I couldn't find anywhere more relevant to put this, so I decided to go for the miscellaneous forum. I was tempted to put it in to cPanel, but it's not directly related to it. If a mod's got a better suggestion, do feel free to move it.

Firstly, I should probably make it clear that AstaHost is my first host. As such, I have little experience with the structure of a site. Looking at File Manager just now led me to see a stackload of files that I 1) have no idea what they do, and 2) don't remember seeing there when I first started my hosting plan. There's also a few that I vaguely remember being around, but I'm not entirely sure why they're needed. Let me go through what I've got:

In the "root" directory:

.cpanel (folder)
.fantasticodata (folder)
.sqmaildata (folder)
.trash (folder)
.cgi-bin (folder)
etc (folder)
mail (folder)
public_ftp (folder)
public_html (folder)
www (folder
.bash_logout
.bash_profile
.bashrc
.contactemail
.contactsavetime
.lastlogin
.mailboxlist

I'm pretty sure most of that stuff isn't entirely necessary. Take .sqmaildata, for example. I used the Squirrel Mail thing once while I had a quick look at a test email during the time I was setting up Outlook Express. Do I need to keep it? Will it damage anything if I get rid of it? What about .fantasticodata? Again, I used it a little while ago but haven't touched it since (and don't intend to).

I assume .cpanel is vital, but there's a fair amount of stuff in the root directory alone that I'm pretty sure is surplus to requirements. I'm starting to wish I'd made a list when I first got the hosting.

Perhaps someone (ideally someone who definitely knows what's vital and what isn't ) could make such a list? Ideally it would include subfolders, too (so what you get when you first create a hosting account) for the benefit of the rest of us who aren't quite so technically minded. Sure, I'm well on my way to creating a website (locally, I might add), but it's the top-level admin side that I'm not entirely up-to-scratch with.

Thanks!

EDIT: Hmmm...it seems that the "www" folder is actually a shortcut to "public_html". Also, do I have to have all of these MS FrontPage files lurking everywhere?