---
title: 'Why free space doesn’t increase after deleting files'
description: 'Why deleted files still count toward your disk usage until an administrator empties the trash.'
url: https://www.medialab.co/support/troubleshooting/upload-processing/why-free-space-doesnt-increase-after-deleting-files
---

# Why free space doesn’t increase after deleting files

When you delete a file or folder in MediaLab, it is first moved to the **trash**. While in the trash, the file still counts toward your Lab’s total disk usage.

- Only **administrators** can access the trash (via **Settings → Trash**) to permanently delete or restore files.
- If you don’t have admin rights, ask your administrator to remove the files permanently.
- After emptying the trash, it may take a few minutes for the freed disk space to become available.

Administrators can also enable **automatic clean-up** in the General Settings so files in the trash are periodically removed.