Build cleanup in ADT Hub

Last updated on November 9, 2026

Overview​

Build cleanup helps you keep the disk on your computer under control when you install many builds through AccelByte Development Toolkit (ADT) Hub. Hub records when you last used each installed build, reminds you once a week about builds you have not used for a while, and warns you when a disk is getting full. If you want, Hub can also remove unused builds for you every Thursday, after it warns you on Monday.

Build cleanup is for quality assurance (QA) testers and developers who install builds on their own machines. Every setting is on your computer and applies only to you. Hub never removes a build from ADT storage, only from your computer.

Why build cleanup exists​

When you follow several tracks, Hub installs each new head build for you. Builds pile up quickly, often without ever being launched. Most people find out only when a download or install fails because the disk is full, often right before a playtest.

Cleaning up by hand is slow and risky. Without knowing when each build was last used, it is hard to tell which builds are safe to remove. Removing a build can also delete the logs and performance traces in its Saved folder that you or a teammate still need.

Build cleanup solves this in steps, from gentle to automatic:

  • You see which builds are unused and how much space they take.
  • You get a weekly reminder and can act on it in a few clicks.
  • You can hand cleanup over to Hub, with a warning first.
  • You can keep any build, and you can keep logs and traces when a build goes.

How build cleanup works​

Unused days​

For each installed build, Hub counts the days since you last used it. Only launches from Hub count as use. Playing a build from Hub, or running it on a devkit (a console development kit) from Hub, resets the count. Launching the game outside Hub, or only deploying it to a devkit, does not.

The count starts from the latest of these dates:

  • The last time you launched the build from Hub. If you never launched it, the date Hub installed it.
  • The date a newer build replaced it as the head build of a track you follow.
  • The date your computer first ran the Hub version that added build cleanup.

My Builds shows the date in the Last used column and the count in the Unused column. When the count does not start from that date, the Unused column says why, for example "Counting since 15 October, when Hub was updated".

Builds that are never listed or removed​

Hub never lists a build in a reminder, and never removes it automatically, when the build is:

  • Kept. You chose Keep build for it. It carries a Kept tag.
  • The head build of a track you follow. It carries a Head build, followed track tag. A track is followed when any account on this computer turned on automatic download for it, or when Enable automatic build update for all subscribed channels is on in Hub Settings.
  • Running, installing or updating.

The head build of a track you do not follow is not protected. When it is listed, Hub notes "This is the current head build of a track you don't follow".

The 30-day start period​

Hub needs time to learn how you use your builds. After you first run the Hub version that added build cleanup, no build is listed or removed for 30 days, whatever your unused-days limit is. Listing starts on the first Monday after those 30 days. While auto-uninstall is on during this period, My Builds shows the first possible removal date above the list.

The weekly cycle​

Build cleanup follows one weekly rhythm in your local time: a reminder at the start of the week, and removal on Thursday.

WhenAuto-uninstall off (default)Auto-uninstall on
MondayBuilds you have not used for a while: lists builds that passed your limit, or will by Thursday. Nothing is removed.N builds will be removed on Thursday: lists the builds Hub will remove.
Monday to ThursdayYou can keep or uninstall any listed build.You can keep any build, or remove builds now.
ThursdayNothing happens.Hub removes the listed builds that are still due.
After removalNot applicable.Hub tells you what it removed and how much space it freed.

Hub creates the week's reminder the first time it runs that week, so the reminder appears on Monday if Hub runs on Monday. Each reminder appears in the notification panel and as a system notification. There is at most one unused-build or removal reminder a week. A build you leave alone is listed again the next week.

The unused-build reminder is on by default. Turn it on or off with Remind me on Monday about unused builds in Application Settings > Downloads. Unused-build reminder in Application Settings > Notifications is the same setting.

Automatic removal and the 72-hour warning​

Auto-uninstall is off by default. When you turn it on, Hub first shows a preview of what it will remove and when. Nothing changes until you choose Confirm. Turning it on, or lowering the limit while it is on, never sends a removal reminder in the same week. The affected builds wait for the next Monday's removal reminder.

On Thursday, Hub removes a listed build only when all of these are true:

  • Hub is running on Thursday.
  • The build is still past your limit and is not kept, protected, running, installing or updating.
  • You saw the removal reminder on or before Monday of that week, at least 72 hours before removal.
  • Hub has been running for at least 2 minutes since it started.
  • Hub confirmed which builds are head builds of your followed tracks in the last 6 hours.

