Slack
Slack’s desktop app is built on Electron and stores a mix of Chromium disk cache, GPUCache data, Code Cache bytecode, IndexedDB and Local Storage records, plus SQLite databases and WAL/SHM files under its profile folder. These files speed up workspace loading, avatar and emoji rendering, message search, and hardware-accelerated UI drawing, but they can become stale after app updates, workspace changes, or graphics driver changes. Kudu removes rebuildable Slack cache data, including browser-style caches, shader and GPU cache files, temporary storage, and bloated SQLite support files, while leaving your messages, signed-in accounts, preferences, and downloaded files alone.
Why clean Slack?
- Corrupted Chromium disk cache entries can leave channels stuck loading or show broken avatars, emoji, and image previews until Slack fetches them again
- Invalidated Electron Code Cache after a Slack update can make the first launch unusually slow, with a blank or partially drawn window while bytecode is rebuilt
- Stale GPUCache and shader data from a previous graphics driver version can cause black panes, flickering, or choppy scrolling in Slack’s hardware-accelerated interface
- Oversized IndexedDB and Local Storage data from many workspaces can make workspace switching laggy and delay channel list or unread badge updates
- SQLite WAL and SHM files can grow after heavy message indexing and search activity, wasting disk space even though the underlying database contents have already been checkpointed
- SQLite page fragmentation accumulates as Slack rewrites local databases; VACUUM rewrites the file compactly without deleting rows, which can reduce disk usage and improve local search responsiveness
- Stale cached copies of team assets and web resources can keep old branding, missing custom emoji, or outdated interface elements visible until the cache is cleared
Cache paths Kudu targets
These databases are vacuumed (compacted) — no data is deleted. SQLite VACUUM reclaims wasted space left over from normal usage.
Windows
%AppData%/Slack |
macOS
~/Library/Application Support/Slack |
Linux
~/.config/Slack |
Common questions about Slack
Download Kudu and reclaim your disk space.
Available on Windows, macOS, and Linux. No account required, no feature gates, no telemetry without consent. All cleaning targets are open source and community-auditable.