FluentCleaner - 26.06.04 Hotfix

What's New - v26.06.04 Hotfix

🧩 Little brother just dropped: FluentTweaker
Same philosophy;transparent, modern, open-source, WinUI 3.
Except this one tweaks Windows instead of cleaning it.
If you enjoy dangerously reorganizing Windows internals at 2am, say hi 👀

---

Fixed

• [Critical] App crashed silently when leaving and re-opening the Settings page
• [Critical] App crashed after clicking Update next to a database; the post-download
  refresh is now skipped when the download itself failed #67

Added

• Indonesian (id-ID) translation #66

🌍 Help translate FluentCleaner

To add your language:

1. Copy FluentCleaner/Strings/en-US/Resources.resw
2. Create FluentCleaner/Strings/{your-locale}/Resources.resw
3. Translate every <value>; keep all key names untouched
4. Set LblTranslatorCredit to your name (and website if you like)
5. Open a pull request 🎉

Optional: download this Custom.zip asset for additional tools.  
Not required for the cleaner and completely independent.

Run FCleaner.exe to get started.

❤️ FluentCleaner is donation-supported.
Im building FluentCleaner as a donation-supported project. Learning WinUI 3 and turning this into a real app was definitely not painless, but it has been a lot of fun too.
If you like the project and want to support future releases, donations really help keep it going

FluentCleaner - 26.06.03

What's New - v26.06.03

🧩 Little brother just dropped: FluentTweaker
Same philosophy;transparent, modern, open-source, WinUI 3.
Except this one tweaks Windows instead of cleaning it.
If you enjoy dangerously reorganizing Windows internals at 2am, say hi 👀

---

Added Translations

• Portuguese (pt-BR) #61
• Chinese Simplified (zh-CN) #60
• French (fr-FR) translations #64

Fixed

• AI explanation dialog ignored the app theme and always opened in light mode
• "Run" button on the Custom page was not localized
• Language switch now shows a restart dialog instead of a banner buried at the
  bottom of the settings page, hard to miss one click restarts the app

🌍 Help translate FluentCleaner

To add your language:

1. Copy FluentCleaner/Strings/en-US/Resources.resw
2. Create FluentCleaner/Strings/{your-locale}/Resources.resw
3. Translate every <value>; keep all key names untouched
4. Set LblTranslatorCredit to your name (and website if you like)
5. Open a pull request 🎉

Optional: download this Custom.zip asset for additional tools.  
Not required for the cleaner and completely independent.

Run FCleaner.exe to get started.

❤️ FluentCleaner is donation-supported.
Im building FluentCleaner as a donation-supported project. Learning WinUI 3 and turning this into a real app was definitely not painless, but it has been a lot of fun too.
If you like the project and want to support future releases, donations really help keep it going

FluentCleaner 26.06.02

What's New - v26.06.02

🧩 Little brother just dropped: FluentTweaker
Same philosophy;transparent, modern, open-source, WinUI 3.
Except this one tweaks Windows instead of cleaning it.
If you enjoy dangerously reorganizing Windows internals at 2am, say hi 👀

---

Added

• Localization / Globalization

  • Full German (de-DE) translation (drafted with a little AI help, finished by hand);
    UI only; database content such as Winapp2.ini entries is not affected
  • Language switcher in Settings > Appearance; supports System default and all bundled languages
  • Translator-credit string per language file (LblTranslatorCredit): each
    translator can immortalize themselves with name and optional website; hidden
    automatically in languages where the field is left empty
  • \n escape sequences in .resw values render as real line breaks

• Settings - Export / Import

  • Export all settings to a .json file via file-save picker
  • Import settings from a .json file via file-open picker; UI refreshes
    immediately after import

• Portable mode

  • Dropping a settings.json next to the executable activates portable mode;
    a banner in Settings > Backup confirms the active storage location

Fixed

• AI-explanation dialog (and two other code-created ContentDialog instances)
  ignored the app theme and always opened in light mode
• /AUTO command skipped all Custom Cleaners and did not run them as part of the automated cleaning pass #57

🌍 Help translate FluentCleaner

Only English and German are bundled right now.
To add your language:

1. Copy FluentCleaner/Strings/en-US/Resources.resw
2. Create FluentCleaner/Strings/{your-locale}/Resources.resw
3. Translate every <value>; keep all key names untouched
4. Set LblTranslatorCredit to your name (and website if you like)
5. Open a pull request 🎉

Optional: download this Custom.zip asset for additional tools.  
Not required for the cleaner and completely independent.

Run FCleaner.exe to get started.

