Cannot Defragment

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Make sure you do not have any programs running that need to access the disk
that you're defragmenting. Close all programs you have running, including
any antivirus/antispyware scanners, screen savers, email programs/instant
messaging programs, etc. My rule of thumb is that the only thing running
should be defrag and nothing else. You may need to go through the small
icons in your system tray and right-click on each one to disable/close ones
that may need to access your disk.
 
Select Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Disk CleanUp to
Empty your Recycle Bin and Remove Temporary Internet Files. Also
select Start, All Programs, accessories, System Tools, Disk CleanUp,
More Options, System Restore and remove all but the latest System
Restore point. Run Disk Defragmenter. Follow this procedure for each
partition in turn.

The amount of free space is very important when running Disk
Defragmenter. A minimum of 15% is required but sometimes 20% is
desirable if the drive / partition contains one or more large files.
You can run Disk Defragmenter a second and third time if files are
still fragmented after the first run. You can put files more prone to
fragment in their own partitions.

If you use Outlook Express regularly compacting Outlook Express before
running Disk Defragmenter is helpful.

Disk Defragmenter provides a "Most fragmented files" list. When a
fragmented file is larger than the largest pocket of free space
available then the files is not fragmented. running Disk Defragmenter
a second or third time does move files around and can reduce /
eliminate the contents of the "Most fragmented files" list. The more
free space on the drive / partition, the more likely it is that all
fragments will be eliminated.

Free space cannot be defragmented with the Windows XP Disk
Defragmenter. Neither can your pagefile cannot be defragmented because
the file is in use whilst Disk Defragmenter is running. You can
purchase other Defragmenting Utilities e.g. Perfect Disk, which will
defragment your pagefile and free space. Another option is to place
your pagefile in it's own partition. A pagefile partition is best
located as the first partition on a second hard drive. You should
leave a small page file at the original location.
http://www.raxco.com/


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Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
FCA

Stourport, Worcs, England
Enquire, plan and execute.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
Dear Airwave,

Don't use the fragmentation utility that comes with windows. Mr.
Cornell is correct that it only works with a list of the most
fragmented files on your computer. If you want true defragmentation I
suggest you try O&O Defrag. I use it myself and it allows you several
options such as a constant stealth defrag to keep all files nice and
connected, a space defrag which doesn't truly defrag the drive but
keeps all your available space together at the end of the volume, then
3 true defrags based on path and filename, last access, and last
modified.

It comes with great documentation as to which will best suit your
needs based on how and why you use your computer, and it's worth any
price really. If you're less than legitimate it's also heavily
populated on almost every peer2peer network in existance.
 
You are distorting what I said. The Disk Defragmenter that comes with
Windows XP suits most users needs. Some users do not feel the need to
spend US$49.95 for a Disk Defragmenter and for one of the lesser known
third party Disk Defragmenters at that!

--

Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
 
If you're running Windows 98, there's a very helpful article (with
step-by-step instructions) at http://support.mcrosoft.com/kb/186978
A friend running Windows 98 suffered the same problem. Following the
article's instructions, he now can defrag his pc routinely. (And he's not
much more technically oriented than the on/off switch!)
 
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