How to Free Up Disk Space in Windows Server 2012 R2

by John, Updated on: September 13, 2026

When the C drive is running out of space, it's crucial to act quickly. Otherwise, the server may freeze or reboot unexpectedly. To address this issue, the first step is to free up disk space, allowing the server to continue running smoothly. Additionally, this provides more space to install programs that can help resolve the problem. To free up disk space in Server 2012 R2, you can use either the built-in Disk Cleanup utility or third-party system optimization software. If cleaning up the disk doesn't free up enough space, it's recommended to allocate additional free space to the C: drive from another partition.

Free up disk space

1. How to Free Up Disk Space with Server 2012 Disk Cleanup Tool

As with other versions, Windows Server 2012 has a built-in Disk Cleanup utility. It can safely and quickly delete most common types of unnecessary and junk files. There is no need to run third-party software to help free up disk space in Windows Server 2012.

Disk Cleanup in Server 2012 (R2) is not activated by default; follow the steps to install or enable Disk Cleanup in Windows Server 2012.

Steps to free up disk space in Windows Server 2012 R2 with Disk Cleanup tool:

Step 1: Press Windows and R together on your keyboard, type cleanmgr and press "Enter".

Step 2: Select C: drive in the drop-down list and click OK.

Select C drive

Step 3: Check the boxes next to the files you want to remove in the next window. After clicking OK, Disk Cleanup will ask you to confirm.

Select files

Free Up Disk Space in Server 2012 R2 with Command

If you want to free up disk space in Windows Server 2012 R2 using the command prompt, you can follow these steps:

① Select all junk files automatically but require manual confirmation

  1. Press Windows and R together on the keyboard.
  2. Input cleanmgr /LOWDISK and press Enter.
  3. The Disk Cleanup dialog box will pop up with all types of files selected by default; you just need to click OK to confirm.

② Clean up all junk files automatically

  1. Press Windows and R together on the keyboard.
  2. Input cleanmgr /VERYLOWDISK and press Enter.

2. Additional Methods to Free Up Space in Windows Server 2012 R2:

① Uninstall Programs and Features

Press Windows and X on keyboard, select "Programs and Features", right click the item that you want to remove and click "Uninstall".

② Reset Recycle Bin

All files deleted by pressing DEL without the SHIFT key will go to the Recycle Bin, where you can manually revert them to their original location if they were deleted by mistake. When the system C drive is almost full, you should consider decreasing the disk space usage or changing the location of the Recycle Bin to another volume. Steps:

  1. Right-click the "Recycle Bin" on the Desktop and click "Properties".
  2. Select a drive for Recycle Bin.
  3. Select "Custom size" and enter an amount.

③ Reset Paging File

The paging file uses part of the disk space as virtual RAM and is located on the C drive by default. You can decrease it or change it to another partition using these steps:

  1. Press Windows and R on keyboard, type sysdm.cpl ,3 and press Enter.
  2. Click "Settings" under "Performance" in "Advanced" tab.
  3. Click "Change" under "Virtual Memory".
  4. Uncheck "Automatically manage paging file size for all drives" on the top.
  5. Select D: or another drive, enter the amount of "Initial size" and "Maximum size" in the "Custom size" box, and then click "Set".
  6. Select C: drive and select "No paging file" radio box, then click Set.
  7. Click OK.

Set Page File

④ Change Default Settings

If you installed programs or use some Windows services with their default settings, you should change the output path to other partitions. If there are already files present, move them to another partition.

If you search on Google, you'll find many solutions for freeing up disk space in Windows Server 2012 R2. Of course, you can try them all if you have the time. However, in most cases, the methods mentioned above are quick and efficient enough. If you still need more free space on the C drive, the best solution is to reallocate space from other partitions.

3. Add More Free Space to C: Drive

If your system C: drive is too small or you can't free up enough space after trying all the methods above, it's best to add more space to the C drive from other partitions. This involves shrinking another partition on the disk to release space, which can then be transferred to the C drive. This way, the operating system, programs, settings, and everything else will remain unchanged.

Download NIUBI Partition Editor and follow the steps in the video to add more space to C drive:

Video guide

If you use any types of hardware RAID arrays such as RAID 1/5/6/10, or run Server 2012 in VMware/Hyper-V, follow the same steps and there is no difference. Besides shrinking and extend partition, this software help you merge, convert, defrag, wipe partition, optimize file system, scan bad sectors and much more.

If there are no other data partitions or there is not enough available free space on the same disk, you can clone the disk to a larger one. During this process, you can expand the C: drive (and other partitions) using the additional disk space. Follow the steps in the video:

Video guide

Because new junk files are generated continuously, it is highly recommended to expand the C drive as large as possible and run the Server 2012 Disk Cleanup utility monthly to free up disk space.

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