Not Enough Disk Space - How to Fix the Low Disk Space Error

Windows is full of various annoying errors and “Not Enough Disk Space” is one of them. This error usually appears when you try to install a large program or download a large video file. On top of that, the low disk space error can appear during disk defragmentation, as the disk defrag utility needs at least 15% of available free space to work correctly.

There are several different ways how you can increase the free space on your hard drive. The obvious choice is to move your largest files, such as videos, photos, and music, to a different location. This works well if you have a second hard drive or are prepared to move these files to an external drive. But what if you don’t? Then the best way to free disk space is to clean your computer from junk and uninstall unused programs.

Junk files are a natural by-product of daily computer activity. No matter what you do, various temporary files will be saved, your browser will create Temporary Internet Files, and the number of stored System Restore points will grow. The more clutter there is, the less free disk space you have. To solve the low disk space problem, run a disk cleanup utility once a week.

Another way to free up hard drive space is to uninstall software you never use. Deleting unused programs will provide room for installing new applications. To review the list of your installed software and remove the unnecessary programs, go to the Control Panel – Programs and Features (or Add or Remove Programs in Windows XP).

Now that computer junk is gone and unused programs are uninstalled, it’s time to delete some files. But not just any files – what you need to do is find and remove duplicate files. Deleting unnecessary copies of your files can free up to 50% of disk space on your computer and solve the “Not enough disk space” problem. The safest and the quickest way to delete duplicate files is to use a duplicate file finder.

One more way to get rid of the “Not enough disk space” error is to resize your hard drive partitions. Resizing partitions will help if one of your partitions is low on disk space and the other has lots of free space. Windows 7 has a built-in partition manager tool (just search for Disk Management). But Windows XP users will have to resort to third-party tools, like EaseUS Partition Master.

As you can see, it’s not too hard to fix the low disk space error without having to purchase a new, larger hard drive.