❤️ FluentCleaner is donation-supported.
Im building FluentCleaner as a donation-supported project. Learning WinUI 3 and turning this into a real app was definitely not painless, but it has been a lot of fun too.
If you like the project and want to support future releases, donations really help keep it going

FluentCleaner 26.06.01

What's New - v26.06.01

🧩 Little brother just dropped: FluentTweaker
Same philosophy;transparent, modern, open-source, WinUI 3.
Except this one tweaks Windows instead of cleaning it.
If you enjoy dangerously reorganizing Windows internals at 2am, say hi 👀

---

• [Added] Global Exclusions
  App-wide whitelist that protects paths from being cleaned, no matter what the Winapp2 database says. Add folders or files in Settings;supports both Winapp2 syntax (PATH|..., FILE|...|pattern) and plain absolute paths. Exclusions apply across all entries and databases
• [Added] Right-click exclusions in detail view
  Right-click any file in the scan results to exclude it or its parent folder directly. Rules are saved to Global Exclusions and take effect on the next scan.
• [Improved] Faster scan engine
  File system walks now skip reparse points and symbolic link traps earlier, reducing scan time on systems with deep junction chains
• [Improved] AI-powered entry explanations
• [Improved] Clean history now caps at 50 entries to keep settings lightweight
• [Fixed] Duplicate path resolution when %ProgramFiles% and %ProgramFiles(x86)% point to the same directory #50
• [Improved] Consolidated browser detection logic. Internal browser mapping simplified from duplicate structures into a single lookup table

Optional: download this Custom.zip asset for additional tools.  
Not required for the cleaner and completely independent.

Run FCleaner.exe to get started.

❤️ FluentCleaner is donation-supported.
Im building FluentCleaner as a donation-supported project. Learning WinUI 3 and turning this into a real app was definitely not painless, but it has been a lot of fun too.
If you like the project and want to support future releases, donations really help keep it going

FluentCleaner 26.05.27 Hotfix

What's New - v26.05.27 Hotfix

Quick patch. A few things in 26.05.26 didn't behave the way they should. Progress bar, cancel, and warning logic are now solid

🧩 Little brother just dropped: FluentTweaker
Same philosophy;transparent, modern, open-source, WinUI 3.
Except this one tweaks Windows instead of cleaning it.
If you enjoy dangerously reorganizing Windows internals at 2am, say hi 👀

---

• [Fixed] Progress bar staying at 100% when starting a clean run
• [Fixed] Cancel button not working during category scans
• [Fixed] Browser warning appearing when cleaning non-browser categories
• [Fixed] Cleaning warnings showing entries that aren't even selected
• [Improved] Progress percentage now shown as label above the scan bar
• [Improved] Browser detection only triggers for selected entries, not globally
• [Improved] Cleaner internal mapping;no more duplicate browser lookups

Optional: download this Custom.zip asset for additional tools.  
Not required for the cleaner and completely independent.

Run FCleaner.exe to get started.

❤️ FluentCleaner is donation-supported.
Im building FluentCleaner as a donation-supported project. Learning WinUI 3 and turning this into a real app was definitely not painless, but it has been a lot of fun too.
If you like the project and want to support future releases, donations really help keep it going

FluentCleaner - 26.05.26

What's New - v26.05.26 Engine Overhaul

This release is all about the cleaning engine. Analyze runs now show real-time
progress with a live size counter, results are ranked by impact, and the entire
scan pipeline has been reworked for speed and reliability

🧩 Little brother just dropped: FluentTweaker
Same philosophy;transparent, modern, open-source, WinUI 3.
Except this one tweaks Windows instead of cleaning it.
If you enjoy dangerously reorganizing Windows internals at 2am, say hi 👀

---

• [Added] Real progress bar that fills per entry instead of spinning forever
• [Added] Live size counter during Analyze;watch junk add up in real-time
• [Added] Scan progress percentage in status bar
• [Added] Results auto-sort by size;biggest junk on top #29
• [Improved] Custom Cleaners page with card grid layout for scripts and INI entries
• [Improved] Winappx database support;additional Appx cleaning definitions for terminal
• [Improved] Scripts fully decoupled from Cleaner;they live in Custompage now
• [Improved] Search filter properly resets when switching pages
• [Improved] Reduced memory usage during large scans
• [Improved] Faster database parsing on startup
• [Improved] Smoother UI response during long cleaning runs
• [Improved] Better handling of locked files and protected folders
• [Fixed] Rare crash when scanning entries with empty registry paths
• [Fixed] Progress not resetting properly between consecutive scans
• [Fixed] Status bar flickering during rapid scan updates

Optional: download this Custom.zip asset for additional tools.  
Not required for the cleaner and completely independent.

