Defraggler

[HPY]

Hi all,

As I know my learned colleagues here are interested in areas other than Avast (of which I am a very satisfied user - 5 free edition), what do you say about this:

After running a weekly Windows defrag on my one year old VAIO latop running Windows Vista Home - I wondered whether the Windows defrag was actually doing anything.

The Defraggler analysis showed 55% fragmentation so I ran a defrag which reduced this to 45%, which seemed poor. If anything the system seems jerkier. I always run CCleaner before defragging to make the job easier by clearing things like Temp Internet Files and Windows Explorer Files.

Because it is a laptop I try to restrict use of Drive C to Programs and store my own stuff whenever possible externally.

I cannot think that this 45% remianing consists of locked or immovavble system files - but since all I keep on Drive C is mainly programs perhaps this is so. Could it be so?

[Jtaylor83]

It could be your RAM. Depending on how much RAM it has, it may not be enough to run Vista (depending on versions). If yours is Home Premium, then you will need to buy more RAM or get a new laptop that would that meet the requirements, 'cause it uses 1 GB of RAM or if it's Home Basic, it uses 512 MB of RAM. However, Vista Ultimate has more features than the Home Basic and Premium editions, and it use the same amount of RAM as Home Premium does.

Oh, wait this is about Defraggler, never mind.

[Zyndstoff (aka Steven Gail)]

What does the amount of RAM have to do with the fragmentation of the HDD?
 

I'd like to have that explained...

[Chris Thomas]

@ Zyndstoff

It should have been....I saw the German flag and thought it was Zyndstoff..

@ HPY

Maybe your Pagefile is fragmented

I would suggest you to give Puran Defrag a try because it has boot time defrag option

http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=54783.0

[DavidR]

Use the Windows built in Defrag to analyse the partition first, then analyse with Defraggler and see if they match. Having defragged it compare the two analysis again and see if they match.

I use Defraggler regularly and it always completes and shows 0% fragmentation, so I don't know what is going on with your system. If you analyse the partition again, it should show the fragmented Files List, niw that is where you should be looking to see what isn't being defragged.

[Lisandro]

Defraggler can defrag a single file.
Other ones are better for the whole HDD defrag: Auslogics (free) (and in some cases the version 10/11 of O&O for free).

[DavidR]

Defraggler can defrag the whole HDD it depends on what you select.

If you don't go into the File List and select any files, but stay in the Analyse section and click Defrag from there it does the whole partition or drive (if you don't have multiple partitions). This by comparision to just defragging the listed files takes much longer.

[HPY]

DavidR

The built in Windows defragger on Vista Home Premium tells you nothing other than schedule and when it is functioning, that was why I tried Defraggler to see what was what.

When I looked at the files listed that were still fragmented I was not sure which were Sys files.

[HPY]

Defraggler can defrag a single file.
Other ones are better for the whole HDD defrag: Auslogics (free) (and in some cases the version 10/11 of O&O for free).

Since I have 220GB free out of total 289GB it is perhaps stupid of me to worry about defragging anyway. I do use the CCleaner weekly to get rid of excess.

As I say I analysed and did the Defraggler ONCE only without going back to defrag individual files. Surely that cannot have done harm?

[Zyndstoff (aka Steven Gail)]

@ Zyndstoff

It should have been....I saw the German flag and thought it was Zyndstoff..

@ HPY

Maybe your Pagefile is fragmented

I would suggest you to give Puran Defrag a try because it has boot time defrag option

http://forum.avast.com/index.php?topic=54783.0

Yeah, me... :-)

45% - I doubt that it is the pagefile. But you could just go and disable the virtual memory, reboot and defrag, than reactivate the virtual memory and reboot.

But, as I said, I doubt that.

[HPY]

As I said I was using the windows defrgui once weekly on this year-old laptop, and wondered whether it was really doing anything since there is no display like Defraggle has, or the windiws XP has.

So when I did Defraggle defrag I ws surprised that the fragmented files were reduced from 55 just to 45%.

I have since been told that either figure is pretty normal and nothing to worry about.

I really don't want to go ducking around with Sys Res or disableing Virt Mem etc - that's all too hifalutin for me.

[DavidR]

DavidR

The built in Windows defragger on Vista Home Premium tells you nothing other than schedule and when it is functioning, that was why I tried Defraggler to see what was what.

When I looked at the files listed that were still fragmented I was not sure which were Sys files.

Seems like a poor upgrade to Vista's defragger as the one with XP shows the amount of fragmentation and the files concerned.

However, defraggler will certainly show you what files are fragmented before the defrag and if as you say it is still fragmented afterwards, it should show what files are still fragmented and also show their location, see image. So if you can give some examples of these files, name and location ?

It is a bit immaterial if they are system files or not as they too should have been defragged.

[HPY]

DavidR

The built in Windows defragger on Vista Home Premium tells you nothing other than schedule and when it is functioning, that was why I tried Defraggler to see what was what.

When I looked at the files listed that were still fragmented I was not sure which were Sys files.

Seems like a poor upgrade to Vista's defragger as the one with XP shows the amount of fragmentation and the files concerned.

However, defraggler will certainly show you what files are fragmented before the defrag and if as you say it is still fragmented afterwards, it should show what files are still fragmented and also show their location, see image. So if you can give some examples of these files, name and location ?

It is a bit immaterial if they are system files or not as they too should have been defragged.

Yes DR the Vista defaragui  is a poor ugrade - I remember the XP defrag is very similar to the Defraggler display. Perhaps there is another Defrag program somehwhere in the Vista system?

I will look into "It is a bit immaterial if they are system files or not as they too should have been defragged" and try to upload it to the forum - but do not really want to go through another Defraggle - just the analytic.

[HPY]

DavidR

Here goes with some examples of the 11 biggest (Look at the size of Google Earth!):

(C:), NTFS, Capacity: 290,0 GB, Used: 69,9 GB (24%), Free: 220,1 GB (76%)
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Total size: 37,6 GB, Fragmented Files (176), Total Fragments (2.391)

dbCache.dat   577   1151738493   C:\Users\AppData\LocalLow\Google\GoogleEarth\   
Inbox                   104   15834904   C:\Users\AppData\Roaming\Thunderbird\Profiles\dykv5912.default\Mail\Local Folders\   
Sent                   100   14860342
fla871.tmp   95   8958187   C:\Users\jon\AppData\Local\Temp\   
Trace1.fx   85   5523395   C:\Windows\Prefetch\ReadyBoot\   
Trace8.fx   81   5307781   C:\Windows\Prefetch\ReadyBoot\   
flaC976.tmp   79   8394403   C:\Users\AppData\Local\Temp\   
Trace2.fx   77   5019151   C:\Windows\Prefetch\ReadyBoot\   
Trace10.fx   77   5018477   C:\Windows\Prefetch\ReadyBoot\   
Trace9.fx   69   4489707   C:\Windows\Prefetch\ReadyBoot\   
fla907C.tmp   66   8503806   C:\Users\AppData\Local\Temp\

---------------------------------------------------------------------------


Given the Sys Info at the top, you may feel that I am making a fuss about nothing. Vista's defrag left these alone and so did Defraggler.

[DavidR]

No I don't feel you are making a fuss as I would say all of those should be able to be defragged.

I don't have a ReadyBoot folder in my prefetch folder, presumably that is a Vista function and I don't know if that can be cleared in the normal way of clearing prefetch and allow them to be rebuilt.

The same goes for the google earth, if you don't use that function frequently, perhaps that can be cleared.

You could try the ones Tech mentioned in Reply #5 above.