon called Settings. 
• Click Control Panel at the top of the list, type "Admin" into the Search box at the top right corner of the window, click Administrative Tools (the first item on the list). 
• In the list under Administrative Tools, double-click Disk Cleanup.
• At this point, a Disk Cleanup prompt may open with a status bar, calculating how much space you will be able to free on your hard disk. 
• Once this calculation is completed, in the Drives list, choose the drive you want to clean, most likely the C: drive, and then click OK.
• In the Disk Cleanup dialog window, check the boxes for the file types that you want to delete, you can click all of the boxes, just make sure you don’t have anything in your Recycling Bin that you need! Click OK and then click Delete files.

Intermediate Users: Windows Update Clean Up

The Windows Update feature maintains a cache of files that can fill up with superfluous items. The folder will be regenerated when you restart the computer but without some of the unnecessary files. To clean out the Windows Update folder: 

Windows 7

• Click the Start menu. 
• In the search field, type “services.msc” and press Enter. This opens a dialog box which lists the services currently running on your system. 
• From the long list, click “Background Intelligent Transfer Service,” right-click, and select Stop. 
• Further down the list, click “Windows Update,” right-click, and select Stop. 
• Go to the C:\Windows folder, find the “Software Distribution” folder and delete it. When a prompt appears that states “You’ll need to provide administrator permission to delete this folder” click Continue. 
• When the computer is restarted, both services will automatically start running again and the folder will be regenerated along with any necessary files.

Windows 8

• Press the Windows key and “R” at the same time to open the Run dialog box. 
• Type “cleanmgr” into the text field and click Okay. 
• Under the Disk Cleanup tab, if there is an option for Windows Update Cleanup check the box next to it and press Okay. 
• If Windows Update Cleanup isn’t in the list, click the “Clean up system files” button on the bottom left.  
• In the following dialog box, select your primary drive on the dropdown menu, typically the C: drive and click Okay. 
• After the scan, the Disk Cleanup menu will open again. This time Windows Update Cleanup will appear on the list of Files to delete. Put a checkmark in the box next to Windows Update Cleanup and click Okay.