Trim

July 25, 2026 · View on GitHub

Trim is a winapp2ool module that strips winapp2.ini down to the entries that apply to the machine it runs on. Every entry carries detection criteria (a registry key, a file path, a Windows version requirement) saying whether the software it targets is actually installed. Trim checks those criteria against the current system and drops the entries whose software isn't there.

What does Trim do?

Trim reads a winapp2.ini (off disk, or downloaded from GitHub), tests every entry against the machine it is running on, and saves a copy with only the entries that passed.

Why Trim?

Performance: CCleaner evaluates every entry in winapp2.ini when it starts, and it is slow about it. Trimming typically removes around 90% of the file, so CCleaner starts faster
Automation: winapp2ool -trim -d downloads the latest database and gives you a machine-specific copy in one command

Requirements
Quick Start
Menu Options
How Trimming Works
Output Formatting
Command-Line Arguments
Tips & Best Practices
Troubleshooting
Usage Examples

Requirements

A winapp2.ini file to trim, or an internet connection with downloading enabled (-d)

Quick Start

Common Workflow (local file)

Place your winapp2.ini in the same directory as winapp2ool
Open Trim from the winapp2ool main menu
Run. Trim evaluates every entry and saves the result

By default, the trimmed file overwrites the input winapp2.ini. Use Choose save target to save to a different path first.

Common Workflow (download and trim)

Open Trim
Enable Toggle downloading to use the latest winapp2.ini from GitHub
Run. Trim downloads and trims in one step

Option	Effect	Notes
Run (default)	Trim winapp2.ini using current settings
Toggle downloading	Enable or disable downloading the latest winapp2.ini from GitHub as the input	Default: `False`; unavailable in offline mode
Toggle include list	Enable or disable the includes file override	Default: `False`
Toggle exclude list	Enable or disable the excludes file override	Default: `False`
Choose winapp2.ini	Select a different local winapp2.ini to trim	Only shown when downloading is disabled
Choose save target	Select a different output file path	Default: overwrites the input file
Choose includes file	Select the includes file	Only shown when include list is enabled
Choose excludes file	Select the excludes file	Only shown when exclude list is enabled
Reset Settings	Restore all settings to their defaults	Only shown when settings have been changed

How Trimming Works

Evaluation Order

Each entry is checked on its own, in this order, stopping at the first step that gives an answer.

Include list (if enabled): entry name listed → kept
Exclude list (if enabled): entry name listed → removed
DetectOS: present, not satisfied → removed
Detect: any Detect registry path exists → kept
DetectFile: any DetectFile path exists → kept
SpecialDetect: any matches → kept
Entry has only a DetectOS key and it was satisfied in step 3 → kept
Entry has no detection keys of any kind → kept
Otherwise → removed

DetectOS

DetectOS declares a Windows version requirement as a major.minor version number and takes one of three forms:

Form	Meaning	Entry is kept when
`DetectOS=6.1\|`	Minimum version	Windows version ≥ 6.1
`DetectOS=\|6.1`	Maximum version	Windows version ≤ 6.1
`DetectOS=6.1\|10.0`	Version range	6.1 ≤ Windows version ≤ 10.0

A failed version check removes the entry on the spot; Trim never looks at its other detection keys. If the check passes and there are no other detection keys, the entry is kept.

Detect

Detect names a registry path that Trim checks for existence.

Paths under HKLM\Software are also checked under HKLM\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node, so 32-bit applications on 64-bit Windows are found
If a key can't be read because of permissions, Trim assumes it exists and keeps the entry

DetectFile

DetectFile names a path that Trim checks for existence. It can point at either a file or a folder.

Wildcards (*) work anywhere in the path. Trim expands each wildcard segment against the folders actually on disk, and keeps the entry if any expansion resolves to something that exists.
Paths under %ProgramFiles% are checked in both the native Program Files directory and the 32-bit Program Files (x86) directory. See Environment Variables
If a folder can't be read because of permissions, Trim assumes the target exists and keeps the entry

SpecialDetect

SpecialDetect is a deprecated CCleaner variable. Trim still handles it so that very old winapp2.ini files work. Four values are recognized:

Value	What is checked
`DET_CHROME`	A hardcoded list of ~26 Chromium-family browser paths and registry keys
`DET_MOZILLA`	`%AppData%\Mozilla\Firefox`
`DET_THUNDERBIRD`	`%AppData%\Thunderbird`
`DET_OPERA`	`%AppData%\Opera Software`

If any of the associated paths or keys exists on the system, the entry is kept.

