Junk File Cleaner

Junk File Cleaner is a Windows desktop app that scans your PC for junk files, shows you exactly what it found, and moves selected files into quarantine before anything is permanently deleted.

It is built for safe cleanup: review first, quarantine first, restore anytime while the file is still in quarantine.

Download

Download the latest Windows installer from the Releases page:

Download Junk File Cleaner for Windows

Junk.File.Cleaner.Installer.1.0.1.exe

Clicking the button downloads the installer. Windows will ask you to open/run the downloaded .exe; GitHub README files cannot start installers automatically for security reasons.

If the direct download link shows a GitHub 404, create a GitHub Release first and upload the installer with the exact filename shown above. Until the Release asset exists, GitHub has no .exe file to download.

If you are building locally, the installer is created here:

frontend\dist\Junk File Cleaner Installer 1.0.1.exe

Current local build SHA256:

1F1D083555A75A1E6E5765F2743AAED1BB4E8ABA5DF80EA2A6EF22EE95CBECC4

Install

1. Download Junk File Cleaner Installer 1.0.1.exe.
2. Double-click the installer.
3. Follow the setup wizard.
4. Launch Junk File Cleaner from the Desktop shortcut or Start Menu.

The installer is a normal Windows application installer. It installs per-user, creates shortcuts, and can launch the app when setup finishes.

Note: The installer is currently unsigned. Windows SmartScreen may show a warning until releases are signed with a code-signing certificate.

What It Does

• Scans common junk locations such as temp folders and browser/app cache.
• Detects temporary files, cache files, old logs, duplicates, and optional unused files.
• Groups results by category so you can review before cleaning.
• Lets you choose exactly which files to clean.
• Moves cleaned files into quarantine instead of deleting them immediately.
• Lets you restore quarantined files back to their original location.
• Lets you permanently delete individual quarantined files or purge all quarantine contents.

Safety Model

Junk File Cleaner is designed to avoid destructive cleanup surprises.

• Files are not permanently deleted during cleaning.
• Cleaned files are moved to:

%APPDATA%\JunkCleaner\Quarantine

• Quarantined files can be restored from inside the app.
• Protected system folders are skipped, including:

C:\Windows\System32
C:\Program Files
C:\Program Files (x86)

• The desktop app starts a local backend and protects API calls with a per-launch token.
• The backend only listens locally on:

http://localhost:5000

Scan Categories

Category	Examples
Temp Files	.tmp, .temp, .bak, Windows temp folders
Cache	Browser cache, app cache, cache database sidecars
Old Logs	.log and .trace files older than 30 days
Duplicates	Files with matching size and hash fingerprint
Unused Files	Optional scan for files not modified in the selected month threshold

Screenshots

Main app preview:

Tech Stack

Layer	Technology
Desktop shell	Electron
Frontend	React + Tailwind CSS
Backend	ASP.NET Core
Core logic	C#
Installer	Electron Builder + NSIS

Project Structure

Junk-File-Cleaner/
  backend/
    JunkCleaner.API/       Local REST API
    JunkCleaner.Core/      Scanner, detector, quarantine logic

  frontend/
    electron/              Electron main and preload scripts
    public/                App icon and static assets
    src/                   React UI and API client

  build-installer.bat      Builds the release installer
  start-dev.bat            Starts the development app

Development Setup

Requirements:

Tool	Version
Windows	10/11
Node.js	18+
npm	9+
.NET SDK	10+

Install dependencies:

cd frontend
npm install

Run the development app:

start-dev.bat

This starts the React dev server, Electron desktop window, and local backend together.

Build the Installer

Run:

build-installer.bat

The build script:

1. Publishes the backend as a self-contained Windows executable.
2. Builds the React frontend.
3. Packages the app into an NSIS installer.

Release output:

frontend\dist\Junk File Cleaner Installer 1.0.1.exe

Upload that .exe to GitHub Releases. Do not commit generated folders such as frontend/dist, frontend/backend, frontend/build, or .NET bin/obj folders.

GitHub Release Checklist

1. Commit the source code changes.
2. Run build-installer.bat.
3. Go to your GitHub repository.
4. Open Releases.
5. Create a new release, for example v1.0.1.
6. Upload:

frontend\dist\Junk File Cleaner Installer 1.0.1.exe

7. Include the SHA256 hash in the release notes.

License

MIT License.