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Free and open source · Windows, macOS, Linux

Get back the gigabytes your dev tools took

Cache Vent finds model weights, node_modules, virtual environments and caches on every drive, explains what each folder is, and moves only what is safe into a quarantine you can undo.

Download for Windows

Windows 10 and 11 · 7.9 MB · no installer, no account · other platforms

Scanned 231,033 folders across two drives in 2.85 s on a developer laptop

The Cache Vent window: 28.2 GB safe to free across drives C and D, with a map of node_modules, Python environments, Ollama models and Cargo build output.
Cache Vent on Windows 11 after scanning every drive.
to scan every drive on a laptop
2.85 s
to scan every drive on a laptop
faster than a standard Go directory walk
3.4×
faster than a standard Go directory walk
peak memory on a 1.18 million file drive
41 MB
peak memory on a 1.18 million file drive
network requests, accounts or trackers
0
network requests, accounts or trackers

The problem

Every tool keeps its own pile. None of them say which parts matter.

Disk analyzers show you big folders. They can't tell you that 4 GB is a model you can download again in a minute, or the only copy of six months of chat history. Cache Vent can, because every verdict comes from the tool's own documentation.

Found on one developer laptop

  • 10.9 GBnode_modules in 35 projectsSafe to free
  • 10.3 GBPython virtual environmentsNot verified
  • 7.1 GBOllama modelsSafe to free
  • 3.3 GBCargo build outputSafe to free
  • 1.8 GBDocker Desktop virtual diskYour data
  • 830 MBClaude Code session historyYour data

Why Cache Vent

Clean up with the facts in front of you

Every folder explained

What it is, which tool made it, what happens if it goes, and a link to the documentation that says so. No guessing from folder names.

Undo for 14 days

Cleaning renames items into a quarantine on the same drive. It takes a moment, uses no extra space, and one click puts everything back.

Knows which project owns what

Ties node_modules, venv, Poetry and pipenv environments to their projects, shows package sizes, and flags environments whose project is gone.

Private by construction

No account, no telemetry, no network requests. The app runs in its own window on your machine and talks only to itself.

Nothing leaves your machine. Nothing is deleted until you say so.

How it works

Three steps, about a minute

  1. 01

    Scan

    Pick your home folder, every drive, or specific folders. Reading changes nothing on disk and takes a few seconds.

  2. 02

    Read the verdict

    Each item is marked safe to free, not verified, or your data, with what happens if it goes and where that claim comes from.

  3. 03

    Move to quarantine

    Select what you want gone, or pick everything unused for 30 days. It moves aside at once and can be restored for 14 days.

What it finds

The usual suspects, named and measured

Tools are described in plain YAML files. Adding one takes no code, only the paths and a source for what happens when they go.

  • Node.jsnode_modules per project, npm and Yarn cachesSafe to free
  • Pythonvenv, Poetry and pipenv environments with package sizesPer environment
  • Pythonpip and uv caches, __pycache__Safe to free
  • Ollama, Hugging FaceDownloaded modelsSafe to free
  • Rust, GradleCargo target folders, project .gradle cachesSafe to free
  • WindowsYour temp folder, older items onlySafe to free
  • LM Studio, ComfyUI, SD WebUILocal modelsNot verified
  • VS Code, Cursor, Claude DesktopApp caches and extensionsNot verified
  • Claude Code, Codex CLI, CursorSession history and workspace storageYour data
  • Docker DesktopThe virtual disk holding your images and volumesYour data

Speed

A whole drive in the time it takes to read this line

Measured on an Intel Core i7 11850H laptop with an NVMe SSD, median of three warm runs. Cache Vent does more work than the baseline: it matches definitions, finds projects and sizes packages.

  • Cache Ventall of D:, 1.18 million files2.53 s

    Peak memory 41 MB

  • filepath.WalkDirsame drive, sizes only8.68 s

    Peak memory 15 MB

Every drive, 231,033 folders
2.85 s
Home folder, 19,576 folders
0.38 s
From double click to window
0.8 s

Safety

Built so it can't cost you anything you need

These rules are enforced in code and covered by tests, not left to a settings page.

Scanning only reads

Nothing outside Cache Vent's own folder and quarantine is ever written.