Entries Without Detection Keys

Entries with no detection keys of any type are always kept

Includes and Excludes

Two optional override files let you overrule detection. Trim consults both before it looks at any detection key.

Include list (includes.ini by default): Name an entry here and it is always kept, whether or not its detection criteria are satisfied. Turn it on with Toggle include list in the menu, or -includes on the command line.

Exclude list (excludes.ini by default): Entries named here are always removed, even when their detection criteria pass. Toggle exclude list in the menu, -excludes on the command line.

Each file is a plain ini file where section names are the entry names to match:

[Some Application *]
[Another Application *]

Whatever keys those sections contain is ignored, so you can leave them empty.

See Example 4

Environment Variables

Trim expands standard Windows environment variables in DetectFile paths, plus several CCleaner-specific variables that do not exist in the Windows environment:

Variable	Windows XP	Windows Vista and later
`%Documents%`	`%UserProfile%\My Documents`	`%UserProfile%\Documents`
`%CommonAppData%`	`%AllUsersProfile%\Application Data`	`%AllUsersProfile%`
`%LocalLowAppData%`	`%UserProfile%\AppData\LocalLow`	`%UserProfile%\AppData\LocalLow`
`%Pictures%`	`%UserProfile%\My Documents\My Pictures`	`%UserProfile%\Pictures`
`%Music%`	`%UserProfile%\My Documents\My Music`	`%UserProfile%\Music`
`%Video%`	`%UserProfile%\My Documents\My Videos`	`%UserProfile%\Videos`

On 64-bit systems, %ProgramFiles% covers both the native Program Files directory and Program Files (x86). HKLM\Software registry paths get the same treatment through WOW6432Node.

Malformed variables: a path whose environment variable is malformed (e.g. a value ending at the closing % with no path after it) prints an error and pauses:

Error: <path> contains a malformatted environment variable and has been ignored
The associated entry will be retained in the final output file
Press any key to continue

VirtualStore Handling

Pre-UAC applications that wrote to protected locations had those writes quietly redirected into the user's VirtualStore, and machines upgraded from older Windows versions still carry the leftovers. So for every entry that survives detection, Trim reads the FileKey, RegKey, and ExcludeKey values and adds keys for the matching VirtualStore locations, but only where those locations exist:

Key type	Original location	VirtualStore counterpart
FileKey / ExcludeKey	`%ProgramFiles%`	`%LocalAppData%\VirtualStore\Program Files*`
FileKey / ExcludeKey	`%CommonAppData%`	`%LocalAppData%\VirtualStore\ProgramData`
FileKey / ExcludeKey	`%CommonProgramFiles%`	`%LocalAppData%\VirtualStore\Program Files*\Common Files`
FileKey / ExcludeKey / RegKey	`HKLM\Software`	`HKCU\Software\Classes\VirtualStore\MACHINE\SOFTWARE`

On most systems no VirtualStore keys are generated at all. When keys are added, the entry's keys are renumbered. See Example 5.

Output Formatting

Trim always writes its output as a fully formatted winapp2.ini file:

Entries are sorted alphabetically and grouped into the winapp2.ini ordering for the selected flavor
The winapp2.ini preamble comments are regenerated at the top of the file: the ; Version: line is carried over from the input file (or written as ; Version: 000000 if the input had none), and the ; # of entries: line is updated to the post-trim count
Comments are not preserved. Comments in the input file do not appear in the output. Since the default save target overwrites the input file, trimming an annotated custom file in place will lose your comments
Key order within entries is unchanged, except that entries receiving VirtualStore keys have their keys renumbered

Command-Line Arguments

Invoke Trim from the command line with winapp2ool -trim.

Command-line runs always start from Trim's defaults. Settings you saved from the menu, like alternate file paths or enabled include/exclude lists, do not carry over, so pass the flags you need on every invocation.

