Here is what I get after running CCleaner.

Details of files deleted
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
IE Temporary Internet Files (6 files) 402 bytes
Marked for deletion: C:\WINDOWS\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\index.dat
Marked for deletion: C:\WINDOWS\Cookies\index.dat


What does it mean by "Marked for Deletion"? Do I have to restart or not?

I use to just right click the Content IE.5 folder and delete it but decided to try CCleaner. At first it seemed to be deleting IE,5 but I just checked and there were the typical sub folders there.

Thanks in advance.

Hello Deke,
These files will be deleted when you restart your computer and new (empty ones ) created. Windows will always recreate new ones.

Let me be sure I have this right. By that saying "Maked for Deletion" I have to restart my pc for them to be deleted?

BINGO!
its most likely because the files are being used or accessed at the moment of cleaning with Ccleaner.

Thanks to both of you.

You are more than welcome, we hope to see you around the forum on a regular basis.

hazelnut wrote:


[...] we actually had this issue before...

the Index.dat files are indeed marked to be deleted by CCleaner - but their content will still remain after Reboot, as far as I can see that from here...

to really replace the Index.dat files under Windows XP, a temporary deletion-entry is needed within the Autostart-Folders before System-Boot-Handlers are loaded - or, on the other hand, a manual deletion of the Index.dat files after "Safe-Boot" (F5) could do the trick...

There is actually only a small selection of programs around, that are capable of really wiping out the Index.dat-files...


Oliver

can you clarify what you mean by:

the Index.dat files are indeed marked to be deleted by CCleaner - but their content will still remain after Reboot, as far as I can see that from here...

as far as I am aware, the index.dat files are wiped at computer restart and a replacement index.dat file is then created by Windows. I don't quite undertand what you mean by "their content will still remain after reboot". Are you saying cclaener does NOT clean out the index.dat files? In other words the index.dat files will continue to store old data? As far as I can see, the index.dat file IS wiped and recreated at startup.

I think it may only be deleted though, and not securely wiped by ccleaner as other files can be. I'm not sure about that bit.

First off let me say I am on W98SE.

I created and image of the Content.IE5 folder Properties and as you will see in the images below it contained 202KB-61 Files and 4 Folders. Also you will see and image(poor quality) of Winspy showing the index.dat files on my PC.

I then ran CCleaner and rebooted and retook the same images and you will notice the difference. The 32.3KB-6 Files and 4 Folders is the default after a deletion, whether I use CCleaner or delete the Content.IE5 folder in DOS. You will notice a couple of index.dat files left in the Winspy but these are just harmless MS ones.

I also used the following in DOS to be sure the Index.dat files were empty with no residual junk left over:


CD\WINDOWS\TEMPOR~1\CONTENT.IE5
EDIT / INDEX.DAT

There were none present but the two mentioned above.

From all of this it seems that CCleaner is for sure removing the contents of the Content.IE5 folder.

Robbie mentioned:


Hello Robbie,

we actually double-checked CCleaner on three different systems here (Win 98-XP) - all we can say up to now is, that the content of the Index.dat-Files still remains after rebooting...

a clean and sober Index.dat-File should be around 16-32 KB - and that was definately not the case here so far....

this is not to denunciate CCleaner - maybe we are doing something wrong here...


Oliver

Oliver-Good morning from Texas.

I am curious about one thing. Are you using the "Secure Deletion" under options- settings are just the "Normal Deletion"? Not sure if this makes any difference but just wondering since my index.dat comes up clean(or at least the 32K) after running CCleaner.

I did some more checking. I changed the deletion method to "Normal Deletion" re-ran CC and checked Winspy and had over 40 urls left under index.dat then re-ran CCleaner with the "Secure Deletion" ticked and then re-checked with Winspy and had just the two from MS that never go away. I know this is not an indepth test but it looks like there is a difference with the two forms of deletion used.

Deke40 illustrated:


Good Morning from the cold "Old-Word", Deke40,

"Secure-Deletion (Wiping)" as you probably meant it above is something else - making it somehow impossible for some third person party to restore your once deleted files from the data carrier - so you are actually already a step further here, as we are just talking about deletion of the Index.dat´s - not wiping

you can look into the Index.dat Files with almost any word-processing tool.

concerning the issue, we came to the conclusion here, that it has got something to do with the Admin-Accounts under XP...

either you do a "Safe-Boot" (F5) - or you´ll give yourself a temporary Admin-Account with full access-rights - CCleaner will then do its job...

further informations as follows:

http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/delcache.htm

P:S. there is furthermore still an adaptable Linux-Script (a Knoppicillin-derivate) available, that hooks into the Win-Preloader before any System-Handlers are initiated - but that is another story...


Oliver

I don't know if this will help or not, but I took some screenshots after doing my regular "cleaning" stuff.

The timeline was like this:

Did all my cleaning programs (CCleaner, CleanCache & Index.dat Suite).

Took a screenshot of the results in IdS after the re-start.

Re-started the computer in "Safe" mode and ran IdS again, screenshotted the results right then. (Didn't work in "Safe" mode, my screen capture program, that is).

Re-started the computer again back into Normal Windows, ran Ids again and screenshotted those results.

I'm not seeing any difference in the size of the index.dat's from one stage to the other, regardless of whether I was in "normal" Windows or "Safe" mode.

What I did see (but which I can't show you because of the failure of my screenshot program in "Safe" mode) is that IdS found 11 not 9 index.dat's while in "Safe" mode.

I'll try to go back into "Safe" mode and see what the other two were, perhaps "Save" them somehow, so I can at least give you the path and examine their contents with TextView. Pete

BTW, before I go into safe mode, I ran CCLeaner again. This screenshot is of what it finds to clean. Pete

Okay, I'm going to have to wait a couple of days and then try it again. IdS only found 7 to clean this time around in both "Safe" and "Normal" mode. Pete

*However, I do find it interesting that at this point, IdS is still finding more index.dat's to clean than CC (see screenshots of where I just ran both programs), although I never delete the one in red as it causes problems if you do.

my guess is that CCleaner finds less index.dat files because it's looking in less locations than IdS. IdS searches the whole drive, unless you choose to narrow the search. Ccleaner probably just looks in certain locations. Additionally, CCleaner can only search the current user profile and not the profile of any other user on the computer.

Additionally, from what I can see of those screenshots for CCleaner and IdS, IdS displays the index.dat files for the profile user "spy1" twice. Once under documents and settings\spy1 (3 times, one each for cookies, history and IE5) and once under documents and settings\LOCALS~1 (again, 3 times). I'd say the 2 directories are the same, one is an actual physical directory (spy1) and one is a Windows-type command that points the computer towards the local directory (which is obviously spy1!). Additionally, CCleaner appears not to look in the PCHealth folder in Windows, hence it doesn't find the index.dat file residing there.

spy1 wrote:


IDS is doing the job even in regular Win-Mode, as I can confirm from here...

Concerning your "testing-environment" are you actually facing the same results just taking advantage of CCleaner?


Oliver

I don't understand what you're asking me. My "testing environment" is my SOHO computer (non-networked).

Do you mean I should re-run the tests using only CCleaner? Pete

spy1 asked:


Bravo, that is exactly what I have meant...

Maybe - out of your corner of the world - you can just provide us with some more results - especially what kind of Log-In-Account you are using while taking advantage of CCleaner...


Oliver

Oliver - I see your point. The two accounts on here are both administrative accounts - I don't use a "User"-level account.

So CC was already doing all it was going to do (sorry I missed that). Pete