How to Delete Temporary CAB Files with Easy Steps

There are many temporary files generated during the computer use process. Temporary cab files are such ones. You might find these files occupy a large storage room and wonder how to delete temporary cab files. Read this post on MiniTool to learn several methods for deleting them.

About Cab File

Before you start to delete temporary cab files, you also need to know the exact information about CAB files. This section will provide you with the basic information.

What Is a CAB File

A cab file is used to store compressed files, especially Windows installation packages. The cabinet format supports lossless data compression and embedded digital certificates used for maintaining archive integrity.

It is widely used by Windows Installer, Device Installer, Theme Pack, Setup API, and other Windows installation technologies to save files. You can acquire detailed information about how to open, install, extract, and convert cab files from this post.

Is It Safe to Delete CAB Files

If you find the cab files took up a lot of storage space, you can safely delete them from the Windows temporary files. But you should make sure that there is no active installation going on. Otherwise, the running process will be interrupted, and occur error.

Warning:

Do not remove any cab files that are not stored in the Temporary folder because they are important for the software.

How to Delete Temporary CAB Files

Way 1: Delete CAB Files Manually

Step 1: Press Win + E to open File Explorer.

Step 2: Locate the Temp folder at C:\Windows\Temp. You can copy and paste this path to the address bar and hit Enter to locate the folder quickly.

Tips:

The location of temp folders might be different from the Windows systems. You can find temp folders from:
C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Temp
C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows\Temporary Internet Files
C:\Windows\Temp
C:\Temp

Step 3: Right-click on the cab file you want to remove and choose Delete from the context menu.

If you want to delete all the temporary cab files, you can press Ctrl + A to select them all and right-click on them to delete.

Way 2: Delete CAB Files Using Batch File

Step 1: Press Win + S and type Notepad into the search box.

Step 2: Hit Enter to open the Notepad.

Step 3: Copy and paste the following content to the Notepad.

@echo off

runas>nul

echo Removing archives Temp…

del /f C:WindowsTemp*.*

echo Fixing Windows!!!

del /f C:WindowsLogsCBS*.log

echo Done!

pause

Step 4: Click on File and choose the Save choice.

Step 5: Rename it as Delete CAB Files.bat, then select All files from the Save as type menu.

Step 6: Click on the Save button.

Step 7: Navigate to the saved location and right-click on it to choose Run as administrator.

Step 8: A Command Prompt window will be prompt. You can follow the on-screen instruction to delete the temporary files.

Way 3: Delete CAB Files with Storage Sense

Storage Sense is a Windows built-in tool to clear unnecessary files including temporary cab files.

Step 1: Press Win + I to open Windows Settings.

Step 2: Shift to System > Storage.

Step 3: Toggle the switch under Storage to On and click on the Configure Storage Sense or run it now option.

Step 4: Add a checkmark in front of Delete temporary files that my apps aren’t using. You can also set the deletion period to clear your Recycle Bin.

Bonus Tip

Deleting files can free up the storage space on your device. But if you have deleted useful files by mistake, you need to restore them safely. I recommend the professional data recovery tool, MiniTool Power Data Recovery.

MiniTool Power Data Recovery is the best free data recovery software for Windows users. You can run this software to recover deleted files, missing photos, lost videos, and other types of files. Besides, it contains functional features like Filter, Type, and Search to help you locate wanted files quickly and accurately.

You can experience more powerful functions by downloading the free edition.

MiniTool Power Data Recovery FreeClick to Download100%Clean & Safe

Bottom Line

You can delete cab files in the Windows Temp folder when you find cab files taking up a lot of hard drive space. Hope you can delete temporary cab files successfully with the guidance above. If you delete personal files accidentally, try MiniTool Power Data Recovery to retrieve them.

About The Author

Andrea Follow Us

Position: Columnist

Andrea graduated in English and has a keen interest in the IT industry and questions that arise when computers are used. She is passionate about new things and challenging things and has a wide range of interests like playing guitar, gaming, and crafting.