Is there a known safe way to delete redundant entries in the C:\Windows\System32\DriverStore\FileRepository folder?

[PolarCorpuscle]

I recently ordered a custom built pc from https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/, and after a few days of solid usage, noticed that the Windows folder on the SSD that had the OS install on it was a whopping 45gb in size. 25.6 of which were being stored in the FileRepository folder in System32.

From what I've read online this is orders of magnitude larger than normal. So, I installed a program called DriverStore Explorer, but I have no clue which, if any, of these entries are safe to delete.

 

[qazzi]

read here on filerepository http://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_7-performance/what-is-file-repository-folder-and-can-we-delete/dd2c0000-54b7-4352-b0e2-34fb79783d88

 

[Avidon]

I had the same problem on my PCSpecialist laptop and was able to free up around 20GB of space by removing these duplicate entries using DriverStore Explorer. I created a retore point first though, just in case 😉

First, I sorted by driver version. Then I went to all the NVidia Display Adapter entries. Having updated my graphics drivers when I received my laptop, I saw there was one entry with the latest version and a whole load of entries with older versions. I ticked all the boxes for the older driver versions except the one with the highest filename number and the one with the lowest file name number (not sure which was best to keep, but I wanted one in case I needed it for rollback). Then I clicked delete and after a while I had 20GB more space on my drive

The NVidia graphics still seem to work fine, even after rebooting and everything.