Question : Offline Caching, emptying the cache

Hi,

In short what we need to do:

- Disable offline files
- Clear the Cache to make some free space in the hard disk.

I understand the basics behind Offline caching, but I need to dig deeper into it. Can someone tell me  what exactly happens if we add the FormatDatabase registry key into HKLM/SOFTWARE/Microsoft/Windows/Currentversion/Netcache/ ?
I understand all the files are cached in the C:\Windows\CSC folder. All the client PC's are Windows XP.

Normally when you add the FormatDatabase registry key, the database will be formatted and all files in the CSC folder will be delete.

We already disabled offline caching and we did add the FormatDatabase registry key and rebooted. The key disappeared, so the system should have cleared the database.
The problem is that all the files are still in the CSC folder. We can delete them manually, but I don't know if that's good practice.

What exactly does the FormatDatabase registry key do? Is it only clearing the database and leaving the files? Where can I check the database has been emptied? Remember we disabled offline files and don't want to re-enable it.

Answer : Offline Caching, emptying the cache

You said you turned offline files off first and then added the reg key. It could well be that it's the offline file service that reads the key and acts upon it and that because you've turned offline files off it's not performing this action. Try turning it back on, re-apply the regkey then turn it back off.

Having said that I've just re-read your post and you mentioned that the key is being deleted which would suggest it's being read. Worth a try though.

With regards to manually clearing the CSC folder this shouldn't cause any issues i've done this before with no adverse effects.