Toggles

Arg	Effect
`-d`	Download the latest winapp2.ini from GitHub as the input
`-includes`	Enable the includes file: entries named in it are never trimmed
`-excludes`	Enable the excludes file: entries named in it are always trimmed

File Selection

Arg	Effect	Default
`-1d path`	Set the input winapp2.ini directory	Current directory
`-1f name`	Set the input winapp2.ini file name	`winapp2.ini`
`-2d path`	Set the includes file directory	Current directory
`-2f name`	Set the includes file name	`includes.ini`
`-3d path`	Set the output directory	Current directory
`-3f name`	Set the output file name	`winapp2.ini` (overwrites input)
`-4d path`	Set the excludes file directory	Current directory
`-4f name`	Set the excludes file name	`excludes.ini`

Examples

Command	Effect
`winapp2ool -trim`	Trim `winapp2.ini` in the current directory, overwriting it in place
`winapp2ool -trim -3f winapp2-trimmed.ini`	Trim and save the result to a new file
`winapp2ool -trim -d`	Download the latest winapp2.ini and trim it
`winapp2ool -trim -d -3f winapp2-trimmed.ini`	Download, trim, and save to a named file
`winapp2ool -trim -includes -2f keepers.ini`	Trim, but never remove entries named in `keepers.ini`
`winapp2ool -trim -3f trimmed.ini -s`	Trim silently and exit

Tips & Best Practices

Save to a Different File First

The default output overwrites the input winapp2.ini, and comments are not preserved. Save to a different file (e.g. winapp2-trimmed.ini) the first time so you can verify the results before replacing your working copy.

Re-trim After Changes

A trimmed file only describes the winapp2.ini it came from and the software that was installed when it ran. Update winapp2.ini or install a new application and it is out of date, and an out of date trimmed file has no entries covering whatever you just installed. Re-trim after either kind of change.

Download and Trim

You can skip keeping a local copy of the database entirely. Toggle downloading in the menu, or -d on the command line, fetches the current winapp2.ini and trims it in one operation.

Trimmed Files and CCleaner Performance

CCleaner evaluates every entry in winapp2.ini when it starts, so a big file means a slow launch. If you are on CCleaner 7, CC7Patcher can trim the file for you before patching it in.

Troubleshooting

Message	Cause
"Internet connection lost! Please check your network connection and try again"	Downloading is enabled but no connection is available
File Chooser appears with header "winapp2.ini does not exist"	The input file was not found
"winapp2.ini was empty or not found" (red menu header)	The input file exists but contains no entries
"Error: <path> contains a malformatted environment variable and has been ignored"	A `DetectFile` value has a broken `%Variable%`; the entry is retained, and Trim pauses for a keypress
"Your key seems to be malformatted (bad root? ...)" (log only)	A `Detect` key uses a registry root other than `HKCU`/`HKLM`/`HKU`/`HKCR`

Symptom	Cause
An entry for installed software was removed	The `DetectFile`/`Detect` path doesn't match the actual installation location (e.g. a portable or non-standard install location)
Download option is unavailable in the menu	winapp2ool is in offline mode

Usage Examples

The outputs below were captured from real runs on a Windows 11 machine. Trim's results are machine-specific by design, so expect different counts and a different set of survivors on yours.

Example 1: Anatomy of a Trim

Context

Six entries are enough to watch every detection rule fire at once. Four of them are lifted verbatim from the current winapp2.ini; the other two exist for the demonstration. [My Custom Cleanup *] has no detection keys at all, and [Windows XP Era Application *] is here because the real database no longer ships a single DetectOS entry.

The machine in question has 7-Zip, Firefox, Steam, and Windows Calculator installed.

Intent

We want to trim this file in place and observe which entries survive, and why.

