{"id":448343,"date":"2025-09-22T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-22T01:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.guidingtech.com\/?p=448343"},"modified":"2025-09-23T15:22:00","modified_gmt":"2025-09-23T09:52:00","slug":"how-to-temporarily-disable-reserved-storage-in-windows-11","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.guidingtech.com\/how-to-temporarily-disable-reserved-storage-in-windows-11\/","title":{"rendered":"How to Temporarily Disable Reserved Storage in Windows 11\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Windows keeps around 5 to 7GB of \u201cspare storage\u201d from the partition its in to download new updates. Then, those updates are integrated into the system and the storage \u201cflushed\u201d to make room for new ones later. However, Windows will usually reserve that storage for itself. This can be an issue if you\u2019re running out of space while Windows is taking more and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can find the exact amount of space being taken up if you go to the Storage section in the Settings (in the \u201cSystem\u201d tab), and expand to view the \u201cSystem & reserved\u201d category.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"How<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

How to Disable Reserved Storage in Windows 11<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Most of the time, you don\u2019t want to touch reserved storage, as Windows might start throwing update errors if it gets disabled and your hard disk space is running low. With that in mind, you should only disable it temporarily. As soon as you perform the necessary updates or file transfers, you\u2019ll need to re-enable it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are a few ways to remove disabled storage in Windows 11, but by far the simplest is with PowerShell console commands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 1.<\/strong> Right-click on the Start button and select \u201cTerminal (Admin).\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 2.<\/strong> Paste the following command and hit \u201cEnter.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Get-WindowsReservedStorageState<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"How<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

If you see the status Enabled, you can go ahead and disable it. Otherwise, there\u2019s nothing really to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 3.<\/strong> Enter the following command:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Set-WindowsReservedStorageState -State Disabled<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Windows will quickly run through the process and display information relevant to the memory that is being reallocated. In most cases, you will just see the new status as \u201cDisabled.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"How<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

However, if you see any other message in the Terminal, such as \u201cthe storage is currently in use,\u201d it means Windows has downloaded updates and is waiting to install them. You need to go to Windows Update and manually complete the process, then try the command again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 4.<\/strong> Reboot your PC and recheck to see if the storage space has been reclaimed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Re-Enable Reserved Storage<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The process for re-enabling the space is similarly simple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 1.<\/strong> Open the Terminal as an admin again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 2.<\/strong> Run the following command:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Set-WindowsReservedStorageState -State Enabled\u200b<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 3.<\/strong> Restart the PC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Windows should immediately allocate the space for future updates and you should see a reduction in available space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using the Registry to Disable Reserved Space in Windows 11<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If for some reason the console commands don\u2019t work, you can manually change the storage settings via registry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 1.<\/strong> Search for and open the registry editor (regedit) as an administrator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 2.<\/strong> Click on the \u201cFile\u201d tab on the top and select \u201cExport,\u201d then save the file somewhere. This will be a backup in case something goes wrong.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Step 3.<\/strong> Click and drag over the address bar on the top to select everything (double-click won\u2019t work), then overwrite it with the following:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\\SOFTWARE\\Microsoft\\Windows\\CurrentVersion\\ReserveManager<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"How<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Step 4.<\/strong> You should see a \u201cShippedWithReserves\u201d value on the right. Changing it to 0 disables the reserved storage, while changing it to 1 re-enables it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"How<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Step 5.<\/strong> Exit the Registry Editor, which saves it, and restart the PC.<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t

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