Deleting Some File History

spokey

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Anyone know if there is a way to get rid of some files in file history? I unzipped some files and before I got rid of them file history ran and saved them. They are big enough that I'd put some work in to getting rid of them but not so big that I want to turn off file history, blow away the current set, then re-enable it. When I've done something like that on win7 I could just blow away the most recent backup set and rerun backup, but I don't see anything like that here. Ideally though I'd like to just get rid of the dozen or so files in question.
 

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System One

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    win 8.1 Pro / 64
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could just blow away the most recent backup set and rerun backup, but I don't see anything like that here.
In action center you can turn it off, then delete the file in file explorer, then turn it back on(not so ideal option)
Or you just go to the drive where the File History folder is and open it and delete the older versions of files (when different versions are there they'll be marked so (1) (2)etc...)
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro in Hyper-V/Windows 10 Pro 64 bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Cliff's Black & Blue Wonder
    CPU
    Intel Core i9-9900K
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus X Hero
    Memory
    32 GB Quad Kit, G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series schwarz, DDR4-3866, 18-19-19-39-2T
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS GeForce RTX 3090 ROG Strix O24G, 24576 MB GDDR6X
    Sound Card
    (1) HD Webcam C270 (2) NVIDIA High Definition Audio (3) Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    BenQ BL2711U(4K) and a hp 27vx(1080p)
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 x 32 bits (4294967296 colors) @ 60 Hz
    Hard Drives
    C: Samsung 960 EVO NVMe M.2 SSD
    E: & O: Libraries & OneDrive-> Samsung 850 EVO 1TB
    D: Hyper-V VM's -> Samsung PM951 Client M.2 512Gb SSD
    G: System Images -> HDD Seagate Barracuda 2TB
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    Corsair HX1000i High Performance ATX Power Supply 80+ Platinum
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    hanteks Enthoo Pro TG
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    Thermaltake Floe Riing RGB TT Premium-Edition 360mm and 3 Corsair blue LED fans
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    Trust GTX THURA
    Mouse
    Trust GTX 148
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    25+/5+ (+usually faster)
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    Edge; Chrome; IE11
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    Windows Defender of course & Malwarebytes Anti-Exploit as a
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    Router: FRITZ!Box 7590 AX V2
    Sound system: SHARP HT-SBW460 Dolby Atmos Soundbar
    Webcam: Logitech BRIO ULTRA HD PRO WEBCAM 4K webcam with HDR
thx

In action center you can turn it off, then delete the file in file explorer, then turn it back on(not so ideal option)

That didn't seem to do anything. Perhaps I misunderstand. I turned off file history then went to the orginal file (not the saved file) and deleted it. Turned file history back on but they still showed in file history and i could restore them.

then I tried

File History folder is and open it and delete the older versions of files (when different versions are there they'll be marked so (1) (2)etc...)

While that did work, it wasn't clean. The files still show in file history when you enter Restore Personal Files. I'm' guessing that they are in a file called Catalog[n].edb. You can still try to restore them with a resulting system error.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    win 8.1 Pro / 64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy 15t-j100
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-4900MQ
    Motherboard
    HP
    Memory
    16G
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD Graphics 4600
    Sound Card
    IDT High Definition
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Internal / Asus Proart PA248Q
    Screen Resolution
    1900x1080 / 1900x1200
    Hard Drives
    Seagate ST1000LM014
    External 2T in Vantec enclosure
    Cooling
    lately, very much so
    Keyboard
    Rosewill
    Mouse
    Wheelmouse Optical USB
    Internet Speed
    94/12 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    AVG
I'm not so sure on this one but maybe it depends on how your system is set up. For example I have my system(c.: drive) on a SSD and F: backups & file history and D: Data an a 2TB HDD, so I have Library(System folders) and C:\Users\Clifford\*** links from my c drive pointing to F and D drives, that means in my case I have to find all links and as you saw it can get messy. The only info I could otherwise find was this tutorial from Brink on deleting older versions.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro in Hyper-V/Windows 10 Pro 64 bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Cliff's Black & Blue Wonder
    CPU
    Intel Core i9-9900K
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus X Hero
    Memory
    32 GB Quad Kit, G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series schwarz, DDR4-3866, 18-19-19-39-2T
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS GeForce RTX 3090 ROG Strix O24G, 24576 MB GDDR6X
    Sound Card
    (1) HD Webcam C270 (2) NVIDIA High Definition Audio (3) Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    BenQ BL2711U(4K) and a hp 27vx(1080p)
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 x 32 bits (4294967296 colors) @ 60 Hz
    Hard Drives
    C: Samsung 960 EVO NVMe M.2 SSD
    E: & O: Libraries & OneDrive-> Samsung 850 EVO 1TB
    D: Hyper-V VM's -> Samsung PM951 Client M.2 512Gb SSD
    G: System Images -> HDD Seagate Barracuda 2TB
    PSU
    Corsair HX1000i High Performance ATX Power Supply 80+ Platinum
    Case
    hanteks Enthoo Pro TG
    Cooling
    Thermaltake Floe Riing RGB TT Premium-Edition 360mm and 3 Corsair blue LED fans
    Keyboard
    Trust GTX THURA
    Mouse
    Trust GTX 148
    Internet Speed
    25+/5+ (+usually faster)
    Browser
    Edge; Chrome; IE11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender of course & Malwarebytes Anti-Exploit as a
    Other Info
    Router: FRITZ!Box 7590 AX V2
    Sound system: SHARP HT-SBW460 Dolby Atmos Soundbar
    Webcam: Logitech BRIO ULTRA HD PRO WEBCAM 4K webcam with HDR
Yes

