Paste any Windows 10/11 folder path, %LocalAppData% directory, or PowerShell/WizTree CSV list below. We match every line against 367 engineer-audited cache rules and flag OS-critical directories before you delete anything.
SWEEPR Cleaner automatically skips files locked by active games or Windows processes, preserves all logins & save files, and reclaims 10–65 GB in one click.
C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\depotcache and steamapps\downloading
Why it grows: What is Steam depotcache? The Steam depotcache folder stores encrypted delta-patch manifest chunks (.depot and .manifest files) used by Steam to verify and assemble game updates. When a game update is interrupted, cancelled, or uninstalled mid-patch, gigabytes of orphaned depot chunks remain locked in C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\depotcache indefinitely.
If deleted: Yes, Steam depotcache is 100% safe to delete as long as all current game updates have finished installing. Deleting it immediately reclaims 2 GB to 25 GB+ of SSD space without touching your installed games or Steam Cloud saves.
%LocalAppData%\NVIDIA\DXCache
Why it grows: NVIDIA's graphics driver stores compiled DirectX 11 and DirectX 12 shader binaries in DXCache so games load faster without stuttering.
If deleted: Deleting older shader cache files reclaims gigabytes of SSD space and fixes corrupted shader stutter after driver updates. Currently active files locked by the driver are safely skipped.
C:\ProgramData\Package Cache
Why it grows: C:\ProgramData\Package Cache is used by the Windows WiX Burn bootstrapper to store cached .msi and .cab installer baselines for Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributables, .NET runtimes, Visual Studio, and third-party drivers. Over years of updates, dozens of superseded versions accumulate.
If deleted: Pruning only orphaned and superseded package cache GUID folders reclaims 3.5 GB – 22.0 GB of C: drive space while keeping active uninstaller baselines healthy.
C:\Windows\LiveKernelReports
Why it grows: This path did not match our 367 pre-audited cache rules. Check if it belongs to an active project or installed application before deleting.
If deleted: Use SWEEPR Cleaner's non-destructive desktop scanner to inspect file locks and last-modified timestamps before removing unknown folders.
%LocalAppData%\Packages & %LocalAppData%\Temp & %LocalAppData%\D3DSCache
Why it grows: C:\Users\<Username>\AppData\Local is the default dump location for unindexed application caches: browser Cache_Data, Discord/Slack/Teams media blobs, CapCut/Premiere video proxies, npm/pip/gradle package caches, and DirectX/NVIDIA shader caches.
If deleted: Never delete the entire AppData\Local folder directly (which holds browser profiles and app settings). Selectively purging only the Cache, GPUCache, Code Cache, and Temp subfolders inside AppData\Local safely recovers 8–75 GB with zero data loss.
%AppData%\CapCut\User Data\Cache
Why it grows: This path did not match our 367 pre-audited cache rules. Check if it belongs to an active project or installed application before deleting.
If deleted: Use SWEEPR Cleaner's non-destructive desktop scanner to inspect file locks and last-modified timestamps before removing unknown folders.
C:\Windows\System32
Why it grows: Contains core Windows kernel DLLs, drivers, and system executables. Deleting files here will make Windows unbootable.
If deleted: Deleting files in this directory can corrupt Windows 10/11 or prevent your PC from booting.