Files

Input file (`winapp2.ini`)

[7-Zip ZS *]
LangSecRef=3024
Detect=HKCU\Software\7-Zip-Zstandard
RegKey1=HKCU\Software\7-Zip-Zstandard\Compression|ArcHistory
RegKey2=HKCU\Software\7-Zip-Zstandard\Extraction|PathHistory
RegKey3=HKCU\Software\7-Zip-Zstandard\FM|CopyHistory
RegKey4=HKCU\Software\7-Zip-Zstandard\FM|FolderHistory

[Mozilla Firefox Autofill Data *]
LangSecRef=3026
DetectFile1=%AppData%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles
DetectFile2=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Mozilla.Firefox_*
FileKey1=%AppData%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\*|autofill-profiles.json
FileKey2=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Mozilla.Firefox_*\LocalCache\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\*|autofill-profiles.json

[My Custom Cleanup *]
Section=Custom Entries
FileKey1=%UserProfile%\Downloads|*.partial

[Steam Packages *]
Section=Games
Detect=HKCU\Software\Valve\Steam
FileKey1=%ProgramFiles%\Steam\package|*.zip.*

[Windows Calculator *]
LangSecRef=3025
DetectFile=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*
FileKey1=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*\AC|*|RECURSE
FileKey2=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*\LocalCache|*|RECURSE
FileKey3=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*\LocalState\Cache|*|RECURSE
FileKey4=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*\Settings|*.log*

[Windows XP Era Application *]
Section=Legacy Applications
DetectOS=|5.2
FileKey1=%WinDir%\Prefetch|*.pf

Command

winapp2ool -trim

Output

Console

 ╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
 ║                                                      Trim Complete                                                 ║
 ╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
 ║ Initial entry count: 6                                                                                             ║
 ║ Trimmed entry count: 4                                                                                             ║
 ║ 2 entries trimmed from winapp2.ini (33%)                                                                           ║
 ╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
 ║                                          Press any key to return to the menu.                                      ║
 ╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

Output file (`winapp2.ini`) after trimming

; Firefox/Mozilla based browsers (1)

[Mozilla Firefox Autofill Data *]
LangSecRef=3026
DetectFile1=%AppData%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles
DetectFile2=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Mozilla.Firefox_*
FileKey1=%AppData%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\*|autofill-profiles.json
FileKey2=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Mozilla.Firefox_*\LocalCache\Roaming\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles\*|autofill-profiles.json

; End of Firefox/Mozilla based browsers

[My Custom Cleanup *]
Section=Custom Entries
FileKey1=%UserProfile%\Downloads|*.partial

[Steam Packages *]
Section=Games
Detect=HKCU\Software\Valve\Steam
FileKey1=%ProgramFiles%\Steam\package|*.zip.*

[Windows Calculator *]
LangSecRef=3025
DetectFile=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*
FileKey1=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*\AC|*|RECURSE
FileKey2=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*\LocalCache|*|RECURSE
FileKey3=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*\LocalState\Cache|*|RECURSE
FileKey4=%LocalAppData%\Packages\Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_*\Settings|*.log*

Explanation

Entry	Result	Why
`[7-Zip ZS *]`	Removed	`HKCU\Software\7-Zip-Zstandard` does not exist. Note that 7-Zip itself is installed, but this entry targets the Zstandard fork's exact registry key.
`[Mozilla Firefox Autofill Data *]`	Kept	`DetectFile1` (`%AppData%\Mozilla\Firefox\Profiles`) exists
`[My Custom Cleanup *]`	Kept	No detection keys, always retained
`[Steam Packages *]`	Kept	`HKCU\Software\Valve\Steam` exists
`[Windows Calculator *]`	Kept	The wildcard `DetectFile` expanded to the real package folder `Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_8wekyb3d8bbwe`
`[Windows XP Era Application *]`	Removed	`DetectOS=\|5.2` requires Windows ≤ 5.2 (XP/Server 2003); this machine reports 10.0

Notes

You can see the output formatting at work in the result: the Firefox entry came out wrapped in its browser-family comment block, the way the CCleaner flavor is formatted.

Example 2: Trimming the Full Database

Context

This is the ordinary case, running Trim over the whole database to get a copy that fits one machine.

Intent

We want to trim the full 3,715-entry winapp2.ini, saving the result to a separate file so the original is preserved.

Command

winapp2ool -trim -3f winapp2-trimmed.ini

Output

Console

 ╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
 ║                                                      Trim Complete                                                 ║
 ╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
 ║ Initial entry count: 3715                                                                                          ║
 ║ Trimmed entry count: 349                                                                                           ║
 ║ 3366 entries trimmed from winapp2.ini (91%)                                                                        ║
 ╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
 ║                                          Press any key to return to the menu.                                      ║
 ╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

Output file (`winapp2-trimmed.ini`), first lines

; Version: 251109
; # of entries: 349
;
; Winapp2.ini is fully licensed under the CC-BY-SA-4.0 license agreement. ...

