Clean up after a huge accidental backup
Something big got into your backups by mistake: a folder of virtual machines, a game library, a downloads folder. This guide stops it coming back and removes it from every snapshot that holds it. The removal is a Pro action. Every figure along the way is free.
1. Find it
- Open Search and sort by Physical (all), or open the Tree with Show set to All snapshots.
- Right-click the folder and select Details.
- In the folder panel, check Reclaimable and Backed up by.
2. Choose how to remove it
| If | Use |
|---|---|
| The folder should never be backed up | Exclude & delete…: a rule for future snapshots, then removed from the old ones (guide) |
| The folder should stay backed up, but its old versions should go | Prune snapshots…: keep the newest and remove it from the rest (Prune versions) |
| The folder is gone from disk and already excluded | Delete folder…: remove it from the snapshots (Delete from backups) |
| It's a source of its own that you don't need at all | Delete this source… on the Dashboard (Deleting snapshots and sources) |
3. Big folders: delete the biggest files first
A folder with millions of files can take a long time to plan and remove. Most of the space usually sits in a few hundred big files.
- In the folder plan, set Delete to Largest and pick a number, for example 500.
- Check What gets removed and the reclaimable figure.
- Run the dry run, then the delete.
- Repeat with the rest if you need to.
A plan holds at most 200000 files by default (Settings → Advanced → Most files in one delete plan). A bigger match is planned for its biggest files first.
4. Watch for copies
The same data can sit in more than one place:
- Nested sources: two sources that both cover the folder. The folder panel says so. Include both in the delete.
- Identical copies at other paths: the same files copied elsewhere. Match by Exact content to remove them too, or leave them, knowing they keep the data stored.
5. Get the space back
When the delete finishes, select Run maintenance… in the job panel and run a Full maintenance (Maintenance). A full run after a large delete can take hours. Kopia needs a few runs to return all the space.