defrag

I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why not?

No need to, nor was there in Win98. The need to defrag depends on usage,
even a heavy gamer only needs an occasional defrag. A moderate user can
easily go 3 or more months without any noticable reduction in performance.

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP
http://mvp.support.microsoft.com/
Associate Expert - WindowsXP Expert Zone
www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/expertzone
Windows help - www.rickrogers.org

"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why not?

When you start defrag, the XP system will perform an analysis and respond
that the drive selected does not need to be defragged. It will be months
before it will recommend a defrag.

I curious as to how your 98SE system needs to be defragged so often. Under
normal usage, once every two to three months would probably suffice.
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why not?

Opinions are all over the place. The only agreement is that a fragmented
hard drive is a Bad Thing. Personally, I use Diskeeper 9 Home edition ($20)
and take advantage of the Set and Forget feature. Diskeeper then goes into
action when fragmentation reaches 2% or so. It works in the background and
I have never detected a performance hit while it is running. There is a
free trial option.

Other people like Perfect Disk. Whatever, but I do recommend a defragger
that doesn't have to run on a set schedule but only runs when truly needed.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why not?

Agree. With XP, the very occasional defrag should only be used when
performance drops off.
The 'Set and Forget' feature can be a bit of a trap if set incorrectly.
e.g. - if you set it to run every day, the defrag really stresses the drive
mechanics, which naturally causes an earlier failure of the drive.


--

johnf

Opinions are all over the place. The only agreement is that a
fragmented hard drive is a Bad Thing. Personally, I use Diskeeper 9
Home edition ($20) and take advantage of the Set and Forget feature.
Diskeeper then goes into action when fragmentation reaches 2% or so. It
works in the background and I have never detected a performance hit
while it is running. There is a free trial option.

Other people like Perfect Disk. Whatever, but I do recommend a
defragger that doesn't have to run on a set schedule but only runs when
truly needed.
--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why not?

Set and Forget does not require a schedule. It runs upon detection of a
fragmentation threshold. It might not run for weeks and then run several
times in a single day if you do a lot of installations that day.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"johnf" wrote in message
...
Agree. With XP, the very occasional defrag should only be used when
performance drops off.
The 'Set and Forget' feature can be a bit of a trap if set incorrectly.
e.g. - if you set it to run every day, the defrag really stresses the
drive mechanics, which naturally causes an earlier failure of the drive.


--

johnf

Opinions are all over the place. The only agreement is that a
fragmented hard drive is a Bad Thing. Personally, I use Diskeeper 9
Home edition ($20) and take advantage of the Set and Forget feature.
Diskeeper then goes into action when fragmentation reaches 2% or so. It
works in the background and I have never detected a performance hit
while it is running. There is a free trial option.

Other people like Perfect Disk. Whatever, but I do recommend a
defragger that doesn't have to run on a set schedule but only runs when
truly needed.
--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why not?

In ,
If_Its_Junk If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com typed:

I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.


That's *way* overkill.


Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not
why
not?


No. You shouldn't be doing it on either machine. The amount of
fragmentation you get in a single day is insignificant.

For almost everyone, defragging more often than once a month or
so is completely unnecessary and achieves nothing.
You should defragment your drive when doing so results in a speed
up. Here's what I recommend. Pick some arbitrary interval--for
example once a month. Defragment on that interval a few times,
and assess whether the computer generally feels faster after
doing so. If the answer is yes, defrag more frequently. If the
answer is no, defrag less frequently.

Repeat a few times, and you'll soon settle into a frequency that
works well for you.

--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup

You must be joking - or haven't done your homework very well.

'Set and Forget' can be consumer programmed to run whenever and how often
you want it to.

--

johnf

Set and Forget does not require a schedule. It runs upon detection of a
fragmentation threshold. It might not run for weeks and then run
several times in a single day if you do a lot of installations that day.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"johnf" wrote in message
...
Agree. With XP, the very occasional defrag should only be used when
performance drops off.
The 'Set and Forget' feature can be a bit of a trap if set incorrectly.
e.g. - if you set it to run every day, the defrag really stresses the
drive mechanics, which naturally causes an earlier failure of the
drive.

--

johnf

Opinions are all over the place. The only agreement is that a
fragmented hard drive is a Bad Thing. Personally, I use Diskeeper 9
Home edition ($20) and take advantage of the Set and Forget feature.
Diskeeper then goes into action when fragmentation reaches 2% or so.
It works in the background and I have never detected a performance hit
while it is running. There is a free trial option.

Other people like Perfect Disk. Whatever, but I do recommend a
defragger that doesn't have to run on a set schedule but only runs
when truly needed.
--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why
not?