Run FCleaner.exe to get started.

❤️ FluentCleaner is donation-supported.
Im building FluentCleaner as a donation-supported project. Learning WinUI 3 and turning this into a real app was definitely not painless, but it has been a lot of fun too.
If you like the project and want to support future releases, donations really help keep it going

FluentCleaner - 26.05.22

little brother just dropped: FluentTweaker 😄

if you like FluentCleaner but also enjoy dangerously reorganizing Windows internals at 2am, meet FluentTweaker 👀

same philosophy: transparent, modern, open-source, WinUI 3.
except this one tweaks Windows instead of cleaning it.
https://github.com/builtbybel/FluentTweaker

What's New - v26.05.22

[Added]

• Custom Cleaners: create your own cleaning rules right inside the app
  • Winapp2 entries : write .ini cleaners using the same format as the built-in database. They show up in the Cleaner tab and work exactly like built-in entries.
  • PowerShell scripts: add .ps1 scripts that run with one click and stream live output
  • Built-in editor with ready-to-use templates for both formats
  • AI-assisted creation : describe what to clean, and AI generates the entry for you. (Requires a free Groq API key in Settings.)
  • Toggle entries on/off, search, edit, delete : all from the new Custom Cleaners page
  • Community links (Reddit, Neowin, Deskmodder, GitHub) in the Custom Cleaners actions menu;encouraging the community to create and share missing cleaners
• Browser detection before cleaning: warns you when browsers are still running. Open browsers lock cache and history files; closing them first means a more thorough cleanup
• A starter pack with useful cleaners and scripts is available on the Releases/Assets page; just drop it into the Custom folder (override default)

[Fixed]

• Extensive under-the-hood refactoring for improved stability and maintainability
• Fixed Winapp2 parser not recognizing entries pasted via the built-in editor (WinUI 3 TextBox writes \r-only line endings instead of \r\n)
• Rounded dialog corners across the app

[Removed]

• Extensions / CLI Tools has been removed and replaced by Custom Cleaners

---

Warning

Breaking change: Extensions from previous versions are not compatible with Custom Cleaners and will not be migrated automatically.
This was a deliberate decision; FluentCleaner now focuses purely on cleaning rather than overwhelming users with complex external scripts. Power users can still recreate any previous functionality through Custom Cleaners using PowerShell scripts
To restore equivalent functionality, download the official cleaner Custom pack from and place it in the Custom folder next to FluentCleaner.exe.

FluentCleaner Insider Dev

Insider Dev · build 26.05.18
last updated;may 18, 2026

What's Changed

Added

• Custom Cleaners; a dedicated page for user-defined cleaning rules that integrate directly into the Cleaner tab
  • Write Winapp2 .ini entries ;the same format used by the built-in database. Custom Cleaners integrate seamlessly into the existing cleaner architecture. entries behave identically to built-in ones and feel like a natural part of the app rather than a bolted-on feature
  • Write PowerShell .ps1 scripts as first-class cleaner entries
  • Built-in editor with load template shortcut for both formats
  • Run .ps1 scripts directly from the list with live output streamed to the header
  • First # comment line of a script is used as its description
  • Full-text search across names, types, and descriptions
  • Open Custom folder action for direct file-system access
  • Community links (Reddit, Neowin, Deskmodder, GitHub) in the actions menu
• Custom Cleaners can be written with AI assistance when a Groq API key is set under Settings >> Groq API Key (Preview)
• Pre-built cleaner/scripts packs are available as downloads from Github Assets ;extract into the Custom folder next to the exe

Fixed

• !Extensive under-the-hood refactoring for improved stability and maintainability
• Fixed Winapp2 parser not recognizing entries pasted via the built-in editor (WinUI 3 TextBox writes \r-only line endings instead of \r\n)

Removed

• Extensions / CLI Tools has been removed and replaced by Custom Cleaners

---

Warning

Breaking change: Extensions from previous versions are not compatible with Custom Cleaners and will not be migrated automatically.
To restore equivalent functionality, download the official cleaner Custom pack from and place it in the Custom folder next to FluentCleaner.exe.

Warning

this is a dev / insider build an not a stable release.
for the latest stable version head over here >>> https://github.com/builtbybel/FluentCleaner/releases/tag/26.05.15

FluentCleaner 26.05.15

Warning

There are also insider / dev builds available.
You can find them here:
https://github.com/builtbybel/FluentCleaner/releases/tag/26.05.18

These builds may contain experimental features and are not considered stable.

