I'm trying to clear out some space on my SDD and I have this folder in C: (where windows is installed) that takes up 12.2 GB of space and is called AI_RecycleBin. I've tried to search for this folder name on Google but didn't find any trustworthy sources. Some of the sites acted like it was created by malware. While possible, I do keep my antivirus up to date and don't download and run very many dodgy programs. I wanted to get some more information on what this folder is before going on a witch hunt, so I thought that others on superuser might know.
Does anyone know what this folder is created by or used for, and if it is fine to free up some space by removing it? Do others think that this may have been created by malware or another malicious program that I should try to remove?
Thanks for any answers, and sorry if my question is not formatted correctly or if this is not the proper place for this kind of question.
31 Answer
These folders get created when you install software when the installer was built by Advanced Installer (AI).
AI is a tool that can create install packages for just about any software, it works best with .NET and Java. It only builds installers for Windows.
These installers can be packages as Microsoft Installers (.MSI), or regular executable (.EXE).
There is a setting in AI where you can specify specific folders to backup prior to upgrading. If the installer is an upgrade on software already installed. AI will backup things like user specific settings or data. It will store this in that folder, with a key that ties to a version. You can see disable this feature in the install parameters.
The "save system restore points" parameter may cause it.
It seems like prior to AI 10.2 these files might not be deleted properly when the install succeeds.
There is also another way to tell AI to specifically backup certain folders prior to installation.
I discovered this when I had a 25gb AI_RecycleBin folder. When I looked at the contents, I realized it was from the constant reinstalling I had done for testing that particular app.
There are some posts indicating that "AI_RecycleBin" may be part of a virus. That came up in some Google searches recently. Most of the posts were in forums trying to push antivirus software, and free PC scans. I don't know if there is currently a virus that presents itself this way.
