NTFS and MFT Zone

[Guest]

Can someone talk to me about how to manage the MFT and MFT Zone in WinXP
ProSP2?

I have a basic understanding of the benefits of the MFT, but have security
and space concerns in that I understand the MFT retains the name of all files
and folders, and even the contents of small files.

I want to begin a photo service which would require adding thousands of
files to my hard drive to manipulate, arrange, and process then deleted.

From what I know, my MFT Zone will increase dramatically, and even though
the Zone can re-use space left by deleted files, the Zone itself never
shrinks and no one seems to know how effective the Zone is in reusing the
deleted file space rather than continuing to grab new space as long as it is
available.

I am also concerned with security on having numerous file names on my system
with no way to clean out deleted file names.

Is there a way to manage this process to:
1) limit MFT Zone expansion
2) force the deleted file information to be deleted from the Zone
3) wipe the MFT Zone of files no longer utilized
4) or am I mis-informed - how hard is it to read the MFT?

Thanks, any discussion or direction would be very much appreciated.

 

[Carey Frisch [MVP]]

MFT Zone
http://www.microsoft.com/resources/...Windows/XP/all/reskit/en-us/prkc_fil_xhpo.asp

--
Carey Frisch
Microsoft MVP
Windows XP - Shell/User
Microsoft Newsgroups

Get Windows XP Service Pack 2 with Advanced Security Technologies:
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/protect/windowsxp/choose.mspx

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:

| Can someone talk to me about how to manage the MFT and MFT Zone in WinXP
| ProSP2?
|
| I have a basic understanding of the benefits of the MFT, but have security
| and space concerns in that I understand the MFT retains the name of all files
| and folders, and even the contents of small files.
|
| I want to begin a photo service which would require adding thousands of
| files to my hard drive to manipulate, arrange, and process then deleted.
|
| From what I know, my MFT Zone will increase dramatically, and even though
| the Zone can re-use space left by deleted files, the Zone itself never
| shrinks and no one seems to know how effective the Zone is in reusing the
| deleted file space rather than continuing to grab new space as long as it is
| available.
|
| I am also concerned with security on having numerous file names on my system
| with no way to clean out deleted file names.
|
| Is there a way to manage this process to:
| 1) limit MFT Zone expansion
| 2) force the deleted file information to be deleted from the Zone
| 3) wipe the MFT Zone of files no longer utilized
| 4) or am I mis-informed - how hard is it to read the MFT?
|
| Thanks, any discussion or direction would be very much appreciated.

 

[Guest]

Carey,
thanks for the reply, however the links pretty much explain what I already
know about how MFT works. What I need to know is how to limit, clean,
reclaim, secure this ever growing Zone.
Any other references?
Thanks

 

[Wesley Vogel]

Sysinternals Freeware - NTFSInfo
http://www.sysinternals.com/Utilities/NtfsInfo.html

Sysinternals Freeware - SDelete
http://www.sysinternals.com/Utilities/SDelete.html

--
Hope this helps. Let us know.

Wes
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User

In