PerfectDisk Question

[SgtRich]

I have PerfectDisk 6.0 installed and use it to defrag my hard drive.

PerfectDisk gives users the option to let PerfectDisk manage just the boot
files (Recommended) or *all* of the Layout.ini files (Windows XP Only). If
the boot files option is used, Windows XP manages the Layout.ini files.
PerfectDisk, in its Help file, recommends letting itself manage all the
Layout.ini files, if Windows XP is installed, and that is what I have
selected.

The problem is that my system takes >5 minutes to boot completely. For
anyone that uses (or is familiar with) PerfectDisk, which option is better?

My system:
Dell Dimension XPS T550 (550 MHz), running Windows XP Home Edition
640 MB memory
22.6 GB Ultra ATA (7200 RPM) hard drive (using one partition)

Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[R. McCarty]

Use "Let Perfect Disk manage all the Layout.ini Files"

These options relate to the handling of Prefetch data. which
have different modes, Boot, Programs and both Programs
and boot.

Five minutes is very slow for an XP boot cycle. You should
investigate what is running at startup. You might want to get
BootVis (a MS tool) to visually examine the boot sequence.

 

[CS]

I have PerfectDisk 6.0 installed and use it to defrag my hard drive.

PerfectDisk gives users the option to let PerfectDisk manage just the boot
files (Recommended) or *all* of the Layout.ini files (Windows XP Only). If
the boot files option is used, Windows XP manages the Layout.ini files.
PerfectDisk, in its Help file, recommends letting itself manage all the
Layout.ini files, if Windows XP is installed, and that is what I have
selected.

The problem is that my system takes >5 minutes to boot completely. For
anyone that uses (or is familiar with) PerfectDisk, which option is better?

My system:
Dell Dimension XPS T550 (550 MHz), running Windows XP Home Edition
640 MB memory
22.6 GB Ultra ATA (7200 RPM) hard drive (using one partition)

Any advice would be appreciated.

I agree with the other reply - let PD manage everything. What you
might do to try to determine what is taking so long to boot your
computer is to:

From RUN type in "msconfig.exe" (no quotes). That will open the
configuration editor. When it opens, click on the STARTUP tab. That
will display a list of which programs are running when the machine
starts. It's possible you may be able to eliminate most of them by
removing the check from the box at the beginning of the line which
describes the program.

But be careful not to stop something that you need such as your virus
scanning software.

 

[SgtRich]

I agree with the other reply - let PD manage everything. What you
might do to try to determine what is taking so long to boot your
computer is to:

From RUN type in "msconfig.exe" (no quotes). That will open the
configuration editor. When it opens, click on the STARTUP tab. That
will display a list of which programs are running when the machine
starts. It's possible you may be able to eliminate most of them by
removing the check from the box at the beginning of the line which
describes the program.

But be careful not to stop something that you need such as your virus
scanning software.

Thanks to you both for the quick replies.

 

[Alex Nichol]

PerfectDisk gives users the option to let PerfectDisk manage just the boot
files (Recommended) or *all* of the Layout.ini files (Windows XP Only). If
the boot files option is used, Windows XP manages the Layout.ini files.
PerfectDisk, in its Help file, recommends letting itself manage all the
Layout.ini files, if Windows XP is installed, and that is what I have
selected.

The problem is that my system takes >5 minutes to boot completely. For
anyone that uses (or is familiar with) PerfectDisk, which option is better?

I use it, allowing it to manage all layout files. And my boot is
fairly quick. I don't think your delays can relate at all to settings
of PD, but to some software that you load at boot and which is taking
this long time. AV packages doing an initial scan (if only a
progressive partial one, as eTrust can be set to do) are a likely cause
- and of very doubtful value

 

[SgtRich]

I use it, allowing it to manage all layout files. And my boot is
fairly quick. I don't think your delays can relate at all to settings
of PD, but to some software that you load at boot and which is taking
this long time. AV packages doing an initial scan (if only a
progressive partial one, as eTrust can be set to do) are a likely cause
- and of very doubtful value

Thanks, Alex. I can't figure it out.

I use Norton AntiVirus Pro 2004 for my anti-virus needs and see nothing in
its settings to justify this kind of delay in bootup. I've gone through my
startup programs using MSCONFIG so many times, I lost count. I've done a
complete virus scan, used AdAware & Spybot - Search & Destroy...nothing
helps.

 

[Gary]

I don't use NAV2004 but I do know there is an option to load Auto Protect
before Windows loads. You can try to disable it and see if that helps.

 

[Al Dykes]

I have PerfectDisk 6.0 installed and use it to defrag my hard drive.

