What is hiberfil.sys and How Do I Delete It?

Youre no doubt reading this article because theres a gigantic hiberfil.sys file sitting in the root of your drive, and you want to get rid of it to free up some space but you cant! Luckily, you actually can delete it, and today well show you how.

The more memory you have in your PC, the bigger the file will be. So What is hiberfil.sys Anyway? Windows has two power management modes that you can choose from: one is Sleep Mode, which keeps the PC running in a low power state so you can almost instantly get back to what you were working on. The other is Hibernate mode, which completely writes the memory out to the hard drive, and then powers the PC down entirely, so you can even take the battery out, put it back in, start back up, and be right back where you were. Hibernate mode uses the hiberfil.sys file to store the the current state (memory) of the PC, and since its managed by Windows, you cant delete the file.

So if you never use it, and want to disable Hibernate mode, keep reading. Personally I stick with Sleep Mode the vast majority of the time, but I do use Hibernate quite often. Disable Hibernate (and Delete hiberfil.sys) in Windows 7 or Vista Youll need to open an administrator mode command prompt by right-clicking on the command prompt in the start menu, and then choosing Run as Administrator. Once youre there, type in the following command: powercfg -h off

You should immediately notice that the Hibernate option is gone from the Shut down menu.

Youll also notice that the file is magically gone!

For more about dealing with Hibernate like setting how long it takes to head into Hibernate mode, you can check out our article on How to Manage Hibernate Mode in Windows 7. Disabling Hibernate Mode in Windows XP Its a lot easier in Windows XP to get rid of Hibernate mode in fact, weve already covered it before, but well cover it again. Just head into Control Panel > Power Options, and then find the Hibernate tab.

Uncheck the box, reboot your PC, and then you can delete the hiberfil.sys file.
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Comments (62)
1. April 21, 2010 7:44 am

Ben

Its a lot easier in Windows XP Yes, find your way into some dialog, uncheck a box, restart your computer, and manually delete the file from your hard drive. Assuming you have hidden files and folders, and protected OS files shown to you in the settings. What a complete joke, its obviously much easier in 7. Type one command and youre done. No reboot, no need to find the file and delete it. Its this kind of vast and utter disrespect for Windows 7 that makes me sick. Your XP way is a lot more work and the only reason you say its easier is because youve done in that way since Windows 95 when that dialog box showed up. Although I suppose you probably also loved the Save XP campaign so I guess I shouldnt be s urprised to see such statements anymore.
2. April 21, 2010 7:49 am

Nawlins Jeaux

Interesting but how do you re-enable it, if you decide later that you want it? powercfg -h on? Next question, not being a true geek, would be: Is there another way to turn off hibernate that you dont need to write down, or memorize, the command line entry? Id hate to think Ive turned it off, and never be able to turn it on, again. Keep up the good work, HTG!!!
3. April 21, 2010 7:50 am

Valter Henrique

thx, very useful.

4. April 21, 2010 8:42 am

MaxellDVD

Whats more, the powercfg way works in Windows XP as well.

5. April 21, 2010 9:04 am

Tom

Actually, on XP, after unchecking the Enable Hibernation checkbox, the file was deleted automatically. No restart needed. Pretty simple. And Ben, that was pretty easy. What would I rather do? Go to Control Panel -> Power Options, and disable it there, or have to search the internet for the proper command to disable it from the command line? Which one is easier for everyday-Joe? And I usually use Linux, so dont tell me that I must hate the command line.
6. April 21, 2010 9:27 am

Mosh

Im running an old Acer laptop on XP and when you go to the Control Panel applet youre redirected to an Acer specific one wi th no option to disable hibernate mode. Instead, from a command prompt: powercfg /hibernate off will disable it *and* remove the .sys file automatically. No reboot required.

7.

April 21, 2010 9:33 am

Tek9

Actually, easy is a matter of perspective. I imagine for quite a few users, finding the command prompt, let alone managing to right-click on it and select run as admin might well be the most challenging task theyve ever been asked to perform on a PC. As opposed to using the more familiar windowed solution in XP. I get people freaked out all the time at my work when I make them go in to a command prompt.
8. April 21, 2010 9:33 am

Not Ben

Um, Ben, I think its easier because the majority of us use the GUI, not the command line like your high -and-might self are proclaiming to be superior.
9. April 21, 2010 9:51 am

HTF

The command prompt way isnt HARD, just daunting to people who dont use the command prompt. For me, its about halfway up th e recently opened programs list in the start menu. Im no tech guru, though, I just use ping to see how much Comcast is sucking on any given day. *grumble*
10. April 21, 2010 10:16 am

rbailin

Disabling hibernate will also disable hybrid sleep, which write memory out to hiberfil.sys before putting the system into sleep mode. In the event of a power failure (or in the case of a laptop whose battery gets depleted), the system will restart as if from hibernate mode instead of instantly from sleep mode. No data will be lost. In the event of a power failure without hybrid sleep, the system will resume with a cold boot after a power failure, and will complain that it was not shutdown properly last time.
11. April 21, 2010 11:14 am

MaxellDVD

While I dont think everything must be done by CLI, some comfort around a command prompt is a good thing, and can be faster than GUI in some cases. People shouldnt be as afraid of it as they are. As far as problems finding it. In Vista/7, Winkey/startsearch-cmd-ctrl+shift+enter But people are afraid of the keyboard. @Nawlins Jeaux: Create a shortcut with the powercfg line as the target.
12. April 22, 2010 2:19 pm

Martin

Anyone know how to have the hiberfil.sys file stored on another drive or partition? Id like to have one, but dont want it on my C: drive. Thanks in advance.
13. April 22, 2010 10:09 pm

Kevin

If you delete this file wont that disable hibernation? Martin, I think it has to be on the same partition to create the virtual saving of open programs so to speak while the comp uter sleeps and is powered down. Good point though
14. April 23, 2010 9:34 pm

calebstein

@Kevin: You cant delete the file while hibernation is enabled, because the file is system owned.
15. June 7, 2010 5:21 pm

LeanToshi

Fortunately, views on computer systems dont create any form of illness on me. I do find it fascinating that individuals defe nd an inanimate OS with great vigor and viterol (sorry, promoting a family law firm). Anyway, Im XP on a half-dozen comps and found myself unable to get rid of the huge hibernation file, turning it on or off, no matter. It was there to stay. The command line deleted it instantly and I appreciate this post.
16. June 26, 2010 10:58 am

Archon

Thanks, just what i was looking for !!

17. July 25, 2010 2:13 pm

Craig - The 7thDwarf

Hey Cool, Cheers Geek! I was wondering if it would work the same for 64bit Win7, but Yes! Thanks for your help. 7thDwarf
18. July 31, 2010 7:08 am

Kevin

Love the Geek.

19. August 23, 2010 6:12 am

Rey

You may also check this if you do not want that file Control Panel > Power Options >Hibernate Uncheck Enable Hibernation. This should free up some space.
20. September 9, 2010 12:30 pm

Derald H

Tried the powercfg-h off and my windows vista home premium told me it was not a valid command. Tried different spacing, caps, no caps, all the usual little things till my comp. started getting annoyed-so, what next?
21. October 19, 2010 9:57 pm

gren

You can turn Hibernate off in the Windows 7 control panel as well. I dont know why this article doesnt mention that, but thanks for the tip.