Bytesweep Windows Update leftovers
Update packages downloaded before installing, which are never used again once installed. SoftwareDistribution\Download.
Bytesweep 2.0 for Windows
A PC cleaner that shows its work, and lets you undo it.
It finds what is filling your drive, from Windows Update leftovers to game caches and old upgrades, and clears it with a 7-day undo. It also manages startup apps, updates your software through winget and the Microsoft Store, cleans privacy traces and recovers deleted files. Native .NET, no account, no telemetry.
Coming soon
Buy · $5
Coming soon. Cleaning needs a licence. Windows 10 and 11, 64-bit. Installs without administrator rights.
Updated
What is Bytesweep for Windows?
Bytesweep for Windows is a disk cleaner, storage analyzer and system monitor for Windows 10 and 11, built natively in C# and .NET 8. Every item it offers to remove comes with four answers: what it is, whether it is safe, what happens if you remove it, and whether it can be undone. Cleanups go to a quarantine you can restore for seven days; duplicates and hand-picked files go to the Recycle Bin.
Windows, System32, boot files, the page file and recovery partitions are never touched. Your Documents, Desktop, Pictures and OneDrive folders are never cleaned by a rule, only by files you pick yourself.
| Windows | Windows 10 or 11, 64-bit |
|---|---|
| Install | Per user, no administrator rights |
| Admin rights | Asked only by the tools that need them |
| Price | $5 once, per computer |
| Account | None |
How it works
Scan it, see what is safe, clean it, undo it.
The same four steps on a Windows PC: nothing leaves the drive until you press Clean, and nothing is gone for seven days.
The Windows storage problem
What is taking up space on a Windows PC?
The Settings app shows "Temporary files" and "Other". These are the folders underneath, each of which Bytesweep measures, explains and rates.
Delivery Optimization cache
Pieces of updates kept to share with other PCs. A cache; Windows trims it on its own schedule, slowly.
Component store (WinSxS)
Superseded system components kept after updates. Cleaned the supported way, through DISM, never by deleting files.
Windows.old and upgrade files
The previous Windows installation kept after a feature upgrade, often 20 GB or more, plus $Windows.~BT.
Crash dumps
MEMORY.DMP and minidumps written after a blue screen, useful to a developer and to nobody else.
Temp files and thumbnails
User and system temp folders and the Explorer thumbnail cache, which rebuilds itself.
Browser caches
Chrome, Edge, Firefox and Brave caches. History, cookies and autofill are listed separately and cleared only if you choose them; saved passwords and bookmarks are never touched.
Game launchers
Caches and leftover installers from Steam, Epic Games, the EA app, GOG and Battle.net. Games and saves are left alone.
Developer folders
node_modules, bin and obj, Rust and Maven target, Gradle builds and Python virtual environments in projects you have not touched for months.
Beyond cleaning
Everything in Bytesweep for Windows.
- Storage analyzer. Overview, treemap, sunburst, file types and folders for any drive.
- Clean and Maintenance. Temp files, caches, update leftovers and component store cleanup.
- Duplicates and Large files. Exact copies, similar photos, and the biggest, oldest files.
- Apps. Uninstall desktop and Store apps with their leftovers.
- Startup. Startup apps, services and scheduled tasks, each with an on/off switch.
- Updates. winget, the Microsoft Store, Chocolatey and Scoop in one list.
- Privacy cleaner. Recent files, search and Run history, clipboard, DNS cache, browser data.
- Security status. What the system reports about Defender, the firewall, UAC and BitLocker.
- Monitor and Processes. CPU, memory, disk, network, GPU and battery, processes grouped by app, history up to 24 hours, alerts when an app misbehaves, and the dashboard as an image to share.
- Recovery. Recycle Bin, deleted files on NTFS, FAT32 and exFAT drives, formatted drives and lost partitions.
- Explorer menu. Right-click any folder to analyze it, find duplicates or large files, or clean it.
- File shredder. Securely delete a file, after an explicit confirmation.
- Registry tidy. Only entries pointing at missing files, each backed up first.
FAQ
Bytesweep for Windows, answered.
Is Bytesweep a good CCleaner alternative?
Bytesweep covers what CCleaner is used for, such as temp files, browser caches, startup apps and app updates, and adds a storage analyzer, duplicate finder, file recovery and a 7-day undo on every cleanup. Its registry tool is deliberately narrow, and it is a one-time $5 with no subscription and no bundled offers.
Is it safe to delete the Windows Update cache?
Yes, once the updates are installed. The files in SoftwareDistribution\Download are the installers Windows downloaded; Microsoft's own troubleshooter clears that folder. Files of an update still in progress are locked, and Bytesweep skips them.
Can I delete Windows.old?
Yes, if you do not plan to roll back to the previous version. It is removed automatically after about ten days; deleting it earlier frees the space now but ends the option to go back. Bytesweep marks it review first and explains that trade.
Does Bytesweep clean the registry?
Only narrowly. It finds entries that point at files no longer on disk: uninstall entries of removed apps, broken App Paths and startup items pointing nowhere. Each key is exported to a .reg backup before it is removed, and shared DLLs, COM registrations and file associations are never touched. Registry cleaning does not make Windows faster, and Bytesweep says so.
Does Bytesweep need administrator rights?
Not to install or to run. A few tools ask for elevation when you use them: component store cleanup, clearing event logs, all-users startup entries and services, BitLocker status, and recovery from a raw drive.
Does Bytesweep for Windows send data anywhere?
No. There is no telemetry and no Bytesweep server. The Updates page talks only to the package sources it names (winget, Microsoft Store, Chocolatey, Scoop). Licence activation contacts Dodo Payments, our payment provider. The only other network use is the connectivity test and ping, which you start yourself.
Bytesweep for Windows: coming soon.
Scan free and see every verdict. When you want to clean, one payment of $5 unlocks it on that computer.
Coming soon
Also on Mac →