How to Make Windows Delete Duplicate Files

Duplicate files can accumulate on your Windows computer over time, consuming precious storage space and making it harder to organize your files. Removing these duplicates manually can be a time-consuming task. To effectively manage these files, the optimal approach is to locate and eliminate them from any location on your computer.

Windows provides various methods and tactics for removing duplicate files. In this article, we will explore three methods for instructing Windows to eliminate duplicate files. The initial two methods make use of native tools such as Windows File Explorer and PowerShell, while the third harnesses the capabilities of a dedicated duplicates cleaner tool.

3 ways for how to make Windows delete duplicate files

Your Windows PC is equipped with integrated utilities designed for the purpose of eliminating duplicate files. Given that these duplicate files consume unnecessary storage space, it's a prudent choice to employ these built-in tools to identify and eliminate them.

This action not only reclaims space for storing additional data but also contributes to the long-term optimization of your computer's performance. The primary built-in tools for managing duplicate files on Windows encompass File Explorer and Windows PowerShell. Below, we provide a step-by-step guide for utilizing each of these tools effectively.

Solution 1: Using Windows File Explorer to remove duplicate files

Step 1: Open Windows File Explorer

Open Windows File Explorer by pressing Windows + E on your keyboard or by clicking the folder icon in your taskbar.

Step 2: Search for Duplicate Files

Navigate to the folder where you suspect duplicate files exist. It could be your documents, pictures, or any other directory. In the search bar in the top-right corner, type *.* and press Enter. This will display all files in the folder.

Step 3: Arrange Files by Size

Click on the "View" tab in the top menu and choose "Details." Click on the "Size" column header to arrange files by size, which can help identify duplicates more easily.

Step 4: Delete Duplicate Files

Scroll through the files, and if you notice identical files with the same size, right-click on one of them and select "Delete." Windows will ask for confirmation; click "Yes" to delete the duplicate file.

Solution 2: PowerShell to delete duplicate files

Step 1. Run PowerShell as admin.

Right-click on the Windows icon in the lower-left corner and select Windows PowerShell (Admin). A confirmation box will open up. To proceed, click Yes.

Step 2. Set searching location.

Enter this script: set-location –path C:\ in the Windows PowerShell window.

Step 3. Using commands to list duplicate files.

Enter the script for the list of all duplicates and their location:

ls "(directory you want to search)" -recurse | get-filehash | group -property hash | where { $_.count -gt 1 } | % { $_.group } | Out-File -FilePath "(location where you want to export the result)"

In (directory you want to search), enter the folder location of your User Account.

In (location where you want to export the result), enter the folder location you want the result to be exported or saved (e.g. Documents or Desktop).

Step 4. Open the folder location you have exported or saved.

Step 5. Delete duplicate files.

Check for each location in the text file, and then delete the duplicate files.

Solution 3: Choose duplicates cleaner to comprehensively remove files

AOMEI Partition Assistant for Cleanup is a disk partition cleanup software trusted by millions worldwide. It's an excellent PC Cleaner utility which is specifically designed to be an effective duplicate file cleaner for PC, meticulously scanning your system to identify and remove a wide array of repeat files that can slow down your computer and occupy precious disk space. With an intuitive interface, it's an excellent choice for both beginners and experienced users.

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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

Whether you choose to use built-in Windows tools like File Explorer and PowerShell or opt for a third-party solution like AOMEI Partition Assistant Professional, removing duplicate files from your Windows computer is a crucial step in optimizing storage space and maintaining a well-organized system. Besides removing duplicate files, you can also use this tool to clean junk files and move installed apps to clean more available space.