PerfectDisk gives users the option to let PerfectDisk manage just the boot
files (Recommended) or *all* of the Layout.ini files (Windows XP Only). If
the boot files option is used, Windows XP manages the Layout.ini files.
PerfectDisk, in its Help file, recommends letting itself manage all the
Layout.ini files, if Windows XP is installed, and that is what I have
selected.

The problem is that my system takes >5 minutes to boot completely. For
anyone that uses (or is familiar with) PerfectDisk, which option is better?

You may have said this before and I missed it;

What are you running during startup ?

If you're defragging during every boot; Why ?

Have you looke at all the places in the registry to see what's
being run at startup ? maybe you have some spyware.

If you uninstall PD does boot take any longer.

Are you looking at PD as a solution to you boot time (by
laying out the disk in some alleged optimal way ?)
or as the cause ?


If it takes 5 minutes you should be able to run task manager and see
which processes are using CPU cycles, or put perfmon first in your
startup group and see exactly what your system is doing and produce a
log.

I like PD and recommend it but IMHO some of the "features" like disk
layout are glitz to compete with the other defraggers and impress
people that look at checklists and buy the product with the longest
feature list. I'm not sure some of these options have any measureable
real world speed benefit. Just my $0.02.

 

[SgtRich]

You may have said this before and I missed it;

What are you running during startup ?

Besides startup files for Norton AntiVirus Pro 2004, ZoneAlarm Pro and
nVidia programs (for my graphics card), there's not a whole lot there.

If you're defragging during every boot; Why ?

I'm not.

Have you looke at all the places in the registry to see what's
being run at startup ? maybe you have some spyware.

Checked for spyware with both AdAware & Spybot - Search & Destroy

If you uninstall PD does boot take any longer.

I haven't but I don't think that's the problem, as there's no referral to
PerfectDisk in my startup files.

Are you looking at PD as a solution to you boot time (by
laying out the disk in some alleged optimal way ?)
or as the cause ?

I'm assuming that a disk that's been defragged well (using PerfectDisk)
would give me the best hope of a quick boot.

If it takes 5 minutes you should be able to run task manager and see
which processes are using CPU cycles, or put perfmon first in your
startup group and see exactly what your system is doing and produce a
log.

O.K....you lost me there. What is perfmon?

 

[SgtRich]

I don't use NAV2004 but I do know there is an option to load Auto Protect
before Windows loads. You can try to disable it and see if that helps.

Thanks, Gary. I'll look for that.

 

[Al Dykes]

Besides startup files for Norton AntiVirus Pro 2004, ZoneAlarm Pro and
nVidia programs (for my graphics card), there's not a whole lot there.

I'm not.

Checked for spyware with both AdAware & Spybot - Search & Destroy

I haven't but I don't think that's the problem, as there's no referral to
PerfectDisk in my startup files.

In Xp there are lots of places in the registry that make software run
after startup. I always have to dig to find the list of places to look.

I'm assuming that a disk that's been defragged well (using PerfectDisk)
would give me the best hope of a quick boot.
O.K....you lost me there. What is perfmon?
--

perfmon.exe. You can create a list of all the activities on you PC you
want to monitor, save the config and put it in your startup. When
our login is completed you will have charts of what your PC was doing
while it was starting up.

I suggest you uninstall PD and work on the problem.

 

[David Candy]

1. Try clean boot troubleshooting using MSConfig. It may be a service or driver.

2. EMail me and I'll send you bootviz which monitors drivers loading times.

3. You don't say when the delay happens, if the desktop is up but not the shell, check if you have shortcuts to ftp sites.

 

[SgtRich]

perfmon.exe. You can create a list of all the activities on you PC you
want to monitor, save the config and put it in your startup. When
our login is completed you will have charts of what your PC was doing
while it was starting up.

Very cool! Thanks, Al. I'll play with that for a while.

 

[SgtRich]

1. Try clean boot troubleshooting using MSConfig. It may be a service or driver.

2. EMail me and I'll send you bootviz which monitors drivers loading times.

3. You don't say when the delay happens, if the desktop is up but not the shell, check if you have shortcuts to ftp sites.

Thanks for the suggestions. I have bootviz but have read that it has some
incompatibility problems with WinXP. I'll try the clean boot
troubleshooting.

 

[Kelly]

Boot.vis works just fine. Good luck!

 

[David Candy]

Bootviz was misused as a tuning tool (which it's not). So MS pulled it to stop you wasting time downloading it. It was designed for this purpose.

Bootviz asks windows to do it's boot optinisation now (else you'd have to wait three days to be sure Win had done it on it's own). Then house keeping out of the way it measures boot loading times to identify drivers holding it up as an XP computer has to boot in approx 30 secs to get an MS tick.