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  2. $Windows.~WS
FolderRisk: Caution
  • Hidden

$Windows.~WS C:\$Windows.~WS

Hidden working folder created at the root of the volume during a Windows upgrade, next to $WINDOWS.~BT; it can remain afterwards.

Updated on By AltF4 Formation

What it’s for

$Windows.~WS is a hidden folder created at the root of the volume during a Windows upgrade, alongside $WINDOWS.~BT. It serves as a temporary work area for the setup program. It can remain after the upgrade has finished.

What it contains

Temporary setup files.

Risks and best practices

  • While an upgrade or a reset is running, the folder is in use, and deleting it breaks the operation.
  • Once the operation is complete, use Disk Cleanup (“Clean up system files”) rather than File Explorer. Deleting it by hand often requires taking ownership of the folder.
  • After a failed upgrade, keep it and read the logs in $WINDOWS.~BT and Windows\Panther first.

Useful commands

Fenêtre de terminal
# Size of the hidden folder, if it exists
Get-ChildItem 'C:\$Windows.~WS' -Recurse -Force -File -ErrorAction SilentlyContinue | Measure-Object -Property Length -Sum

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