Locate Temporary Internet Files
This article teaches you how to view a list of your browser's temporary internet files, which are pieces of data that help quickly load frequently visited sites. You cannot view temporary internet files on a mobile device.
Contents
Steps
Google Chrome
- Open Google Chrome. It's the yellow, green, and red circle around a blue sphere.
- Click the address bar. The address bar is at the top of the Chrome window.
- Type about:cache into the address bar. This command opens and displays the temporary internet files.
- Press the ↵ Enter key. Doing so will display your Google Chrome browser's temporary internet files as a list of links.
- You can click a link to view more details about the site to which it pertains.
Microsoft Edge
- Open My Computer. Its icon resembles a computer monitor. You can usually find My Computer (or My PC) on the desktop, though you may need to open the Start menu and click its icon there instead.
- Double-click your hard drive's icon. It will be named "OS (C:)" by default; you'll find it under the "Devices and drives" heading in the middle of the window.
- Double-click Users. This folder is toward the bottom of the page.
- Double-click your username folder. It should be the first few letters of the name you used when you set up your computer.
- In some cases, this folder will be the first few letters of your Microsoft email.
- Double-click AppData. It's near the top of the page.
- If you don't see "App Data" listed here, you need to Show-Hidden-Files to continue.
- Double-click Local. This folder is close to the top of the page.
- Scroll down and double-click Packages. The folders on this page are organized alphabetically, so Packages will be in the "P" section.
- Double-click the "Microsoft.MicrosoftEdge" folder. While there will be several numbers and letters after the "Edge" section, the root folder's name will be the same.
- Double-click AC. It's the top folder on this page.
- Double-click #!001. This folder should be at the top of the page here.
- Double-click Temp. It's near the bottom of the page. "Temp" is where all of the sites you visited in Microsoft Edge store their temporary files.
Internet Explorer
- Open Internet Explorer. It's the blue "e" with a yellow circle around it.
- Click ⚙️. This option is in the top-right corner of the Internet Explorer window.
- Click Internet options. You'll find it toward the bottom of the drop-down menu.
- Click Settings. It's toward the bottom of the "Internet Options" window in the "Browsing history" section.
- Click View files. This option is near the bottom of the window.
- Review your temporary files. Any files in this folder are cached data from sites you've visited in Internet Explorer.
Firefox
- Open Firefox. Firefox's icon resembles a red-and-orange fox wrapped around a blue globe.
- Click the address bar. The address bar is at the top of the Firefox window.
- Type about:cache into the address bar. This command opens and displays the temporary internet files.
- Press the ↵ Enter key. Doing this will open the "Network Cache Storage Settings" page.
- Click the "Template:Blue" link. It's below the "disk" heading near the middle of the page. Doing so will open a separate tab with all of your Firefox's temporary internet files listed.
