AOMEI Partition Assistant
An ALL-IN-ONE Duplicate File Finder for Windows 10
A duplicate file finder in Windows 10 can detect and eliminate numerous copies of the same file on a device, freeing up disk space. You’ll see a useful duplicate file finder in this post and how to use it.
By Lucas / Updated on July 10, 2025
Where are duplicate files from on Windows 10?
Duplicate files on your disk will take up much available disk space, slowing your computer performance. Duplicate files on a computer can originate from various sources and causes:
Manual copying: Users often manually copy files or folders without realizing the same content already exists in another location. This can happen when people want to back up files or organize data.
File synchronization: File synchronization tools, cloud storage services, or backup software can sometimes create duplicate files if not configured correctly. They might make copies of files during the syncing process.
Software updates: When you update software, sometimes the installer creates backup copies of files to ensure a rollback option is available. These backup copies can become duplicates.
File restore: After a system restore or data recovery process, you might end up with duplicate files if the restoration process isn't careful about file deduplication.
So, it's essential to periodically clean up duplicate files to free up storage space and maintain a more organized and efficient computer system.
What is a duplicate file finder?
A duplicate file finder is a software tool or application designed to scan a computer or storage device to identify and locate duplicate files. These tools help users identify redundant copies of files that consume storage space and can clutter their file systems. Duplicate file finders typically offer various features to help users manage these duplicate files effectively.
It offers multiple scanning modes, including full and quick scans, enabling users to tailor their searches based on specific needs. You can also filter the scan by file types, such as documents, images, music, or videos, and apply search criteria like file size thresholds or identical filenames. Most importantly, these tools provide preview options and selection controls to ensure you can review and choose which duplicates to keep and which to delete safely.
Beyond the basics, some duplicate file finders offer users additional functions and benefits for a seamless experience.
They often include safety measures to protect essential system files, backup and restore options in case you accidentally delete a needed file and integration with your file explorer for easy management. You can select deletion preferences, such as permanent removal or moving duplicates to a designated folder for further review.
Duplicate file finders also generate comprehensive scan reports, summarizing the results and actions taken, giving you insights into the space reclaimed and the efficiency of the cleaning process. Thus, if you want to declutter digital storage and maintain an organized computer environment, a duplicate file finder is an indispensable tool.
Does Windows have a duplicate file finder?
Although a duplicate file finder is a useful utility, Windows does not include one, so using a third-party program to locate duplicate files will save you time and irritation while reclaiming important disk space.
An all-in-one duplicate file finder for Windows PC
As we’ve mentioned, users often store a large amount of data and files in their systems. Over time, multiple copies of files may appear, and these duplicates may be stored in different locations, leading to wastage of storage space, reduced system performance, and increased complexity in data backups and maintenance.
AOMEI Partition Assistant for Cleanup is a disk and partition management tool that supports Windows 11/10/8/8.1/7 users. This tool is a one-stop computer management tool.
The “Find Duplicate Files” function of this tool can quickly scan and locate repetitive files and allow users to set automatically regular cleaning plans on the device. This software can deal with various files such as pictures, videos, audio, documents, and archives files but skip important file types like .dll;.lib;.sys; etc.
AOMEI Partition Assistant for CleanupFree Up Disk Space To Keep Your PC Running Smoothly and Efficiently
Now, let’s see more about the details of this handy tool.
Step 1. Initiate Find Duplicate Files. Install and launch AOMEI Partition Assistant for Cleanup. Click the "Find Duplicate Files" tab.
Step 2. Select a path to scan duplicate files. You can either click "Scan Now" to start the scan of your system C: drive. Or, click "Custom Scan" to manually select paths to be scanned. (Here, we take the "Custom Scan" as an example.)
Step 3. After clicking "Custom Scan", all local and external drives on your PC will be displayed. You can also click the "Add Path" button, and then a browse folder window will pop up. So you can add more paths on this PC, like Desktop, Downloads, and other folder paths.
Step 4. Once necessary paths are added, you can click the "Scan Now" button to start the scan process.
Step 5. The scan process might take time. After the scan is complete, all duplicate files will be listed. You can click the button behind to locate them.
Step 6. Select duplicate files to start deletion. You can either manually select duplicate files, or click the "Smart Select" button to automatically select unnecessary duplicate files to delete.
Tips: If the "Smart Select" is ticked, only the oldest duplicate file will be unticked. It means that all duplicate files except the oldest one will be ticked to delete. (The oldest file means the file that was created first. This file will not be deleted. All other duplicate files are considered copies of the oldest file. )
If you manually select all copies of duplicate files, you will get a pop-up warning window to keep at least one copy of the duplicate files. If you indeed want to delete all copies of duplicate files, you can click "OK" so all copies of duplicate files will be selected to delete.
After unnecessary duplicate files are selected, please click the "Clean Now" button to start the deletion.
Step 7. Delete successfully. The deletion might take time. After the process is finished, the selected files will be deleted, and you will get a cleaning completed window displaying how much data you deleted in total.
To sum up
If you don’t know how to find duplicate files on your computer, a duplicate file finder in Windows 10 is your best option. It can save too much time and energy for you to clean duplicate files.