I think I had seen Brink's article. But I think that just gets rid of older versions, not all versions.

I have a similar setup, but use a hybrid drive partitioned for C & I. I is where all my data is. Basically the same setup I've used for about 20 years now. I did create a library for the entire I drive as there is very little is nonsense on it and having the entire partition as a library saves me from creating new libraries everytime I create a new folder.

For backups I use an external 2T drive partitioned roughly into 1600 & 400 (drives s & t). T is where file history is. I use S for system image backups and a few other things i save manually. I create a system image before each monthly MS update named WindowsImageBackup - yyyy-mm-dd - hhmmss. Also create a file with the same name .txt and write any notes in to that. Like the oldest .txt notes that it is the vanilla install plus all hotfixes to date and a couple of my initial basic programs (min parition, text editor etc). I use separate partitions to keep file history size under control.

Anyway, it doesn't really look like I can accomplish what I want. I'll probably either leave the files there as they aren't that big, or wait until my next image backup and blow away all file history and restart it.

thanks for your assistance.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    win 8.1 Pro / 64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy 15t-j100
    CPU
    Intel Core i7-4900MQ
    Motherboard
    HP
    Memory
    16G
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD Graphics 4600
    Sound Card
    IDT High Definition
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Internal / Asus Proart PA248Q
    Screen Resolution
    1900x1080 / 1900x1200
    Hard Drives
    Seagate ST1000LM014
    External 2T in Vantec enclosure
    Cooling
    lately, very much so
    Keyboard
    Rosewill
    Mouse
    Wheelmouse Optical USB
    Internet Speed
    94/12 Mbps
    Browser
    Firefox
    Antivirus
    AVG
Your welcome. Windows has a lot of good tools but sometimes I think they've got that military mentality: " Good enough for Government work" and don't fine tune it enough or just plain leave it half finished as abandonware
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Update Pro in Hyper-V/Windows 10 Pro 64 bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Cliff's Black & Blue Wonder
    CPU
    Intel Core i9-9900K
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus X Hero
    Memory
    32 GB Quad Kit, G.Skill Trident Z RGB Series schwarz, DDR4-3866, 18-19-19-39-2T
    Graphics Card(s)
    ASUS GeForce RTX 3090 ROG Strix O24G, 24576 MB GDDR6X
    Sound Card
    (1) HD Webcam C270 (2) NVIDIA High Definition Audio (3) Realtek High Definition Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    BenQ BL2711U(4K) and a hp 27vx(1080p)
    Screen Resolution
    1920 x 1080 x 32 bits (4294967296 colors) @ 60 Hz
    Hard Drives
    C: Samsung 960 EVO NVMe M.2 SSD
    E: & O: Libraries & OneDrive-> Samsung 850 EVO 1TB
    D: Hyper-V VM's -> Samsung PM951 Client M.2 512Gb SSD
    G: System Images -> HDD Seagate Barracuda 2TB
    PSU
    Corsair HX1000i High Performance ATX Power Supply 80+ Platinum
    Case
    hanteks Enthoo Pro TG
    Cooling
    Thermaltake Floe Riing RGB TT Premium-Edition 360mm and 3 Corsair blue LED fans
    Keyboard
    Trust GTX THURA
    Mouse
    Trust GTX 148
    Internet Speed
    25+/5+ (+usually faster)
    Browser
    Edge; Chrome; IE11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender of course & Malwarebytes Anti-Exploit as a
    Other Info
    Router: FRITZ!Box 7590 AX V2
    Sound system: SHARP HT-SBW460 Dolby Atmos Soundbar
    Webcam: Logitech BRIO ULTRA HD PRO WEBCAM 4K webcam with HDR
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