Why does WinDirStat report less space used than Windows does?

Question

I have an SSD with ~125GB formatted, and it claims ~99GB are consumed. It has been rapidly consuming storage space for weeks. I have found many instances of unexplained SSD consumption online, none of which seemed to have my answer.

My user's directory has been properly moved to another HDD with a junction so that none of my normal data storage is done on the SSD. Windows and Program Files are still present.

However, the strange thing is that I only have 46GB of data on the drive as confirmed by directory tree listings and Total Commander viewing hidden and system files.

WinDirStat, manual inspection, and any other storage consumption analysis tool report 46GB of data on the drive when launched from a copy of Windows running on the SSD. This is a big discrepancy from the ~99GB consumed. Where is all my free space?

Solution 1

If you did not run WinDirStat as admin, it would only be able to report on space used by files that it is allowed to see.

Run it again as administrator, and it should start showing you the total picture of where the space has gone.

Solution 2

So what is taking up all this space? System restore. I was able to determine this by loading the drive through another computer and viewing hidden/system files.

In my case System Restore was currently configured to consume 50% of the storage space of the drive, thus this massive System Volume Information folder. To reconfigure, [Right Click]Computer --> Properties --> System Protection (on right) --> Configure

Comments

[Karan]

possible duplicate of How can I visualize the file system usage on Windows?

[Ctrl-alt-dlt]

@user1695505 Format it as a question then add the solution as an answer. Also add "answered" or "solved" to the title and accept your own answer. Then it is clear.

[Karan]

You need to run WinDirStat as admin so it finds everything. Also, as you've noted this is not a question at all. You could break this up into a question and an answer, but there are lots of duplicates on this very site and so it would get closed anyway. @JamieWilletts: No point really.

[user1695505]

@Jamie Willetts - thank you, will do immediately.

[user1695505]

@karan, this is not a duplicate nor a thread about using WinDirStat. This is a thread concerning free space that is consumed without apparent explanation while Windows is running from the drive. WinDirStat does not see the culprit folder at all when Windows is running from that drive, not even as admin.

[Karan]

Then one of the other tools listed in answers to that question will certainly find it. Also there are other questions dealing with the same system restore 'lost' data issue as well.

[Ramhound]

I was able to look at your intial scan and tell right away what was consuming your storage space. I was also going to point out you didn't run it with esclated privilages.

[Karan]

@JamieWilletts: Please do not ask people to add "answered" or "solved" to the title. This is not a forum.

[user1695505]

This is the thread's official answer and will be accepted in 2 days time when allowed.

[DrColossos]

This is a "question," not a "thread." Threads have "discussions" with "replies" but questions just have "answers." Check out this question: Is Stack Overflow a forum?

[Santropedro]

I tested it with admin and without with a folder with a hidden folder inside, with a hidden file inside, it displayed the total size including hidden files without and with admin privileges.

[Danek]

@user1695505, I work for Microsoft and by a popular opinion should therefore know how Windows works. Well, this question saved my day anyways :D Could you please already select it as accepted, even though the 2 days passed almost 5 years ago?

[Saul Bonardi]

This helped me troubleshoot a users PC. Without running as admin it showed the hard drive using 50 GB when it was in fact using 45 GB. The culprit files were MSSQL files.