I'm not joking. The first option under Set and Forget, Set Smart Schedule,
enables the automated defrag-as-needed function. Yes, you can set specific
times, but it isn't necessary to.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"johnf" wrote in message
...
You must be joking - or haven't done your homework very well.

'Set and Forget' can be consumer programmed to run whenever and how often
you want it to.

--

johnf

Set and Forget does not require a schedule. It runs upon detection of a
fragmentation threshold. It might not run for weeks and then run
several times in a single day if you do a lot of installations that day.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"johnf" wrote in message
...
Agree. With XP, the very occasional defrag should only be used when
performance drops off.
The 'Set and Forget' feature can be a bit of a trap if set incorrectly.
e.g. - if you set it to run every day, the defrag really stresses the
drive mechanics, which naturally causes an earlier failure of the
drive.

--

johnf

Opinions are all over the place. The only agreement is that a
fragmented hard drive is a Bad Thing. Personally, I use Diskeeper 9
Home edition ($20) and take advantage of the Set and Forget feature.
Diskeeper then goes into action when fragmentation reaches 2% or so.
It works in the background and I have never detected a performance hit
while it is running. There is a free trial option.

Other people like Perfect Disk. Whatever, but I do recommend a
defragger that doesn't have to run on a set schedule but only runs
when truly needed.
--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why
not?

If_Its_Junk,
For just your Win98SE PC, you should be using a program called "Maintenance
Wizard" that will defrag/scandisk and disk cleanup your PC on a regular
schedule.

On the W98SE pc START Programs Accessories System Tools Maintentence
Wizard Choose settings I personally use the default settings, but on the
scandisk tab, check the box to fix errors.

--

Add MS to your News Reader: news://msnews.microsoft.com
Rich/rerat

(RRR News) message rule
Previous Text Snipped to Save Bandwidth When Appropriate



In ,
If_Its_Junk If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com typed:

I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

"RRR_News" wrote in message
...
If_Its_Junk,
For just your Win98SE PC, you should be using a program called
"Maintenance
Wizard" that will defrag/scandisk and disk cleanup your PC on a regular
schedule.

On the W98SE pc START Programs Accessories System Tools Maintentence
Wizard Choose settings I personally use the default settings, but on the
scandisk tab, check the box to fix errors.

--

Add MS to your News Reader: news://msnews.microsoft.com
Rich/rerat

(RRR News) message rule
Previous Text Snipped to Save Bandwidth When Appropriate



In ,
If_Its_Junk If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com typed:

I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.





I use ScanDefrag from Blueorbsoft because it restarts the system before it
runs all of its programs - is there an advantage to changing to using the
Maintenance Wizard?

I concur with Colin, and while I personally prefer Raxco's "Perfect Disk"
to Executive Software's "Diskeeper", for very technical reasons which MVP
Alex Nichol, et.al., are better able to explain than me, both defragmenters
are very fine tools.

One should be mindful that both offer the option to "Analyze" the disk prior
to defragging it. One can then choose to defrag, according to one's
personal preference at that time.

FWIW & IIRC, MVP Jim Eshelman has previously commented that in his
experiments under Win 9X, esp. Win 98, he observed some performance
degradation beginning when fragmentation reached 4-6%. I suspect XP will be
quite different, ... under NTFS, at least.
--
Jack E. Martinelli 2002-05 MS MVP for Shell/User / DTS
Help us help you: http://www.dts-L.org/goodpost.htm

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/secu...t/default.aspx
Your cooperation is very appreciated.
------
"Colin Barnhorst" wrote in message
...
Opinions are all over the place. The only agreement is that a fragmented
hard drive is a Bad Thing. Personally, I use Diskeeper 9 Home edition
($20)
and take advantage of the Set and Forget feature. Diskeeper then goes
into
action when fragmentation reaches 2% or so. It works in the background
and
I have never detected a performance hit while it is running. There is a
free trial option.

Other people like Perfect Disk. Whatever, but I do recommend a defragger
that doesn't have to run on a set schedule but only runs when truly
needed.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why not?

Which is what I said.
Most programs have options & default settings.
Sure, if you install it and don't change anything, that's fine, but most
people are curious, go through the various options & choose the one they
'think' is right.
The words 'recommended setting' would obviate that problem.


--

johnf

I'm not joking. The first option under Set and Forget, Set Smart
Schedule, enables the automated defrag-as-needed function. Yes, you
can set specific times, but it isn't necessary to.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"johnf" wrote in message
...
You must be joking - or haven't done your homework very well.

'Set and Forget' can be consumer programmed to run whenever and how
often you want it to.

--

johnf

Set and Forget does not require a schedule. It runs upon detection
of a fragmentation threshold. It might not run for weeks and then run
several times in a single day if you do a lot of installations that
day.
--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"johnf" wrote in message
...
Agree. With XP, the very occasional defrag should only be used when
performance drops off.
The 'Set and Forget' feature can be a bit of a trap if set
incorrectly. e.g. - if you set it to run every day, the defrag
really stresses the drive mechanics, which naturally causes an
earlier failure of the drive.

