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Doesn't delete index.dat files in Limited User accounts


mikemqa

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CCleaner does not delete the index.dat files in my Limited User accounts.

On my last scan, it failed to delete more than 2 MB of index.dat files in Cookies, History, and TIF.

Details:

 

I have WinXP/Home and downloaded CCleaner a week ago. On my XP system I have 4 accounts, two are Administrative, and two are Limited Users.

When I run CCleaner in a Limited User account, it finds everything, but fails to delete various index.dat files (although CCleaner does list them under Analyze as *Marked for Deletion.*).

For the record, I run CCleaner from each of the four accounts. None of the four ways of doing this is successful in deleting the index.dat files in my two Limited User accounts. I have tested this very carefully.

 

After running CCleaner, I close it, then Re-start my PC, then I log on as an Administrator (so that I have full access to files), I open Windows Explorer, Folder Options are selected to show ALL files (hidden and protected), and I check to see what CCleaner successfully found and deleted.

 

Further details: the index.dat files that are NOT successfully deleted (even though CCleaner finds them and lists them in Analyze, Marked for Deletion), are in the following folders (in Local disk--Docs and Settings--<my user name>):

--- the indx.dat in Cookies

--- the index.dat in History.IE5

--- the index.dat in TIF--Content.IE5

One more detail: CCleaner does, however, successfully delete the MSHist#### files and its index.dat.

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CCleaner does not delete the index.dat files in my Limited User accounts.

 

When I run CCleaner in a Limited User account, it finds everything, but fails to delete various index.dat files (although CCleaner does list them under Analyze as *Marked for Deletion.*).

 

 

I haven't actually tried CCleaner on a limited account, but it is my belief that you need admin rights to modify the registry (deleting the index files requires registry modification), so I would assume this may be the reason why your limited accounts fail to delete the index files.

 

Further details: the index.dat files that are NOT successfully deleted (even though CCleaner finds them and lists them in Analyze, Marked for Deletion), are in the following folders (in Local disk--Docs and Settings--<my user name>):

--- the indx.dat in Cookies

--- the index.dat in History.IE5

--- the index.dat in TIF--Content.IE5

 

 

You are aware that the index.dat files are ALL recreated at boot time even if they have been deleted previously ?

Check the contents of each index file (see if it has much content), and specifically check the creation date (should be around the time of boot).

 

If you are still unsure as to whether these files are being (going to be deleted), run CCleaner, and check the following registry entry (if you are unsure about checking the registry, just ask - someone should be able to help)

 

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\SessionManager, look for a key (on the right hand side) called PendingFileRenameOperations. Double click on it, and the value data should look something like ...

 

\??\C:\DOCUME~1\COMPAQ~1\LOCALS~1\TEMPOR~1\Content.IE5\index.dat

 

\??\C:\DOCUME~1\COMPAQ~1\Cookies\index.dat

 

\??\C:\DOCUME~1\COMPAQ~1\LOCALS~1\History\History.IE5\index.dat

 

these 3 entries WILL be deleted (and recreated) at reboot.

 

 

Hope this helps,

B.

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I do check the contents of each index.dat file before and after running CCleaner.

(Actually, I make a folder-tree diagram, like Windows Explorer left pane, and then track the contents (KB, MB) of every file, before and after.)

 

I suspect you are right about a Limited User not being able to modify the registry, and that's why CCleaner can't delete from such an account. That's probably what's going on here.

 

Odd that more people aren't noticing this? Maybe most people don't bother to check. As is good practice, I try not to use the Admin acct for the Internet, and mainly use a Limited acct for that. So it's really important that CCleaner be able to clean such Limited User accts, I would think.

 

I will play with the registry key and values you listed, to see if that yields some info.

 

Thanks very much for your detailed ideas here!

 

--Mike

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If you temporarily enable Admin rights on your Limited User account "that may allow the index.dat files to be deleted."

 

As already stated by burtman CCleaner adds an entry into the registry that I assume only an account with Admin rights will be able to do, it is what allows the index.dat files to be deleted upon rebooting.

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Yes, that must be what's going on (a Limited User can't cause the registry to be modified).

As is good practice (against malware vulnerability), I only use a Limited Account for everyday Internet surfing (like right now), not an Admin account.

Seems like this is a bug or limitation, that is, with CCleaner?

 

It would be nice to have more flexibility in specifying user status, or to let an Admin account tell CCleaner to clean user-specified Limited User accts.

 

I can use CCleaner to clean out everything else (History, logs, etc.), and the Admin acct used for important but limited downloads/updates. And I am happy to have CCleaner (esp for free).

 

As you suggest, I will experiment with ways to get better use from it.

 

As it is, I log in as an Admin acct, Search All Files/Folders for index.dat files (including Hidden), then selectively delete those in my Limited User accts, then empty the Recycle Bin. That works, but is quite tedius.

 

Thanks very much for your response.

 

--Mike

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The *Run As* option didn't do the trick either.

 

Details: As stated above, I can't get CCleaner to delete index.dat files in a Limited User acct in WinXP/Home. So I logged on as the Limited User, but this time I left-clicked once on the CCleaner icon (on the Desktop), right-clicked on Run As, The Following User:, then I entered the Administrator's name and PW.

Then I ran CCleaner (from the Desktop of the Limited User, and assuming the Limited User had Administrator priviledges).

But then CCleaner listed and deleted only files from the Admin Acct, just as if I had logged on as the Admin from the Admin account. (That is, none of the Limited User files were listed or deleted.)

 

CCleaner is a neat program and I really like it, but I'm trying to get it to clean out my Limited User accts.

fyi

--Mike

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As it is, I log in as an Admin acct, Search All Files/Folders for index.dat files (including Hidden), then selectively delete those in my Limited User accts, then empty the Recycle Bin. That works, but is quite tedius.

 

 

--Mike

 

In the above example, are you actually deleting the index.dat folders to the Recycle Bin? Or are you able to get to the contents somehow?

~~~~~~``

I haven't used CCleaner in our XP computer yet, but I've read that in order to clean the registry you have to change the limited account to an Admin. When you used "run as" it only cleaned the files of the admin account you used. I think this has more to do with how Windows works and a limited user not having the rights to remove those items.

 

Sincerely, Libra

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In the above example, are you actually deleting the index.dat folders to the Recycle Bin? Or are you able to get to the contents somehow?

 

The folders and their contents are sent to the Recycle Bin, then I empty the Recycle Bin.

I check the contents only by checking Properties and seeing the # of KB or MB and counting the files.

 

Then, of course, when you re-boot, Windows re-creates the new (empty) files again and starts new index.dat enties.

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