You can delete old Windows crash dumps and error reports after you no longer need them to diagnose a problem. The deletion does not fix the crash, and it removes evidence that a technician or app developer may ask for. Start with Windows' cleanup tools, and keep a copy of any recent report tied to an unresolved failure.
First decide whether the crash is resolved
Think of a dump as a snapshot made when Windows or an application failed. It may show the stop code, the driver involved, or the state of the failing process. It is not a working copy of Windows that the computer needs for its next startup. Error reports serve a related purpose: they record details about failures and may include files useful for diagnosis.
If the machine recently showed a blue screen, restarts unexpectedly, or crashes again after the same action, keep the newest dump. If you have an open support case, ask which files the support team needs before cleaning. Copy those files to a private backup location that has enough space; dumps can contain information from memory, so do not post them publicly. If the issue has been fixed and nobody needs to inspect the files, cleanup is reasonable.
Record the free space first: open File Explorer > This PC and note the free space on the Windows drive, usually C:. You can then tell whether cleaning this category made a material difference. A named cleanup category does not guarantee that there is a large file behind it.
Use Windows cleanup tools before deleting files by hand
On Windows 11, open Start > Settings > System > Storage > Temporary files. On Windows 10, open Start > Settings > System > Storage > Temporary files. Let Windows finish calculating, then look for categories such as system error memory dump files, system error minidump files, and Windows error reporting files. Category names and availability vary with the files Windows finds. Select only the categories you mean to remove, review the other checked boxes, and choose Remove files.
The risk is that the selected reports will no longer be available for later analysis. Windows cleanup is not a filing system for preserving one specific crash. If the problem is still active, cancel, copy the relevant dump or report first, and return to the cleanup screen afterward. Do not select Downloads or Previous Windows installation(s) merely because they appear beside these categories; each has a separate consequence.
You can also use Disk Cleanup on Windows 10 or 11. Open Start, type Disk Cleanup, select the Windows drive, then choose Clean up system files and select the drive again. Review the list for system error memory dump files, system error minidump files, and Windows error reporting files. Select the entries you intend to clear, choose OK > Delete Files, and wait for completion. Microsoft's Windows drive-space instructions document both Storage settings and Disk Cleanup. An entry that is absent or reports little space does not call for deleting an entire system directory yourself.
Afterward, reopen File Explorer > This PC and compare free space. If the number barely changes, other files are occupying the drive. The Windows Temp guide explains a different class of temporary files; do not assume every item under a folder named Temp is a crash report.
Find the system crash dumps when you need to save one
The usual Windows system dump locations are C:\Windows\MEMORY.DMP and C:\Windows\Minidump. The first can hold a kernel, automatic, active, or complete dump, depending on the configured dump type. The second holds small dumps, often with dated names. These are defaults, not a promise that every PC has both. Windows can be configured to use another location, and no dump may have been written for a particular crash. Microsoft's stop error troubleshooting guide lists the dump types and their default paths.
To inspect the defaults, press Win + R, enter %SystemRoot%, and press Enter. File Explorer opens the Windows directory. Look for MEMORY.DMP and open Minidump if it exists. Use Details view to compare dates and sizes; do not delete a file just because its name ends in .dmp. A vendor's application may keep its own dumps elsewhere, and an ongoing support case may need them. If access is denied, use the Windows cleanup path above instead of changing permissions on C:\Windows.
If you are preserving a dump, copy it to a folder you control on a drive with adequate room and make sure the copy opens or at least has the expected size. Then remove the original through the Windows cleanup category if it is offered. Deleting the original is the risky step: it cannot be reconstructed from the crash after the fact. The backup is your way back to the same diagnostic evidence. Keep it private and remove it when the support case ends.
Treat Windows Error Reporting as a separate record
Windows Error Reporting, often shortened to WER, stores reports about application and system failures. A common machine-wide location is %ProgramData%\Microsoft\Windows\WER, which can contain ReportArchive and ReportQueue. The names signal different stages of reporting, but neither folder is a general-purpose trash folder. A queued report may still be waiting for Windows to process it, while an archived report may be the only local record of a failure you want to investigate.
To look without changing anything, press Win + R, enter %ProgramData%\Microsoft\Windows\WER, and press Enter. Check dates and folder names. If the folder is absent or access is restricted, do not create it or change permissions. For ordinary cleanup, return to Storage > Temporary files or Disk Cleanup and select the Windows error reporting category if Windows offers it. Avoid wiping the whole WER tree: doing that gives you less control over which incident records survive.
The risk is the same loss of evidence, with an extra caution for a report still queued for processing. If a recent application failure matters, keep its report and postpone cleanup. If you have already deleted an old report through Windows cleanup, you generally cannot recover that diagnostic record by rerunning the failing app unless the failure happens again. Check the application's own logs or ask its support team what evidence they need next.
If the files keep returning
A new dump or report means another failure was recorded; it does not show that cleanup failed. Compare the new file's date with the last crash. Repeated blue screens, app exits, or failed updates deserve troubleshooting before another deletion. Make a note of the visible error message and the time, then use the newest report for diagnosis. For Windows Update download files specifically, follow the Windows Update cache guide; those files serve a different job.
Do not disable crash reporting just to make the storage category disappear. That trades a small amount of disk use for less information about the next failure. Also distinguish a dump from pagefile.sys and hiberfil.sys: those files have active system roles and should not be removed as if they were old reports. If the Windows drive remains full after report cleanup, inspect the broader folder tree instead of repeatedly clearing the same category.
Reviewing crash reports with AiCleanDisk Pro
AiCleanDisk Pro includes crash dumps and Windows error reports among its cleanup items, with a risk level and a confirmation step before cleaning. Scanning and regular auto clean on the system drive are free; scanning other drives and AI analysis require a license. By default, cleaned files go to the Recycle Bin, while items cleaned through system commands can bypass it and the confirmation dialog states that. For an active crash, preserve the dump first, whichever cleanup tool you use. See the product overview if you want to review the drive's other large folders before deleting anything else.
Keep the diagnosis, then reclaim the space
The practical order is to identify the incident, save any report still needed, use Windows' own cleanup categories, and compare free space afterward. Old dumps are removable; recurring new ones are a symptom to investigate. That distinction keeps disk cleanup from erasing the one file that could explain why the PC or app failed.