Bill D -

The setting in IE to delete temps on exit apparently only works for the current session, and sometimes doesn't do too good a job. It helps, but even with this setting an occasional "cleanup" may be needed. Disk Cleanup also seems to miss lots of temps if they get left over from old sessions.

For WinXP, (with similar procedures under different names for other versions):

In Windows Explorer, go to C:\ (or the Root Folder of the drive where you're OS and Temps should be). Make sure the root folder is selected, then click the Search Button. Search for "All files and folders" for filenames including "*.tmp" (omit the quotes) and make sure that in Advanced Settings "Search Hidden and System Files" and "Search Subfolders" are selected.

You can select and delete any .tmp files found directly in the search results window, regardless of where they're found. You cannot delete any file that's open or in use, so select a few and hit delete, then move on to the next selection omitting selection of any that weren't removed. After a few deletions WinExplorer sometimes gets "confused" and gives an error message. Go to your trash bin and empty it so that a new search won't find the stuff you've already deleted, then just rerun the search (to regenerate the list) and continue deleting.

When all the .tmp files that aren't in use have been cleared, empty the trashcan and repeat using "filenames containing ~*.* and you may pick up a few more.

If there were a lot of temps accumulated, a reboot after deleting them would probably be a good idea.

I recently got an error message claiming "insufficient memory" that I found was due to the accumulation of some 700+ temp files, even with frequent use of "normal" disk cleanup and settings to clear temps on close.

John