How does defragmenter help

Is it a Windows problem? Do ext3 disks suffer this problem? Are files written to the first available space, regardless of how many pieces they will be in, or are they written to the largest free space that will contain them?

Do multi-core CPUs write multiple files at once, thus guaranteeing fragmentation? I use Adobe products, eg, Lightroom. It has many options and features which I consider as not necessary but still good to have since Windows OS has most of these options included also. Thanks for a great article and hope to hear from you soon.

Hi, Leo, I seem to have a severe problem with disc errors caught by two scans which I use. My computer started running badly about 3 wks ago. Defrag is taking more than 12 hrs to run. I hope you can help with at least one of these suggested problems. Thank you!! This article explains what a browser cache is and how to clear it. Windows Vista SP2 also defrags weekly, by default. As a photographer, I use editing tools which fragment the disk rapidly, and in a matter of a couple days, can noticeably slow performance.

I changed my automatic Schedule, from the default Weekly to Daily, as I use my computers a lot. But I do not notice any difference! One comment referred to programs that run at Start up, which may not be needed unless the user runs them specifically when needed. How to identify them?? What were you expecting? Unless you do something that results in dramatic fragmentation in a short period of time most of us do not , the difference between daily and weekly would not be noticable.

And to echo 1: SO not worth it. Depends on the programs. Could be wrong, of course. What I do see, though, are system reserved partitions with very little free space, and that could also prevent a defrag from completing. Comments violating those rules will be removed. Comments that don't add value will be removed, including off-topic or content-free comments, or comments that look even a little bit like spam.

All comments containing links and certain keywords will be moderated before publication. I want comments to be valuable for everyone, including those who come later and take the time to read. Search Ask Leo! So, what does it mean for a disk to be fragmented?

Why does it get worse over time? And is defragging something you need to worry about? Fragmentation refers to the physical layout of data on a hard disk. Information that seems logically connected to us might be scattered across a hard disk. Defragmentation refers to the process of rearranging the files on disk so that all data is adjoined. Fragmentation is a side effect of normal disk usage, including file creation, growth, and deletion. Do this: Subscribe to Confident Computing!

I'll see you there! Podcast audio. Related Video. You may also like: Vulnerable Points on the Path to Privacy - Privacy and security: tracing the path from your fingertips through the services you use to your information's final destination. How Do I Bypass Keyloggers? The problem is, keyloggers can log much more than keystrokes. There's really only one solution: avoid them in the first place.

Any techniques to attempt to do so are risky and error prone. You need to be prepared to provide it. If you do not defrage your PC, then what is the worst possible thing that can happen? The computer will get slower and slower and slower… Reply. Thanks for a great article. Well, I at least disagree with him! Do you have to re-load any software after you defrag your computer Reply. Defragging is transparent to your installed software.

Nothing will happen unless the PC is turned on. Defrag does not free up space. The examples you quote are not how things work. Moving free space around does not create more free space. Thanks… It depends on the encryption being used, but in general it should be safe.

To be clear you do NOT harm your computer by leaving it on overnight. But yes, I did think twice about this before I revised the article. Files are contained in sectors on the disk, and defragging is, ultimately, nothing more than shuffling the content of sectors around.

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All other trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners. Find a product Part no. Your search did not match any active Crucial part numbers or configuration IDs. Find articles and site content Enter keywords. Back to results. The more you tell us the more we can help. Can you help us improve? Resolved my issue. Clear instructions. Easy to follow. No jargon. Pictures helped. Didn't match my screen. Incorrect instructions. Too technical. Not enough information. Not enough pictures.

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