Can you safely delete files in the%windir%Installer. 1 day later it is was broken and I can't install other things (Windows Installer service and.

1. Can I Delete C: Windows Installer

Along the same lines as removing items from the Windows component store to save space, we have recently seen a couple of questions come in about the WindowsInstaller directory. This is a hidden system directory; it is used by the Windows Installer service to cache installer data files for various applications. Over time, this directory will grow and can eventually take up an amount of space that might cause pressure on thinly provisioned storage, such as virtual hard disks.

So, the question usually asked is: Can I safely remove the files in this directory? The answer is flatly: No. So let's talk about why this is a bad idea.

First, it is not supported. If you remove files from this directory and have issues, you may need to reinstall the application to get back to a good state. Therefore, that would suck for both you and the engineer that needs to deliver that message.

Second is the overall idea that you really should not remove items in the Windows directory. We build and test our software based on the existence of specific files and directories. When those files and directories dont exist, bad things can and will happen. However, that is a generalization that usually upsets many people so let's be more specific. This particular directories job is to act as a cache location for Windows installer based applications. It holds stripped down versions of the Windows installer data files. During application install, update of the application or application removal, this directory is used by the application to confirm the existence of previously installed items to determine the next steps the installer needs to take. The files are different from machine to machine, so if you expect to delete the files in the directory and then copy them over from another machine, that would be incorrect. Removing items from here could cause you to have application crashes, or worse, require the reinstallation and patching of the application.

The proper way to alleviate space pressure in this directory is to uninstall any unneeded applications.

I hope that this makes sense and you can see why removing files from this directory can cause you unneeded pain. Overall, this is similar to the advice I have given in the past when it comes to removing items from the component store...just don't do it. Plan your future space requirements based on your operating system and application needs and you can alleviate many of these types of issues before they occur.

--Joseph

Hey DFB2,

We would need a little more information to give you an appropriate and accurate answer to your question.

1) What is the Operating System that you have?

2) If you are trying to upgrade the Operating System, what version of Windows Operating System are you upgrading from what version?

3) Are you trying to install any programs or updates when you get this error?

I researched based on the error code and I found that the error ‘2330. 1392’ is encountered when you try to uninstall a program. If you are having issues in uninstalling a program, you can try to use Windows clean-up utility to remove the programs. Here is an article that will give you information on ‘Windows Clean-up Utility’.

‘Description of the Windows Installer CleanUp Utility’

Can I Delete C: Windows Installer

If you are getting this error when trying to upgrade your Windows Operating System, you can set your computer to clean boot and go about doing the upgrade. Here are the steps to set your computer to clean boot:

Thanks,

Regards,

Irfan H, Microsoft Answers Support Engineer. Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.