Windows XP Low Disk Space

If you see the XP low disk space warning, do not fret. Simply clear your hard drive of unnecessary files.

As far as I know, this pesky warning only shows up in Windows XP.

If you see this in your notification area:

Click it and you will see this warning:

Do not fret, simply delete unnecessary files or programs. Don’t hesitate to use something like TreeSize if you need help on what to delete. I love the visualization in this app. Alternatively, you can use WinDirStat, which is very popular among helpdesk folks.

Alternatively you could disable this warning by modifying the registry. This isn’t a permanent fix. Please get to a point where you can clear some space. Without further ado, here’s how to modify your registry to disable this message:

1. In Registry Editor, locate and then click the following registry subkey: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer
2. On the Edit menu, point to New, and then click DWORD value.
3. Type NoLowDiskSpaceChecks, and then press Enter.
4. On the Edit menu, click Modify.
5. Type 1, and then click OK.
6. Exit Registry Editor.
7. Log off the computer, and then log on again.

Source: Microsoft’s page on the description of low disk space warnings in Windows XP (Update: this page has been removed from Microsoft’s site – https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/3064067/description-of-low-disk-space-warnings-in-windows-xp, check out Tech Republic’s writeup instead). This page also shows conditions on what triggers the low space alerts to begin with.