"J. P. Gilliver (John)" wrote:
In message , Pamela
writes:
On 18:49 30 Oct 2018, Char Jackson wrote in
news
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Defragging doesn't reclaim space.

Wouldn't a defrag reclaim slack space hidden in cluster tips?
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AFAIK, a fragmented file fills all the clusters it uses except the last
one, just the same as an unfragmented one.

What - I think - Pamela is hinting at, is that defragmentation can
combine the used contents of several partially filled clusters into one
or more clusters, thereby potentially freeing up clusters and hence
"reclaim space".

Simple example: 8KB cluster N is filled with 3000 bytes, 8KB cluster M
is filled with 4000 bytes. After a defrag, N has 7000 bytes and M is
free, i.e. the defrag reclaimed 8KB of space.

Whether Grease Monkey's 'defrag' actaully does this, is unknown as
(s)he didn't say *which* 'defrag' (s)he used.