Hi, Comics Lover.
No, there isn't a sticky with recommended tools. One reason is that there are people who when having a problem start downloading and installing everything they can get their mouse to click. Not so long ago there was a series of rogues that hid the links from Program Files in the temp folder. Using a temp file cleaner removed those links and made recovery a royal pain. Another is when removing malware, it is helpful to see what files show in the temp folder. They are often a clue to what the infection is.
Now, as to dealing with your brother's computer, that's another story. You have good memory, it is one of OT's tools. Following are my standard instructions, with a bit of extra information:
Download TFC by Old Timer from here (direct download): http://www.itxassociates.com/OT-Tools/TFC.exe
- First, save any files as TFC will close ALL open programs including your browser!
- Double-click on TFC.exe to run it. If you are using Vista/Windows 7 right-click on the file and choose Run As Administrator.
- Click the Start button to begin the cleaning process and let it run uninterrupted to completion.
- Important! If TFC prompts you to reboot, please do so immediately. If not prompted, manually reboot the machine anyway to ensure a complete clean.
More info:
TFC (Temp File Cleaner) will clear out all temp folders for all user accounts (temp, IE temp, java, FF, Opera, Chrome, Safari), including Administrator, All Users, LocalService, NetworkService, and any other accounts in the user folder. It also cleans out the %systemroot%\temp folder and checks for .tmp files in the %systemdrive% root folder, %systemroot%, and the system32 folder (both 32bit and 64bit on 64bit OSs). It shows the amount removed for each location found (in bytes) and the total removed (in MB).
Before running, it will stop Explorer and all other running applications. When finished, if a reboot is required the user must reboot to finish clearing any in-use temp files.
-- TFC only cleans temp folders.
-- TFC will not clean URL history, prefetch, or cookies. Depending on how often someone cleans their temp folders, their system hardware, and how many accounts are present, it can take anywhere from a few seconds to a minute or more. TFC will completely clear all temp files where other temp file cleaners may fail.
TFC requires a reboot immediately after running. Be sure to save any unsaved work before running TFC.
Have you considered using Disk Cleanup? It's part of Windows and can clean up temp files, among other things.
Regards,
Aaron