Amidst vicious malware, out-of-the-blue system crashes, blue screen of death (BSOD), and other grave problems, you might be wondering why bother deleting duplicate files? Because they can be messy in many ways. And, in this post, we are not just going to show how duplicates can ruin your day-to-day productivity but also a quick way you can get rid of duplicate files just like that.
Why Is There A Need To Delete Duplicate Files From Your Computer?
1. Duplicate Files Feed On Your Storage
Let’s consider a scenario where almost every file on your computer has a duplicate. This would mean that half the storage on your computer is filled with useless duplicates, isn’t it? While that’s an unrealistic scenario, we do tend to pile up useless duplicates of files on our computer knowingly or unknowingly especially when we are burdened with an end number of tasks day in and day out. And, that takes a toll on our computer’s storage.
2. Focusing On The Right File Is Next to Impossible
With several versions of the same file, you would probably have to click open every other file, something that would eat up your precious time and something you would definitely not want when you are in a soup or say, when your boss has asked you to deliver something quickly. Time to delete those duplicate files which are unwanted and organize the various files and folders on your computer.
3. Duplicate Files Take A Toll On Your Computer’s Speed
Remember the time, when you got your PC or laptop right out of the box, fresh? All processes skyrocketed and everything was smooth, with no boulders or even small stones along the way. Then files and folders started piling up and your computer became slow. Cut short, cut the duplicates, lighten the burden on your hard drive or even your SSD, and enjoy the speed and smoothness that your computer previously had.
4. Duplicate Files Can Make Your Backups A Mess
Creating regular backups of your personal and professional data can save your life in emergencies emergency situations such as malware attacks, computer crashes, accidentally deleting data, hardware issues, and many other such situations. Here, while it is important to back up data, it is even more important to back up the right data. For one, when your backup is duplicate free, the backups happen quickly and your backups are positively more organized because there are no duplicates.
5. Your Cloud Storage Gets Clouded With Unnecessary Duplicates
Cloud storage mediums are advantageous, for one good reason they are great to upload files and take some weight off your computer. That being said, nothing’s cheap these days and neither are the various cloud storage mediums. And, if you are someone who loves the free version of the popular cloud storage mediums, steering clear of duplicate files is a wise move because duplicate files can soon exhaust your free limit. However, we do have some tips and tricks
Why Duplicate Files Exist?
Duplicate files are a common occurrence in our digital lives, and there are several reasons why they come into existence. Understanding these causes is crucial to addressing the issue effectively.
1. Accidental Duplications:
Accidental duplications happen when we unintentionally save multiple copies of the same file in different locations on our computer. This can occur when we forget where we previously saved a file or when we create a new version without deleting the old one.
2. File Transfer and Sharing:
Transferring files from one device to another or sharing them with others can also lead to the creation of duplicates. For example, if you send a file via email and then save it to your computer, you end up with two identical copies.
3. Backup and Restore Processes:
Backup and restore processes, whether manual or automated, can contribute to the proliferation of duplicate files. When making backups, it’s common to save the entire file or folder, resulting in multiple copies of the same data.
4. File Synchronization:
File synchronization services, such as cloud storage providers, ensure that your files are up to date across multiple devices. However, if not managed properly, these services can create duplicate files when changes are made on different devices.
5. Software and System Issues:
In some cases, software glitches or system errors can lead to the creation of duplicate files. For instance, a malfunctioning application might save duplicate versions of files without your knowledge.
By knowing why duplicate files happen, we can stop them before they happen again. This helps us see how duplicate files can mess up our computer and how to handle them better.
How Do I Get Rid of Duplicates?
Of course, one way of getting rid of duplicates is to set aside a day and manually remove duplicate copies. But if even that’s not possible and you are low on patience, time, and storage, you can always count on a third-party duplicate removal tool. One such tool is Duplicate Files Fixer.
What is Duplicate Files Fixer? And, Why Rely On It?
Duplicate Files Fixer is the quickest and easiest way to track and remove duplicate files. It helps you scan both external and internal storage mediums for duplicate photos, documents, video, audio files, and everything duplicate.
You can put your trust in Duplicate Files Fixer for various reasons, some of which are mentioned below-
- Preview scan results before taking any action.
- A fast algorithm that identifies duplicates fast.
- Needn’t waste hours searching for duplicates manually, click Auto-Mark, and the job of finding duplicates is nearly done.
- Have identical files? No problem at all – Advanced filters let you search for duplicate files with the similar or same name, created or modified date, you name it.
- Exclude files and folders that you don’t want to scan and expedite the process of crushing duplicates – the scanning, finding, and deleting.
- Delete empty folders that can add tons of confusion to an already hard duplicate file removal process.
- Get rid of duplicate files from Dropbox and Google Drive.
- See exactly how much space you are going to recover after deleting the files.
How To Delete Duplicate Files Using Duplicate Files Fixer?
Here is a small demonstration of how Duplicate Files fixer works –
1. Download, run, install and launch Duplicate Files Fixer.
2. Click on the +Add Folder and add the folder that is bombarded with duplicates.
3. Click on the blue-colored Scan for duplicates from the bottom of the interface. Let the process of finding duplicates begin.
4. From the top, click on Automark.
5. Click on the blue-colored Delete Marked button from the bottom of the interface.
6. Click on Yes, when the prompt appears.
7. Gone! The duplicate files are out of your sight and your storage is breathing a sigh of relief (you can check the folder that earlier had oodles of duplicates for proof)
Wrapping Up
Now that you know that duplicate files are as vicious as any other issue on your computer, might as well get rid of them fast. And, like we said, instead of manually locking horns with duplicate files and getting frustrated, how about passing the task on to a specialist tool like Duplicate Files Fixer? If you liked what you read and feel that this post can help a friend in need, then you are truly a friend indeed. For more such content, keep reading WeTheGeek.