Managing \dllcache folder in XP

%WINDOWS%\system32\dllcache\ folder on my work machine gobbled up 500 Megs of my precious C drive and left me with a slow pathetic machine.

What on earth does it contain ? WinXP uses System File Checker to protect itself from system instability caused by 3rd party software overwriting important system files. By default, Windows File Protection is always enabled and allows Windows digitally signed files to replace existing files safely. To do that, the Windows File Protection service constantly monitors for any changes to the main system files. Well Windows XP keeps a cache (copy) of these essential files at the following location:

C:WINDOWS\System32\Dllcache (assuming C: is your system root which it probably is.)

Deleting this folder is easy, just say this at the command prompt:

sfc /purgecache

But this cache will be rebuild next time you restart the machine. But, its easy to redirect this cache to a larger partition. Just do the following :

[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion\Winlogon]
Modify or create a subkey as follows
SFCDllCacheDir=[Disk:\Folder]