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hyberfil.sys and pagefil.sys

Anonymous
2019-10-21T23:26:36+00:00

I have an HP Pavillion Desktop 595 i5, with an SSD. Today I noticed that my C drive is nearly full, and that three files are taking up the most space: hiberfil.sys, pagefil.sys, and swapfile.sys. I did some searching online and read that hiberfil.sys is used to allow the computer to hibernate, which is different than simply putting it to sleep, however "hibernate" has never been an option on my computer as I own a desktop, not a laptop, and never leave my programs open and running in order to need to hibernate the computer. My main concern is that these files are very large, and I've had this computer for over a year and they have definitely never been in my C drive, only showing up today. 

Windows updated itself last week which is where I assume they come from, but is it safe to delete them? I don't even have a "hibernate" option on my computer which several guides say is what this file allows you to do. In total these three files are almost 8 gigs and taking up a lot of room on my small C drive. What can I do? Can I move them to a different place besides my C drive? They've never been here before so I don't know what is safe to do with them.

Windows for home | Windows 10 | Files, folders, and storage

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  1. Anonymous
    2019-10-21T23:42:59+00:00

    Hi, I'm David an independent advisor and user just like you. I'll do my best to help you with this.

    Windows 10 does use the "hibernate" function in most "Shut Down" operations because it makes the system reload more quickly when you switch back on - nevertheless you can disable this option to claim back the space used. The process to disable (and reenable) hibernate is detailed here: https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/help/920730...

    pagefil.sys is an important Windows file and should not be deleted. A good explanation of what this file is for is here: https://www.techadvisor.co.uk/how-to/windows/wh...

    swapfile.sys is similar and is required by modern Window apps. Again an explanation, if you're interested, is here: https://www.windowscentral.com/what-swapfilesys...

    Note: These two links as to a non-Microsoft website. The pages appears to be providing accurate, safe information. Watch out for ads on the sites that may advertise products frequently classified as a PUP (Potentially Unwanted Products). Thoroughly research any product advertised on the sites before you decide to download and install it.

    These files are always present, but usually hidden, so you don't see them. have you maybe changed your View settings recently (such as "Show protected operating system files")?

    Regards,

    David

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  2. Anonymous
    2019-10-22T00:11:56+00:00

    I have an HP Pavilion Desktop, as it happens hp 510-p009 and I wouldn't label my hard drive exactly small:

    That's what's on it. 720 Gigabytes and I still have a little over a Terabyte free for storage.

    However, the Hibernation File is quite small....a mere So how yours reached the point of taking over your desktop puzzles me somewhat, I must admit.  Still. you have already been told  how to turn it off so you should be fine.

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