DEFRAGMENTING THE HARD DISK

• What does 'defragmenting the hard disk mean'?

The hard disk on our PC is like a big container where we put all the software that we install, our personal files, basically all that we can think of. Each time that we install or uninstall something, some sort of 'gap, hole' is created within the hard disk where we will subsequently install some other application. It so happens that as we keep installing and uninstalling things, the hard disk becomes a structure full of 'holes and gaps', with empty spaces and files broken into different parts in order to fill these little spaces. If you multiply this by thousands, you can grasp an idea of the condition of your hard disk. Consider, for instance, that simply navigating on the internet creates a lot of defragmentation.

• Benefits of defragmenting. Why should I do it?

As already mentioned above, the applications that you install are scattered around the hard disk. In order to find them, your pc will have to work quite hard as it has to go and look for them here and there and therefore it will take longer (it is like reading a book starting from the first word, then jumping to the tenth, then to the ninentieth and then going back to the fifth, then to the thirtieth and so forth; it is true that the computer is fast, however it seems rather obvious that by reading the first word, then the second, the third and so forth, you can improve the efficiency of the entire system). Therefore, the pc will work harder and more slowly too. From here the need to consider defragmenting your hard disk.

• Initial 'cleansing'

Before defragmenting the hard disk, it is good practice to use some applications to 'cleanse' your operating system from the files that are no longer needed and that therefore are no longer necessary. This step is absolutely necessary to avoid keeping complete rubbish on your pc. In order to accomplish this, you can use a software such as Dustbuster (100% free) or otherwise other commercial software (generally rather cheap), such as Iolo System Mechanic or Window Washer (about 30-40 US dollars).

• Time needed and tips

The time taken to defragment your hard disk depends essentially on three factors: the size of the partition, the efficiency of the software used and the actual fragmentation of the partition (strictly speaking there is also a forth factor, that is the amount of space still available).

As far as the size of the partition is concerned, the bigger the size of the partition, the longer it will take to defragment the hard disk. Therefore, if you have learnt something from the short guide on partitions and their advantages (which you can find by clicking here), you will have already guessed that if you install the operating system in a partition of 7-8 GB (and the software on a different partition) you will make your life so much easier and defragmenting much faster.

Defragmenting a partition of, say, 30 GB can take from just a few minutes to several hours. The factors that will impact on the speed of the defragmentation will be the type of software used, the space still available and the amount of fragmentation. In addition, the first time always takes longer for defragmenting than the successive times.

• Software that can be used

Defragmenting is a very simple procedure which anyone can conduct. All you have to do is start the appropriate application and let it run. That's all.

There are at least four applications that you can use to achieve all this. One is alreay on your pc, and the other three are commercial software. It's up to you to pick the one you prefer.

Free option. Use the utility contained in Windows (which is within the operating system:
Start -->Programs --> Accessories --> System Tools --> Disk Defragmenter).

Commercial software: Diskeeper and Raxco Perfect Disk.

The utility contained in Windows does the job quite well. However, it takes much longer compared to the other applications (I am actually talking about hours, maybe many hours more any time). If time is no object, than you may be happy with this option. Otherwise, I would consider one of the commercial software.

Of the three that I have mentioned above, my favourite is Raxco Perfect Disk because it is very fast and very efficient. However, the other two are also very good. Diskeeper offers the option of defragmenting in 'real time' so that the hard disk is constantly defragmented whilst the PC is being used. Norton Speed Disk is also fast and very reliable. The choice is all yours. Remember to defrag often your HD, so all the process will take only a few minutes (maybe even less than a minute with Raxco Perfect Disk). (more about defrag applications)