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Microsoft admits a Windows 11 bug is eating up to 500GB of storage, verify if you are affected
Windows Latest • • technology
Key Points:
- A bug in Windows 11 causes the file "CapabilityAccessManager.db-wal" to grow uncontrollably, consuming hundreds of gigabytes of system storage and potentially filling the C: drive.
- The file is part of the Capability Access Manager service, which logs app permissions for features like microphone, location, and camera, and is normally only a few megabytes in size.
- Users have reported the file growing to sizes between 70GB and over 500GB, but the issue is not immediately obvious as Windows Storage lists it under "System files" or "System & reserved" without specifying the culprit.
- Microsoft acknowledged the issue in an update document for Windows 11 KB5095093, stating that a fix to improve disk space usage for the file will be included in the July 14, 2026 Patch Tuesday release.
- To check if a PC is affected, users can inspect storage usage under Settings or use tools like WizTree and TreeSize to locate the file, and a temporary workaround is to rename the file so Windows regenerates it, while waiting for the official patch.
