From a6b3a966857384e1cd1285fb88dee3ba6c9d5839 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: Nicole Rappe Date: Sun, 6 Jul 2025 18:58:11 -0600 Subject: [PATCH] Add Workflows/Windows/VSS/Delete Shadow Copies.md --- Workflows/Windows/VSS/Delete Shadow Copies.md | 20 +++++++++++++++++++ 1 file changed, 20 insertions(+) create mode 100644 Workflows/Windows/VSS/Delete Shadow Copies.md diff --git a/Workflows/Windows/VSS/Delete Shadow Copies.md b/Workflows/Windows/VSS/Delete Shadow Copies.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..3bd73ec --- /dev/null +++ b/Workflows/Windows/VSS/Delete Shadow Copies.md @@ -0,0 +1,20 @@ +## Purpose +You may find that you need to delete shadow copies on a disk for any number of reasons such as freeing up space. Sometimes the shadow copies simply don't want to be deleted gracefully. In those circumstances, you can use the two methods seen below to delete the shadows. + +!!! warning + These commands will delete **all** shadow copies for the associated drive letter. In these examples, the drive letter will be `D:\`. + +### Delete Shadows Via `vssadmin` +Vssadmin is generally the de-facto method of deleting shadows, as it is pretty graceful with the process, but sometimes antivirus might not let you run it thinking you are doing something ransomware-ish. If that happens, defer to the `diskshadow` method seen further below. +```batch +vssadmin delete shadows /for=D: /all /quiet +``` + +### Delete Shadows via `diskshadow` +This method is a little more aggressive than `vssadmin` and should be only used as a *Plan B* if `vssadmin` doesn't work. +```batch +diskshadow +set context persistent nowriters +delete shadows volume D: +exit +``` \ No newline at end of file