Windows file on second hard drive

[powerup]

I have 2 hard drives. There is a Windows file taking up 3.2 gb of space on my F drive. It appears to be exactly the same as the one on my C drive. Since it is on my F drive can I delete it? Im not sure how it got there or if it important. If I create a system restore point will it be there when I go back to the old restore point? Thanks

 

[corkyg]

What is the file name? It may well be the System Restore file dedicated to the F drive. Check that in the System Restore controls and settings.

 

[powerup]

The name of the file is Windows. It has all the same files within it that the
C drive has.

 

[Lord Evermore]

Unplug the second hard drive and see if your system works without it. If so, then the other folder is safe to remove. You could also just rename the folder first, use the system for a few days, that way you can recover if it's a problem.

Also, use the Registry Editor (regedit.exe) and do a search for F:\Windows, that way you'll know if any programs are referring to that folder. You can also do a full text search of your drive for references in any files.

By the way, these are "folders" or "directories", the Windows and System Volume Information (used for System Restore), not files. Although I think in NTFS they might technically be just files but they're referred to as folders or directories in all operating systems to distinguish them from data files.

How it got there is anybody's guess. Maybe you or another user of your computer just accidentally copied and pasted it.