Cache Cleaner

A modern Windows utility for scanning and safely removing temporary files and application caches.

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Preview

Main dashboard

More screenshots

Backup and recovery center

Cleanup result

Cleanup statistics

Features

• Scan selected locations before deleting anything
• Detect selected applications that are still running and offer to close them before cleanup
• Track cleaned space and deleted files locally, with a seven-day chart and top categories
• Show the current disk space occupied by compressed backups
• Check GitHub Releases and install verified EXE updates from inside the application
• Live donut chart with adaptive category capsules, refreshed after cleanup
• Clean Windows temporary files
• Clean Adobe, Discord, Telegram, Teams, Spotify, browser, and game-launcher caches
• Optional developer mode for pip, npm, pnpm, Yarn, Gradle, and NuGet caches
• Scan and empty the Windows Recycle Bin with a separate confirmation
• Support Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Brave, and Yandex Browser
• Official brand icons embedded into the application
• Create compressed ZIP backups and verify their integrity before cleanup
• Restore a backup or select and delete several old backups at once
• Optional automatic deletion of backups older than 7, 30, or 90 days
• Remind the user when old backups continue to occupy disk space
• Show the exact cleaned and remaining size
• Report files that Windows or running applications have locked
• Graphite liquid-glass interface with a warm yellow accent, sidebar navigation, and large application icons
• Quick cleanup presets for everyday, gaming, and developer scenarios
• Responsive layout with a compact sidebar and scrolling on smaller windows

Quick start

1. Download cache_clear.exe.
2. Run the downloaded file.
3. Accept the Windows administrator prompt.
4. Select the categories and click Scan or Start cleanup.

Python is not required for the ready-to-use EXE. Windows SmartScreen may display a warning because the executable is not code-signed.

Close browsers and selected applications before cleaning. Files currently used by Windows or another application are safely skipped.

What is cleaned

Category	Locations
Windows	User temporary files, Windows\Temp, Prefetch
Adobe	Media Cache, Media Cache Files, selected custom cache folder
Discord	Cache, Code Cache, GPUCache
Applications	Telegram media cache, Microsoft Teams cache, Spotify UI and media cache
Browsers	Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Brave, Yandex Browser caches
Game launchers	Steam web/UI cache, Epic Games Launcher web cache, Battle.net cache
Developer mode	pip, npm, pnpm, Yarn, Gradle, NuGet dependency caches
Recycle Bin	Contents of the Windows Recycle Bin; disabled by default and not included in backups

Game installations, source code, node_modules, virtual environments, and project build folders are not selected. Developer caches may need to be downloaded again on the next build.

The Recycle Bin and game-launcher cleanup options are disabled by default. Developer cache choices are inactive until Developer mode is enabled. Recycle Bin contents cannot be included in a ZIP backup and are removed only after a separate confirmation.

Backups and privacy

When backup protection is enabled, Cache Cleaner creates a compressed ZIP archive before deletion and verifies that its entries use ZIP compression. Backups are stored locally in:

%LOCALAPPDATA%\CacheCleaner\backups

Runtime logs and backup files are excluded from Git. They are not uploaded to this repository by normal commits.

The backup center displays the original and compressed sizes. It supports restoring one backup, selecting multiple backups for quick deletion, and automatically removing copies older than 7, 30, or 90 days. Automatic deletion is disabled by default. Cache Cleaner reminds you after cleanup when a newly created backup is still taking up disk space.

Cache Cleaner does not collect telemetry or upload scanned paths, logs, or backups. All scanning, cleanup, and recovery operations run locally.

Run from source

git clone https://github.com/sweetenerbae/cache-cleaner.git
cd cache-cleaner
py -m venv venv
venv\Scripts\activate
pip install -r requirements.txt
python main.py

Build the EXE

Run the safe build script:

build_exe.bat

It builds the application separately, waits if Cache Cleaner is still running, and then places the result in dist\cache_clear.exe.

Publish a release

Push a version tag to build and publish cache_clear.exe automatically with GitHub Actions:

git tag v1.1.0
git push origin v1.1.0

The tag version is embedded into the release build. Installed EXE versions can check the latest published release from the sidebar and update themselves after confirmation.

Project structure

main.py              Application entry point
gui_builder_v2.py    Sidebar interface, presets, and donut dashboard
gui_builder.py       Previous interface kept for reference
cleanup_logic.py     Scanning and cleanup logic
statistics_store.py  Local cleanup history and dashboard metrics
process_guard.py     Running-application detection and closing
update_manager.py    GitHub Releases checks and verified EXE updates
version.py           Current application version
backup_system.py     Backup creation and restoration
restore_window.py    Backup manager interface
utils.py             Windows paths and shared data models
assets/brand-icons   Embedded application and browser icons

Author

Created by sweetenerbae.

License

Distributed under the MIT License.

Third-party brand and interface icon notices are listed in THIRD_PARTY_NOTICES.md.