I want to delete a folder that contains thousands of files and folders. If I use Windows Explorer to delete the folder it can take 10-15 minutes (not always, but often). Is there a faster way in Windows to delete folders?
Other details:
I don't have anything large enough to test but usually this is faster: Select the folder and then hold down the Shift key and then Delete. You'll be prompted about permanently deleting the files. No recycle bin should speed this up.
use the command prompt, as suggested. I figured out why explorer is so slow a while ago, it gives you an estimate of how long it will take to delete the files/folders. To do this, it has to scan the number of items and the size. This takes ages, hence the ridiculous wait with large folders.
Also, explorer will stop if there is a particular problem with a file,
and to delete a lot of folders, you could also create a batch file with the command spdenne posted.
1) make a text file that has the following contents replacing the folder names in quotes with your folder names:
rmdir /s /q "My Apps"
rmdir /s /q "My Documents"
rmdir /s /q "My Pictures"
rmdir /s /q "My Work Files"
2) save the batch file with a .bat extension (for example deletefiles.bat)
3) open a command prompt (Start > Run > Cmd) and execute the batch file. you can do this like so from the command prompt (substituting X for your drive letter):
X:
deletefiles.bat
use fastcopy, a free tool. it has a delete option that is a lot faster then the way windows deletes files.