Microsoft Windows operating system has evolved a lot in the past few years however there is a lot of scope for improvement. There is no inbuilt utility or tool that can find and remove duplicates on Windows. But you can always find duplicate videos, or remove duplicate audio files to make room for upcoming files.
A lot of backups and transfers create duplicate files on Windows computers and other devices. Cloud sync is also one big reason for creating duplicate files and folders on our devices. The lure of a perfect selfie picture with burst shots creates a lot of duplicate photos in our smartphones. When it runs out of storage, we transfer all those duplicates to our computer and accumulate a lot of space due to this clutter. This article will help you explore how to delete duplicate videos, remove duplicate audio files or make our Windows free from duplicates.
Delete Duplicate Files the Manual Way!
The manual method is tiring and tedious yet can’t assure 100% removal of duplicate files and folders. If you think, you don’t have much data on your computer, you can try to explore this method.
Explore in Windows Explorer
Windows Explorer is one of the best utilities to explore your files as this is the default file viewer and explorer on your computer.
Step 1. Press (Win + E) to open Windows Explorer.
Step 2. Click on the Documents folder in the left-hand side panel.
Step 3. Click on the View menu and select Details under the Layout section.
Step 4. You will see all the files in the Documents folder will be listed with their Name, Date Modified, Type, Size, and other details. Click on the Name column to sort all of the files with their Names.
Step 5. Look for the names if there is (Copy) written in front of any name, it will be a duplicate file. Similarly, you can sort files by Date Modified and Size to sort files and check for duplicates. If found, always keep the most recent one as it will be the updated file.
“You can perform the same activity on the Videos and Music folders to delete duplicate videos or remove duplicate audio files from your computer. If duplicates on Windows are in separate folders, follow the next steps!”
Side By Side Comparison
If the same file is stored in a different folder, you will need to perform side by side comparison.
Step 1. Open another instance of Windows Explorer and go to the folder that you believe has most of the files.
Step 2. Scroll through both the folders and look for similar file names, or search for a common file name that you think may have a duplicate file.
Thumbnail View Comparison
If you are searching for duplicate photos, the thumbnail view will make it easy for you to scan a folder with your naked eyes. Just follow these steps and preview every stored photo right in the explorer window.
Step 1. Open Windows Explorer by pressing the (Win + E) key combination. Open the Pictures folder in the left-hand side panel.
Step 2. Click on the View menu and select Large Icons under the Layout section. This will show a thumbnail of all the photos in the album or selected folder.
Step 3. Scroll through all the images and select the duplicate photos that you wish to remove. Once selected, press (Shift + Delete) to permanently delete duplicate photos from Windows PC.
Delete Duplicate Files, Audio & Video Automatically on Windows
To automate the process, we can make use of one of the best duplicate file finders and removers for Windows. We have tested, compared, and reviewed the best duplicate files fixers and came up with the number one software to remove duplicates on Windows.
Duplicate Files Fixer Pro
| Price: | USD $39.95 |
| Compatibility: | Windows 10 and earlier, Mac 10.8+, Android4.0+ |
| Supported File Types: | Photos, Videos, Docs, Music Files, Archives & More |
| Cloud Support: | Google Drive, Dropbox |
| Windows Download Link: | Get it Here |
| Mac Download Link: | Get it Here |
| Android Download Link: | Get it Here |
| Hardware Compatibility: | OS: XP / Vista / 7 / 8 / 10 32-bit or 64-bit CPU: 450 MHz or higher RAM: 1 GB or more Hard Drive: 100 MB of free space |
| Languages Available: | Supports over 15 languages: English, French, German, Arabic, Japanese, and more |
Duplicate Files Fixer made it easy to find and remove duplicate files, documents, photos, music, movies, and more in different file formats. You can scan internal/external HDD, SSD, SD Card, USB Stick, Google Drive, Dropbox, and all other storage devices that connect to your computer. It has scored 100% in all the scan tests to find the exact or similar content even in music and videos.
Duplicate Files Fixer is available in over 15 plus languages and can automatically mark all the found duplicates. You can also sort files by size, or name and get the results in different groups. It also displays a graphical bifurcation of found duplicate photos, documents, videos and music. Have a clear look at how many files are scanned, duplicates are found and space that can be recovered.
How Duplicate Files Fixer Works?
Step 1. You simply need to download and install Duplicate Files Fixer from the official website.
Step 2. Add or drag the files and folders that need to be scanned and click on the Scan button.
Step 3. Preview the list of found duplicates and auto-mark or manually select duplicate files.
Step 4. Click on the Delete Marked button and confirm the selection. It will take a backup of selected files and will delete duplicate videos, documents, or remove duplicate audio files.
Summary
It is not easy to find duplicate videos or remove duplicate audio files from your PC manually. But you can always make use of the best duplicate file finder and remover to remove duplicates on Windows and clutter-free your system. The manual method may not assure you 100% removal of duplicate files however the automated process can clean all the duplicates from your Windows PC.