Lost disk space

I recently had an issue with getting low disk space error messages. I cleaned out several GBs of disk space at least three times and each time the drive filled back up within minutes. I've done all scans and cleared system restore and the problem seems to be resolved. The problem now is that after running diskeeper lite and completely defraging the drive, according to the graphics there seems to be alot of red/fragmented files still on the drive. My question is: is there a program that I can use to locate those fragments and recover the disk space short of reformatting?? My estimate for lost space is between 10 and 12 GB.

Thnx in advance

 

Try analyzing the drive with windows' built in defrag utility.

 

Running Win XP Pro SP2 ver 2002.

As stated in the original post, all scans have been done for malware and cleaning and restore points have been purged. At this point win defrag utility seems to have been replaced by diskeeper. When I try to launch it, diskeeper starts instead. I even tried from the Windows system32 dir. any idea where it could be hiding?

Am unable to right click red areas for details in diskkeeper lite (not the full version).

Any ideas on what file extensions may have been used to write all the garbage to the drive. Also, which extensions are safe to remove manually? ie: tmp, temp, chk, etc.

 

Why not download ExplorerXp. http://www.explorerxp.com/ Its free and you can take a look at how big what folders are. May help you track down where all your space is. Major Geeks may have this utility as well. Sure helped me track down my disk usage.

 

Problem Resolved!!!

After some research online found out that powerDVD has a rogue log file at times. I deleted the file and recovered 18 GB hiding as a 25 MB log file. Go figure.

All is well now. Thnx for the help.