Changelog

If I had to give this release a codename, it'd be ~WRL0001.tmp, so you never knew what it was, but deleting it always felt satisfying

• [Added] Cancel button: the Analyze button morphs into Cancel the moment a scan or clean starts. Abort any scan or clean mid-run
• [Added] Junk growth tracker: Settings now keeps a history of past clean runs (date, bytes freed, items removed)
• [Improved] Scan speed significantly improved for entries with multiple file pattern; the directory tree is now traversed once total instead of once per pattern, cutting scan times by up to 28× on some entries
• [Added] AI explanations for Winapp2 entries via Groq (experimental, requires a free API key in Settings):fully opt-in, nothing is sent anywhere without your own key. The idea was to explain individual Winapp2 entries, file paths and registry keys in plain English before cleanup. Many users asked to keep it in to test it themselves;a local LLM option may come later. Honestly, i built this because I had no idea what half the entries in my own app were doing 😄 Turns out FluentCleaner knew about apps I'd completely forgotten I had installed.See it in action on X/Twitter
• [Improved] Upgraded from Windows App SDK 1.8 >> 2.0.1 (stable, released April 29 2026)
• [Improved] Scanner no longer loops forever on junction points and symlinks;reparse points are skipped during traversal (fixes the C:\Users\All Users >> C:\ProgramData infinite loop trap)
• [Improved] Search now auto-expands categories so results are actually visible
• [Improved] Tools page got a full visual overhaul inspired by the Windows Clock app widget style;extensions now feel like interactive widgets rather than a plain list
• [Improved] Hamburger button moved into the title bar: native Windows 11 pattern (File Explorer / Settings style)
• [Improved] Settings button is now the built-in NavigationView control, complete with the native rotation animation on click
• [Improved] Navigation cleaned up to follow the official WinUI 3 way;replaced custom workarounds with native patterns
• [Improved] Dropped x86 build target: x64 and ARM64 only
• [Added] New cleanup rules for Microsoft Edge and TeamViewer cache
• [Updated] Winapp2.ini to version 260512

Requirements

• Windows 10 2004 (Build 19041) or later
• Windows App SDK 2.0.1 this needs to be installed separately

Optional: download this Extensions.zip asset for additional tools.  
Not required for the cleaner and completely independent.

Run FCleaner.exe to get started.

❤️ FluentCleaner is donation-supported.
Im building FluentCleaner as a donation-supported project. Learning WinUI 3 and turning this into a real app was definitely not painless, but it has been a lot of fun too.
If you like the project and want to support future releases, donations really help keep it going

FluentCleaner - 26.05.02 (Fluent Refresh)

Warning

There are also insider / dev builds available.
You can find them here:
https://github.com/builtbybel/FluentCleaner/releases/tag/26.05.14

These builds may contain experimental features and are not considered stable.

Changelog

• [Changed] Large parts of the app were refactored to use more native WinUI 3 behavior and APIs. Theme handling, TitleBar integration and system theme detection are now much cleaner and more consistent
• [Compatibility] FluentCleaner officially supports Windows 10 2004 (Build 19041) and later;no Windows 11 required
• [Added] Automatic update checks; the Settings page now silently checks for new versions on load.
  If an update is available, FluentCleaner shows a small red banner with a direct download button. You can also trigger update checks anytime from the [...] menu in Settings.
• [Added] Responsive TitleBar search; the search box now collapses into a compact search icon + flyout on smaller window sizes for a cleaner layout.
• [Added] Native-style hamburger menu; moved the pane toggle into the TitleBar to better match modern WinUI apps
• [Added] Terminal startup system info; Windows version, CPU and RAM are now shown when opening the terminal
• [Updated] CommunityToolkit.Mvvm 8.3.2 > 8.4.2
• [Fixed] ARM64 builds not resolving correctly. Turns out MSBuild is case-sensitive and arm64 ≠ ARM64. Added explicit RuntimeIdentifiers so self-contained builds correctly detect their target platform.
• [Changed] Migrated all [ObservableProperty] backing fields to partial properties. This is the new standard for CommunityToolkit.Mvvm 8.4+ on .NET 10. No behavior changes, just cleaner code and no more compiler warnings

Requirements

• Windows 10 2004 (Build 19041) or later
• Windows App SDK 1.8 this needs to be installed separately

Optional: download this Extensions.zip asset for additional tools.  
Not required for the cleaner and completely independent.

Run FCleaner.exe to get started.

❤️ FluentCleaner is donation-supported.
Im building FluentCleaner as a donation-supported project. Learning WinUI 3 and turning this into a real app was definitely not painless, but it has been a lot of fun too.
If you like the project and want to support future releases, donations really help keep it going