Once you have checked the Modern Warfare 4 install size, the next question is the one that actually blocks people: the game alone already fills the drive, so how much more space does recording your whole session need? The official PC requirements page lists storage identically in the minimum, recommended and ray tracing tiers, as an SSD with 115 GB of available space at launch, and adds that mandatory game updates may require additional storage space (checked October 17, 2026). What is not published anywhere official is the actual download size or how much the install occupies afterwards, so treat 115 GB as the amount of room the game wants free, not as a measured footprint. This guide covers only the space your recordings use. The install size itself belongs to the article linked above; here we work through how large to set the recording allocation, the thresholds at which recording stops, how to move the save path to a second drive, and how to clear room when you want a full DMZ run or a whole campaign mission in one file. Shrinking the game install itself is not covered, because no official method has been published. You can also see how recording works across the Call of Duty hub. All recording numbers come from DOR app settings as of October 17, 2026, and DOR is a Windows desktop app, so this article covers PC play.
Bottom line: set the recording allocation first, then protect the 20 GB and 30 GB lines
Three numbers decide everything. First, the maximum storage DOR may use defaults to 30 GB. Second, inside that budget the allocation reserved for full gameplay video defaults to 5 GB, and game clips can additionally use whatever the full gameplay allocation leaves unused. Third, free space on the drive itself matters on its own: below 30 GB you get a warning, and below 20 GB DOR will not start a recording and stops one that is running. The moment right after the game finishes downloading is when you are closest to that line. Next comes automatic file management, so check in settings which way it is set. While it is off, recordings simply pile up and you delete them yourself. With it on, cleanup only happens once the allocation is full, and even then the oldest sessions you have not bookmarked go first while the newest session and anything bookmarked stay. So it is not that leaving recording on deletes everything for you; it is that files roll out oldest-first after the allocation fills. If you plan to keep whole matches, raise the allocation before you play. At 1080p and 30 fps an hour runs roughly 3 to 4 GB, and at 60 fps roughly 4 to 5.5 GB, which makes the 5 GB default a little over an hour of 1080p 30 fps footage. For longer sessions such as the extraction runs covered in the Modern Warfare 4 DMZ guide, 20 GB or more is a safer allocation. If the drive holding the game is already tight, send only the recordings elsewhere. The file save path lives in the file management section of settings; change it with the game closed, and pick a local folder on a lettered drive. If you also run another recorder, check its own storage settings separately. For Steam's built-in game recording, for example, our Steam game recording low disk space fix shows where its limits live. The order is simple: check free space after installing, set the save path, raise the allocation to match your session length, and bookmark anything worth keeping before you launch the game.
How to make room for recordings before you launch Modern Warfare 4
- 1Write down the free space on the game driveThe official requirements ask for the same amount of available SSD space in every tier, and note that mandatory updates may need more. If what is left after installing is under 20 GB, DOR will not start recording at all. Open the drive properties in File Explorer and note how many gigabytes are actually free before you plan anything else, and leave slack for the launch-day patch.
- 2Point the recording save path at a drive with roomIn DOR settings, open the file management section and set the file save path to the folder where recordings should land. If the SSD holding the game is tight, send recordings to another internal drive instead. Change the path with the game closed. OneDrive folders are rejected because the originals get moved to the cloud and can corrupt a recording, and network folders are rejected too, so choose a local folder on a lettered drive.
- 3Set maximum storage and the full gameplay video allocationOn the same screen, set the maximum storage DOR may use, which defaults to 30 GB, and the allocation reserved for full gameplay video inside it, which defaults to 5 GB. Raising the allocation keeps long sessions around longer, while game clips additionally use whatever the full gameplay allocation leaves unused. Size it by multiplying your session length by the per-hour figure: three hours a day at 1080p 30 fps lands near 10 GB.
- 4Decide on automatic file management, and bookmark keepersCheck whether automatic file management is on. With it on, cleanup runs once the allocation is full, removing the oldest sessions you have not bookmarked while the newest session and any bookmarked video or clip are protected. With it off, nothing is deleted for you, so you manage the folder by hand. Either way, bookmark a session you want to keep, such as your first campaign run, as soon as you finish playing.
- 5Lock in resolution and frame rate before launchingThe defaults are 1080p and 30 fps, with 60 fps available as an option; 1440p and above and 120 fps and above are Pro features. Settle resolution, frame rate and clip length with the game closed. Going from 30 fps to 60 fps at 1080p makes the same length of footage roughly 1.3 to 1.5 times larger, so staying at 30 fps is easier when space is tight.
- 6Clear room before a long match and export right afterTo keep a full DMZ run or an entire campaign mission in one file, free as much of the allocation as your expected session length times the per-hour figure. Ninety minutes is around 5 GB at 1080p 30 fps. When the session ends, bookmark it, then use section trimming to pull out the parts you will actually use and clean up the original so the space comes back.
Modern Warfare 4 recording space reference values (checked October 17, 2026)
| Item | Value | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Game install space (official) | The free space the official requirements ask for (see the install size article), plus extra for mandatory updates | The same figure appears in all three requirement tiers. Recording files are not included in it. |
| Recording stops below | Under 20 GB of free disk space | A recording will not start, and one in progress stops. Check free space right after installing. |
| Warning appears below | 30 GB of free disk space | When the alert appears, clear space or move the save path to a roomier drive. |
| Maximum storage (default) | 30 GB | The total space DOR may use. Change it in the file management section of settings. |
| Full gameplay video allocation (default) | 5 GB | A little over an hour at 1080p 30 fps. Raise it if you keep long matches. |
| Per hour at 1080p (calculated) | About 3 to 4 GB at 30 fps, about 4 to 5.5 GB at 60 fps | Calculated from the recording bitrates the app uses; real files vary with the scene and the PC. |
Check before you record
- Free space on the game drive after installing is comfortably above the 20 GB line.
- The recording save path is a local folder on a lettered drive, not OneDrive and not a network folder.
- Maximum storage and the full gameplay video allocation are sized for how long your sessions run.
- You have decided whether automatic file management is on, and bookmarked anything worth keeping.
- Resolution and frame rate are set with the game closed, because they cannot change mid-recording.
- Before a long match, the allocation still has room left for the whole session.
Keeping full sessions in DOR without filling the drive
DOR is a free Windows desktop app. Titles launched through Call of Duty HQ are detected automatically, and DOR records the whole session from launch to exit as a single mp4; if a new title does not appear in the list, check the game section of settings. Call of Duty sits on the full-gameplay side, so to keep a moment you press F8 right after it happens and the previous 30 seconds are saved as a separate clip (15, 30, 45 or 60 seconds in settings), while longer stretches go through F7 screen recording, which you end by pressing F7 again. The capture routine is covered in more detail in how to save Modern Warfare 4 clips. On the storage side, the values above apply as they are: the full gameplay video allocation defaults to 5 GB, and with automatic file management on, cleanup happens only once that allocation is full, taking the oldest sessions you have not bookmarked while the newest session and bookmarked videos stay. Below 30 GB of free disk space you get a warning, and below 20 GB recording will not start or stops. Default quality is 1080p and 30 fps, and resolution, frame rate and clip length are set before you launch the game. Saved sessions can be trimmed in the library into 16:9, 9:16 or 1:1 segments, so pulling out the parts you need and then clearing the original is a practical way to recycle space. If the game crashes, the recording ends with it and F8 can no longer catch that moment, so trim the end of the session you just recorded and bookmark it instead.
