SOLVED E.S.D Files deleted

[Defender01]

During a clean up i accidentally deleted the E. S. D. files.
What are these files used for.
Must be quite a large file as i now have around 3 gb more disk space.

 

[Regedit32]

Hi Defender,

When your Windows 10 is upgraded to a new build via Microsoft's Windows Update, Microsoft chooses to use Electronic Software Delivery to send you the Install.esd needed to upgrade your current build of Windows 10. Likewise, if you manually download the ISO from Microsoft, then use their Media Creation Tool, you will end up with an Install.esd file inside the Sources folder it creates.

The Windows 10 Install.esd file contains the standard Install.wim file needed for the installation in a compressed format (in laymens terms its like the Install.wim has been ZIPPED up but on a much superior compression algorithm.)

If you're wondering .wim is short for Windows Image which is what you will see mentioned a lot when people are discussing using Microsoft's Deployment Image Servicing and Management tool DISM to repair their Windows Image when it has become corrupted.

I'm unsure which ESD you actually deleted though. When you do an upgrade you end up with the new build, plus a Windows.old folder which can be used to revert back to original build if things do not go well. If you've deleted the Install.esd file inside Windows.old, that is not ideal, but its not the end of the world either as this folder is designed to self destruct after 30 days which is good given its immense data size 3+ gigabytes, or if you're like me closer to 16 Gigabytes

Also during the installation two hidden system folders are created on your root directory (commonly C:\ for most users). They too contain ESD files.

You can always download whatever build you just upgraded to again from Microsoft if you want the Install.esd again.

Regards,

Regedit32

 

[Defender01]

Thanks so what you are saying is when i get a new build the E S D file will come back.?

 

[Regedit32]

Thanks so what you are saying is when i get a new build the E S D file will come back.?

Yes when Microsoft is due to release a new build to upgrade your current Build, you will receive that via Windows Update (if you have that set to receive automatic updates).

Alternatively you can manually download the Windows 10 ISO file which contains you current build from here:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/software-download/techbench

When the page opens, ignore the Download file at the top of page. Instead, scroll down to bottom of page where you select the Edition you want, the Product Language you want, and the correct architecture (i.e. 32-bit or 64-bit).

Note: For the product language: English = US English, and International English = GB English [i.e. Great Britain].

In my case I chose Edition: Windows 10, Product Language: English International, and x64 as my system is 64-bit architecture. This allowed me to download: Win10_1511_1_EnglishInternational_x64

The Build number was the same as in your image you posted before: Build 10586.218

If you are not sure what architecture your computer is:

• Click Start then select Settings then click System then in the left pane click About then in the main window look for System type. Next to that it will say whether your system is 32-bit or 64-bit.

The ISO download is 4.11 gigabytes in size.

Once you've downloaded it, you can double left-click to mount the ISO as a virtual drive. Alternatively, you can right-click it and select Mount.

Once mounted you'll see the Install.wim file inside the Sources folder It is this file that allows Windows 10 build to install, and it is that .wim file that is compressed inside the .esd file you mentioned you accidently deleted.

Note: If you do mount this download, do not click the Setup in the first folder you see open as this is an executable and will begin the installation of Windows 10 on your system; which right now you have no need to do. However, should your current build become a nightmare of bugs you cannot fix, then you can use this ISO download to do what is called an In-place upgrade which allows you to re-install Windows 10 over the top while saving your current files and some settings.

This website contains a good article on how to use the ISO for such a installation:

• https://neosmart.net/wiki/windows-10-repair-installation/

Scroll down to the Windows 10 Repair Installation section of the page where it shows you each screen you will see if you choose to click that Setup file I mentioned before, and tells you what to do in each screen.

Regards,

Regedit32

 

[Defender01]

Thanks Regedit32
Seems there is no harm in just leaving things as they are for now and as you say the next build will add to that file.
The E S D file is still there just empty.
But if its not causing any problems i may as well leave things as they are for now.?

 

[Regedit32]

Hi Defender,

Yes if you do not have any issues arise then leave it as is for now.

If an issue does arise, that URL I gave you will allow you to download the same Build and you can use that to repair install if needed.

Regards,

Regedit32

 

[Defender01]

Thanks i will bookmark that link.
And mark as solved.