--

johnf

Opinions are all over the place. The only agreement is that a
fragmented hard drive is a Bad Thing. Personally, I use Diskeeper 9
Home edition ($20) and take advantage of the Set and Forget feature.
Diskeeper then goes into action when fragmentation reaches 2% or so.
It works in the background and I have never detected a performance
hit while it is running. There is a free trial option.

Other people like Perfect Disk. Whatever, but I do recommend a
defragger that doesn't have to run on a set schedule but only runs
when truly needed.
--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why
not?

Executive Software recommends a defrag threshold of 2% to be on the safe
side. Diskeeper 9 introduced a new analysis screen which shows not just the
fragmentation map, but also an impact map. It shows the degree to which the
fragmentation present will degrade performance.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"Jack E Martinelli" wrote in message
...
I concur with Colin, and while I personally prefer Raxco's "Perfect Disk"
to Executive Software's "Diskeeper", for very technical reasons which MVP
Alex Nichol, et.al., are better able to explain than me, both
defragmenters
are very fine tools.

One should be mindful that both offer the option to "Analyze" the disk
prior
to defragging it. One can then choose to defrag, according to one's
personal preference at that time.

FWIW & IIRC, MVP Jim Eshelman has previously commented that in his
experiments under Win 9X, esp. Win 98, he observed some performance
degradation beginning when fragmentation reached 4-6%. I suspect XP will
be
quite different, ... under NTFS, at least.
--
Jack E. Martinelli 2002-05 MS MVP for Shell/User / DTS
Help us help you: http://www.dts-L.org/goodpost.htm

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/secu...t/default.aspx
Your cooperation is very appreciated.
------
"Colin Barnhorst" wrote in message
...
Opinions are all over the place. The only agreement is that a fragmented
hard drive is a Bad Thing. Personally, I use Diskeeper 9 Home edition
($20)
and take advantage of the Set and Forget feature. Diskeeper then goes
into
action when fragmentation reaches 2% or so. It works in the background
and
I have never detected a performance hit while it is running. There is a
free trial option.

Other people like Perfect Disk. Whatever, but I do recommend a defragger
that doesn't have to run on a set schedule but only runs when truly
needed.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why not?

Thank you, Colin. FWIW, I purchased two copies of Diskeeper 9 today.
--
Jack E. Martinelli 2002-05 MS MVP for Shell/User / DTS
Help us help you: http://www.dts-L.org/goodpost.htm

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/secu...t/default.aspx
Your cooperation is very appreciated.
------
"Colin Barnhorst" wrote in message
...
Executive Software recommends a defrag threshold of 2% to be on the safe
side. Diskeeper 9 introduced a new analysis screen which shows not just
the
fragmentation map, but also an impact map. It shows the degree to which
the
fragmentation present will degrade performance.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"Jack E Martinelli" wrote in message
...
I concur with Colin, and while I personally prefer Raxco's "Perfect
Disk"
to Executive Software's "Diskeeper", for very technical reasons which
MVP
Alex Nichol, et.al., are better able to explain than me, both
defragmenters
are very fine tools.

One should be mindful that both offer the option to "Analyze" the disk
prior
to defragging it. One can then choose to defrag, according to one's
personal preference at that time.

FWIW & IIRC, MVP Jim Eshelman has previously commented that in his
experiments under Win 9X, esp. Win 98, he observed some performance
degradation beginning when fragmentation reached 4-6%. I suspect XP
will
be
quite different, ... under NTFS, at least.
--
Jack E. Martinelli 2002-05 MS MVP for Shell/User / DTS
Help us help you: http://www.dts-L.org/goodpost.htm

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/secu...t/default.aspx
Your cooperation is very appreciated.
------
"Colin Barnhorst" wrote in message
...
Opinions are all over the place. The only agreement is that a
fragmented
hard drive is a Bad Thing. Personally, I use Diskeeper 9 Home edition
($20)
and take advantage of the Set and Forget feature. Diskeeper then goes
into
action when fragmentation reaches 2% or so. It works in the background
and
I have never detected a performance hit while it is running. There is
a
free trial option.

Other people like Perfect Disk. Whatever, but I do recommend a
defragger
that doesn't have to run on a set schedule but only runs when truly
needed.

--
Colin Barnhorst [MVP Windows - Virtual Machine]
(Reply to the group only unless otherwise requested)
"If_Its_Junk" If_Its_Junk at hotmail dot com wrote in message
...
I do a defrag daily on my Win98SE machine.

Should I be doing the same on my new WinXP machine, and if not why
not?