file-cleanup

Use dust with commands like dust -d 1 -z 100M -b -P -r -o gb $HOME to list directories over 100MB sorted by size. If dust is unavailable, fall back to PowerShell Get-ChildItem with Measure-Object to sum file sizes per directory.

Each tool has a built-in clean command: uv cache clean, npm cache clean --force, yarn cache clean, pnpm store prune, and nuget locals all -clear. These remove only rebuildable caches, so projects re-download dependencies on next use.

No, deleting the vhdx destroys the entire WSL distribution. Instead reclaim space with wsl --manage <Distro> --set-sparse true --allow-unsafe followed by wsl --shutdown, which lets sparse mode release physical space without admin rights.

dust reports the logical file size of sparse vhdx files, which overestimates actual disk usage. Check real physical allocation with fsutil file queryAllocRanges and confirm sparse status with fsutil sparse queryflag before attempting any compaction.

Only orphaned hex-suffixed .vmem files from clean shutdowns are safe to delete. Suspended-session memory must be discarded by powering on the VM in VMware, and snapshot files must be removed through VMware's snapshot deletion, never manually.

Never delete WSL virtual disks, chat history folders, browser profile data outside Cache directories, project source code, or credential files like .ssh and .git-credentials. These contain irreplaceable user data, unlike rebuildable caches.