Links are never followed

Symlinks and junctions are listed, never entered, so nothing outside a folder is touched.

No source, no cleaning

Only items backed by a cited source can be selected. Everything else stays not verified.

Your data stays put

Chat histories, outputs and virtual disks are shown but can never be selected.

Checked again before every move

Home folders, drive roots and anything still in use are refused at the last moment.

Cloud folders are off limits

Items inside OneDrive, Dropbox, iCloud or Google Drive folders are never moved.

FAQ

Questions people ask before running it

Is it safe to run on my main machine?

Yes. Scanning only reads. Cleaning moves items into a quarantine on the same drive instead of deleting them, and anything moved can be restored for 14 days. Items marked your data or not verified cannot be selected at all.

What does not verified mean?

It means no documented source yet confirms what happens when that folder is removed. Cache Vent still shows its size and what it is, but it will not offer to clean it. Verdicts only change when someone adds a source to the definition.

Does Cache Vent send anything over the network?

No. There is no account, no telemetry and no update check. The desktop window talks only to a local server bound to 127.0.0.1 and protected by a token that changes every launch.

Why does Windows show a SmartScreen warning?

The build is not code signed yet, so Windows does not recognise the publisher. Installing with the PowerShell command in the install section avoids the prompt and checks the file's SHA256 checksum for you. If you downloaded the app in a browser, choose More info, then Run anyway.

The Mac app isn't from an identified developer. How do I open it?

Install it with the Terminal command instead of a browser download. Files fetched from Terminal aren't flagged by Gatekeeper, and the installer signs Cache Vent.app on your Mac and clears the download flag, so it opens from Launchpad like any other app. No Apple account, admin password or System Settings changes are needed. The script is short and readable: install.sh.

Will removing node_modules or a virtual environment break my project?

Only until you reinstall. Each item shows the command that brings it back, such as npm install or uv sync. If you would rather not, restore it from the quarantine in one click.

Where does the quarantine live, and does it use space?

In a .cachevent-quarantine folder on the same drive as the item, so moving is a rename and takes no extra space. The space comes back when items are purged, automatically after 14 days or sooner if you empty it.

Can I delete things straight away?

Yes. Select items and choose Delete. You will see every path and its size and confirm before anything is removed. The same rules apply, so your data and unverified items still cannot be deleted.

Does it work on macOS and Linux?

Yes. macOS 13 Ventura or later on Apple silicon and Intel, and Linux on x64 and ARM64. Windows gets its own native window and the fastest scanner; on macOS and Linux the interface opens in a Chrome, Edge or Brave app window, or your default browser. The Linux build is tested end to end on every change; macOS support is newer and marked as a preview.

How is it this fast?

On Windows it reads each folder in batches of about 64 KB of entries with sizes included, instead of one system call per file, and walks folders in parallel with a fixed number of workers. It never reads the same folder twice.

Is it free?

Yes. Cache Vent is free and open source under the MIT license, for personal and commercial use.

See what is on your disk in under a minute

Free and MIT licensed. Nothing is deleted without your say, and anything moved can be restored for 14 days.

irm https://cachevent.kelados.in/install.ps1 | iex
  1. Open PowerShell from the Start menu and paste the command.
  2. It installs for your user only, adds Cache Vent to the Start menu and opens it. No admin rights needed.
  3. Prefer a file? Download the app and run it. The build isn't code signed yet, so SmartScreen asks first: choose More info, then Run anyway.
All files and checksums6 builds, version 0.1.1
All downloads with sizes and SHA256 checksums
PlatformSize
Windows x64CacheVent-windows-x64.exe7.9 MB
Windows ARM64CacheVent-windows-arm64.exe7.1 MB
macOS Apple siliconcachevent-macos-arm646.8 MB
macOS Intelcachevent-macos-x647.4 MB
Linux x64cachevent-linux-x647.2 MB
Linux ARM64cachevent-linux-arm646.7 MB

Full hashes are in SHA256SUMS.txt. The install commands check them for you. On macOS and Linux, a downloaded file needs chmod +x before it runs; the install command is the easier path.

Command line

Every build is also a CLI, with stable JSON output for scripts.

cachevent scan --all-drives
cachevent clean --dry-run PATH
cachevent restore ID
cachevent scan --json > report.json