Using a free utility like Wise Disk Cleaner is a great way to clear out temporary files or just junk that has accumulated on your system. One of the most famous pieces of software in this category, CCleaner, fell out of favor after Avast bought its developer Piriform in 2017. That’s why I’m here today to talk about its best replacement.
Background Info on Wise Disk Cleaner
Wise disk cleaner utility is just one program among countless others offered by the company WiseCleaner, which was founded in 2005. They have various paid and free products. Fortunately, the disk cleaner is free and straightforward to use.
The disk cleaner main interface
After trying several different cleaning programs, I feel at ease with the main interface in Wise Disk Cleaner. There are four main tools at the top, with the Common Cleaner tab set to default. You can see the different categories that Wise will cover when scanning your computer.
After clicking the Scan button, you can click the arrow and expand each of the categories to see what the scanner picked up. I’m pleased with the row of options at the bottom. If you want to play things safe and don’t have time to go over everything, there is the Recommended option.
If you want to get specific and thoroughly go through all the items manually, you could either Select All or Select None.
Advanced Cleaner
If you know what you’re doing, you can click on over to the Advanced Cleaner tab. Here you can scan for certain types of temporary files and see their location on your machine. From here, it’s a simple matter of selecting and getting rid of them. I prefer using the common cleaner method, but for some out there, this might be preferable.
Slimming System
Maybe you have your Windows installation on a small solid state drive, or you’re running out of space for god knows what reason. Regardless, you want to make Windows take up slightly less space. The Slimming System tab will scan and show components of Windows that can safely be removed, such as older update files or even default wallpapers.
Disk Defrag
I suppose it makes sense to have this utility inside of a disk cleaner, but this would only benefit those using mechanical hard drives. For traditional drives, data can get scattered across the platter the more you read and write to it. Defragging takes this scattered data and tries to keep it all together, so the hard drive doesn’t have to work as hard reading and writing files.
If your computer only has solid state memory, then you can ignore this section entirely. Don’t try to defrag a solid state drive, it won’t make much of a difference, and you’ll only be decreasing the lifespan of it.
Secure Deletion
Wise Disk Cleaner has a few different options in its settings menu, but one that stands out the most to me is “secure deletion.” I talked a bit about this in my Securely File Shredder article. When you delete a file, it’s not gone until data is written over it. Using the secure deletion option in the disk cleaner will increase the chance that any data deleted is not recoverable.
Custom Themes
I like it when programs give the user a choice for themes and colors. By clicking the menu icon in the top right corner, you can change the skin color from default blue to some other presets or any color you like with the color picker. It’s not very useful, but the option to customize themes, no matter the program is appreciated.
Final Thoughts on Wise Disk Cleaner
It’s a shame that CCleaner is no longer a recommended utility due to its less than stellar owners, but that’s okay. Wise Disk Cleaner cleanly fits the bill and is great for getting rid of junk on your Windows machine. It’s got the right amount of settings to be friendly enough to newcomers, but also advanced enough to satisfy the tinkerers.
Link: Download it!