Explanation

The input file is winapp2.ini in the current directory (default)
The output file is winapp2-trimmed.ini; the input file is left untouched
91% of the database was removed; the 349 survivors are the entries whose software was actually detected on this machine
The ; Version: 251109 line was carried over from the input file, and the entry count comment was updated to the post-trim count

Example 3: Downloading and Trimming in One Step

Context

If the trimmed file is all you keep, you never need the full database sitting on disk.

Intent

We want to download the latest winapp2.ini from GitHub and trim it in a single command, starting from an empty directory.

Command

winapp2ool -trim -d -3f winapp2-trimmed.ini

Output

Console

 ╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
 ║                                                      Trim Complete                                                 ║
 ╠════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╣
 ║ Initial entry count: 3715                                                                                          ║
 ║ Trimmed entry count: 349                                                                                           ║
 ║ 3366 entries trimmed from winapp2.ini (91%)                                                                        ║
 ╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝

Explanation

No local winapp2.ini is required: -d downloads the latest database and trims it directly
With -d, the -1f/-1d input file settings are ignored
The output is winapp2-trimmed.ini

Example 4: Never-Trim and Always-Trim Overrides

Context

Continuing from Example 1: suppose we plan to install 7-Zip Zstandard soon, so we want its entry to survive trimming even though it isn't detected yet. Meanwhile, we prefer Steam's own cleanup for its package cache and never want [Steam Packages *] in our output, even though Steam is installed.

Intent

We want to retain [7-Zip ZS *] despite its failing detection and remove [Steam Packages *] despite its passing detection.

Files

Using the same input file as Example 1, plus:

Includes file (`includes.ini`)

[7-Zip ZS *]

Excludes file (`excludes.ini`)

[Steam Packages *]

Command

winapp2ool -trim -includes -excludes -3f winapp2-trimmed.ini

Output

[Mozilla Firefox Autofill Data *]
[7-Zip ZS *]
[My Custom Cleanup *]
[Windows Calculator *]

Explanation

[7-Zip ZS *] is now kept: the include list overrides its failing Detect
[Steam Packages *] is now removed: the exclude list overrides its passing Detect
[Windows XP Era Application *] is still removed

Notes

Both override checks run before any detection evaluation
If an entry appears in both files, the include list wins
The -includes and -excludes flags must be passed on each CLI run where they're required

Example 5: VirtualStore Key Generation

Context

On systems upgraded through older versions of Windows, pre-UAC applications may have had writes to Program Files silently redirected into %LocalAppData%\VirtualStore. Clean only the original location and the redirected copy is missed. This machine has exactly that leftover: %LocalAppData%\VirtualStore\Program Files (x86)\Steam\package exists.

Intent

We want surviving entries to pick up coverage of their VirtualStore counterparts, but only where those locations really exist.

Files

The same input file as Example 1; the relevant entry:

[Steam Packages *]
Section=Games
Detect=HKCU\Software\Valve\Steam
FileKey1=%ProgramFiles%\Steam\package|*.zip.*

Command

winapp2ool -trim -3f winapp2-trimmed.ini

Output

The entry in `winapp2-trimmed.ini` after trimming

[Steam Packages *]
Section=Games
Detect=HKCU\Software\Valve\Steam
FileKey1=%LocalAppData%\VirtualStore\Program Files*\Steam\package|*.zip.*
FileKey2=%ProgramFiles%\Steam\package|*.zip.*

Explanation

[Steam Packages *] passed detection, so Trim scanned its FileKeys for VirtualStore-eligible paths
FileKey1=%ProgramFiles%\Steam\package|*.zip.* produced the candidate %LocalAppData%\VirtualStore\Program Files*\Steam\package, which exists on this machine, so the key was added; the entry's FileKeys were then renumbered
On a machine without that VirtualStore path, the entry would pass through unchanged. Compare to Example 1, where the same input produced no VirtualStore keys