If you’re running low on storage space on your computer, you may have come across a file called hiberfil.sys. This file is part of the hibernation feature in Windows, which saves the current state of your computer to your hard drive so you can quickly resume working where you left off. While hibernation can be a convenient feature, it can also take up a lot of valuable storage space. In this article, we’ll show you how to delete hiberfil.sys for good.

Step 1: Disable hibernation

Before you can delete hiberfil.sys, you’ll need to disable hibernation on your computer. Here’s how to do it:

1. Open Command Prompt as an administrator. To do this, right-click the Start menu and select “Command Prompt (Admin)”.

2. Type “powercfg.exe /hibernate off” (without quotes) and press Enter.

3. Close Command Prompt.
This will turn off the hibernation feature and delete the current hiberfil.sys file.

Step 2: Delete hiberfil.sys

Now that hibernation is disabled, you can safely delete the hiberfil.sys file. Here’s how:

1. Open File Explorer and navigate to the root of your system drive (usually C:\).

2. Click the “View” tab in the ribbon.

3. Check the “Hidden items” box to show hidden files and folders.

4. Search for “hiberfil.sys” in the search bar.

5. Right-click hiberfil.sys and select “Delete”.

6. If prompted, click “Continue” to confirm the deletion.
This will permanently delete the hiberfil.sys file from your computer.

Step 3: Clear system files

Even after deleting hiberfil.sys, you may still see the “System and reserved” category taking up a lot of space in your storage settings. This is because Windows still considers the hibernation feature to be enabled, even though the hiberfil.sys file is no longer present. To fix this, you’ll need to clear your system files:

1. Open Settings and click “System”.

2. Click “Storage” in the left pane.

3. Click “Configure Storage Sense or run it now” under the “Storage sense” section.

4. Click the “Clean now” button under “Free up space now”.

5. Check the “Previous Windows installation(s)” and “Windows Update Cleanup” boxes.

6. Click “Clean up system files”.

7. Check the same boxes again and click “OK”.
This will remove any leftover system files from hibernation and other features, freeing up even more space on your computer.

In conclusion, disabling hibernation and deleting hiberfil.sys can be an effective way to free up storage space on your computer. It’s important to note that hibernation can be a useful feature, so you may want to re-enable it in the future if you have enough storage space. However, if you’re struggling with limited storage, these steps can help you reclaim some space and keep your computer running smoothly.