A reminder counts as seen when it appears in the open notification panel while the Hub window is open, or when its system notification is delivered. If you see the reminder on Monday at 18:00, the build can be removed from Thursday at 18:00.

If a build cannot be removed on Thursday, Hub moves it to the next week. If Hub is closed on Thursday, nothing is removed until the next Thursday. There is no catch-up removal on another day.

The Saved folder​

The Saved folder holds a build's logs and performance traces, such as Unreal Insights traces. Hub looks for every folder named Saved inside the build folder, up to four folder levels deep.

  • Automatic removal always keeps the Saved folder. This covers both Thursday removal and Remove now. Hub deletes everything else in the build folder and leaves the Saved folder in place.
  • When you uninstall a build yourself, the uninstall dialog has a Keep logs and traces (Saved folder, size) checkbox. Its starting value comes from the Keep the Saved folder when I uninstall a build setting, which is off by default.
  • When Hub uninstalls without a dialog, for example from the build page or a remote uninstall by a channel admin, it follows the same setting.

When Hub keeps a Saved folder, it tells you where the folder is and how large it is. Every uninstall removes the whole build folder apart from any Saved folder you keep.

Removal history​

The Removal history tab in My Builds lists every automatic removal from the last 12 months: when, how (Thursday removal or Remove now), how much space was freed, and where each kept Saved folder is. You cannot clear this list. Builds you uninstall yourself are not in it.

Disk space reminder​

Hub also reminds you when a disk that holds one of your installation folders reaches a set level, 80% full by default. Hub checks disk use when it starts, after a download, install or update finishes, and when you change the level. It reminds you once when a disk crosses the level, and again only after use drops below the level and crosses it again. A full disk never makes Hub remove builds.

Key benefits​

  • No surprise full disks. The disk space reminder warns you before a download or install fails.
  • Cleanup in a few clicks. The weekly reminder lists exactly which builds are unused and how much space they use.
  • Hands-free cleanup when you want it. With auto-uninstall on, Hub cleans up every week without you remembering to.
  • No lost builds you still need. Kept builds, head builds of followed tracks, and builds in use are never removed automatically. Every automatic removal is announced at least 72 hours before.
  • No lost logs or traces. Automatic removal always keeps the Saved folder, and you choose for every manual uninstall.
  • A clear record. Hub tells you what it removed, how much space it freed, and where the kept Saved folders are, for one year.

Limitations and considerations​

  • Only launches from Hub count as use. If you start a build from its folder or from another tool, Hub still sees it as unused. Use Keep build for builds you use that way.
  • The days are fixed. Reminders come at the start of the week and removal happens on Thursday, in your local time. You cannot choose other days or snooze a reminder.
  • Hub must run on Thursday. If Hub is closed all of Thursday, nothing is removed until the next Thursday.
  • One limit for all builds. The unused-days limit applies to every build on your computer. You cannot set a different limit per track.
  • Settings are per computer. Your limit, switches and kept builds are stored on this computer and do not follow you to another one.
  • Kept Saved folders still use disk space. Hub never deletes a Saved folder it kept. Delete it yourself when you no longer need it. You can find it from the Removal history tab or the Saved folder kept notification.
  • Hub only keeps Saved folders inside the build folder. If your game writes logs or traces somewhere else, for example to your user profile folder, Hub does not find or keep them, and does not delete them either.
  • Uninstall removes the whole build folder. Files the game created inside the build folder are removed too, apart from any Saved folder you keep. The earlier Delete entire folder during uninstall setting no longer exists.
  • The disk space reminder is event-based. Hub does not check disk use in the background. If another program fills the disk while Hub is open, Hub notices at the next check.
  • Network installation folders are not checked by the disk space reminder.
  • Console builds are cleaned up on your computer only. A console build is treated like any other build. Removing it deletes the files on your computer. It does not uninstall the game from a devkit.
  • The reminder shows the game you have open. The notification card and My Builds list builds of the current game, with links to other games in the same namespace.

Supported platforms​

Build cleanup is part of ADT Hub. It works the same on ADT Hub for Windows and ADT Hub for macOS, for every build that Hub installed on your computer, including Smart Build builds. It does not depend on the game engine.

Two details differ by platform:

  • Checking whether a build is in use. On Windows, Hub also detects files that another program has open, and reports "a file is in use by another program". On macOS, Hub checks only for running processes started from the build folder.
  • Disk names. On Windows, the disk space reminder names the drive letter, for example Drive D. On macOS, it names the volume's mount path.
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