delete hotfixes

Question

can i delete old hotfixes

Answer 1

If your PC is behaving properly you can remove the Windows hotfix hidden backup files that begin $NTUninstallKB from the WINDOWS folder. There are two ways to do it:

1. My preference is to run a script which additionally removes the corresponding entries in Add or Remove Programs. Once they are removed by the script, they cannot be restored. Download, extract and run this little script http://www.dougknox.com/xp/utils/xp_hotfix_backup.htm Create a system restore point first just in case anything goes wrong during the registry updating.
2. Manually, but copy the folders to a CD/DVD first to allow their restoration should a fix need to be later removed. Now delete them from the \WINDOWS folder but leave the orphaned Add or Remove Programs entries intact. Only delete the $NTUninstallKB folders that relate to fixes not those for applications like Word, WMP, etc. Also, DO NOT DELETE THE $hf_mig$ folder.