.mcp files?

[hoom]

Hey guys,

My Pappys PC ran out of HDD space on the 10GB Windows partition I'd set up for it & we couldn't work out where ~6GB of it went to.

Eventually I found a 'protected system file' sub-directory of the Windows folder called 'Installer' that had 6+GB of .mcp files.

Seems to me that these were somehow related to Automatic Updates? Like it had been partially downloading, then restarting without deleting the existing partial downloads or something?

Or could this be some sort of Virus/Trojan related issue?

 

[Bludd]

Who is the vendor of your PC? Most likely these files belong to some kind of restore CD that will restore your machine to the factory settings vis a vis the operating system and etc.

 

[Martin Eddy]

Description:
MCP is the file extension for the Printer driver associated with MathCad. It is also associated with Metrowerks CodeWarrior and Capsule.

From this site.

Google is your friend.

If you look at the google link there are plenty of other apps that use that file extension. You just need to figure out which one is installed on your system.

 

[Martin Eddy]

Here's a few more examples.

MCP MSN Content Plus Installer File Archive (MSN Content Plus Inc.)
MCP Master Compiler Profile
MCP WaveZIP Lossless Compressed Audio
MCP MUSICompress Encoded Audio (Soundspace Audio LLC)
MCP Amiga MUI Preference Class/Library (SASG)
MCP MathCAD Printer Driver (Mathsoft Engineering & Education Inc.)
MCP Capsule Application Script
MCP NetMC Player Composed Media Multimedia File
MCP Metrowerks CodeWarrior Project

 

[Bludd]

I don't find it likely that either of those programs will make a subdir called "protected system file" and put 6GB of stuff there, Martin Eddy.

edit: except for maybe the MSN Content Plus thingy, but that too would be slightly insane.

 

[Martin Eddy]

They're just some examples, it's up to the OP to go and do some more searching.

 

[Npl]

Those files belong to MSI (Microsoft Installer) - which keeps alot stuff incase you want to change installation-options later. Those .mcp Files are from Programs which use MSI.

 

[hoom]

I am the system vendor, I put the PC together myself, Windows install was standard XP Home.

Since it was misinterpreted, the directory of these files was C:/Windows/Installer but the Installer directory was hidden until I unticked the Hide protected operating system files tickbox in Windows Explorer options.

Hmm, MSN content plus, sounds like it might be a huge archive of Microsoft stuff how might you download that accidentally?
Windows Explorer identified the files as Microsoft something installer program.

 

[Bludd]

Oh! I totally misunderstood! Npl is right, those are the installers for the programs on your computers that use Microsoft Installer.

 

[hoom]

But there is no frikkin way that somehow there are 6GB of installers for software that I didn't put there?!

My father is a Sociology professor therefore doesn't really know what he's doing with PCs, possibly somehow its related to some software supplied by his work but he's been using this PC for about a year & its only recently seemed to get this shortage of space on the C drive & I can't think of any software he might have that could possibly take 6GB.

Anyway, I deleted them & all seems to be well so far, I'll have to check up next time I visit though.

 

[Bludd]

You didn't put it there, the installers did that themselves. I have almost 1000MB of stuff in that folder. There are no MCP-files, though, but a lot of MSPs.

 

[hoom]

So about 6mths ago I had much the same problem on my own PC, with my 15GB windows partition having run out of space.

I found I had many GB of .msi files in C:\WINDOWS\Downloaded Installations
So I deleted them with no apparent issues caused.

Then I tried upgrading Open Office a couple of weeks ago & today Google Earth.
Now I'm stuck with two programs that want to find that .msi file & uninstall the old version before installing the new version.
Of course, I can't just install the old version over the top & the manual uninstall wants the friggin .msi too.

What ever happened to programs installing where you told them to?
There is no friggin' way that there should be multiple GB of installer files required to be kept sitting around filling up my HDD

 

[Blazkowicz]

I'm glad never to run out of space on the 4GB windows partition.
- no system restoration, no hibernation file
- swap and temp on another one
- I never use the desktop or the My Documents
- programs and tools usually don't take a lot of room

The only exception was when I had NASA Worldwind's cache in the \program files, eating 2GB.