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What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. SP2with limited free disk spaces?



 
 
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  #1  
Old March 7th 09, 05:00 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Ant
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 398
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. SP2with limited free disk spaces?

Hello.

Yesterday, I was defragging my office computer with XP Pro. SP2's
default disk defragger, but it was too fragmented with many huge files
(mostly VMware v5.5.9 images) and had limited free disk spaces. Are
there any better ones that doesn't cost a cent? My PC feels slower and I
think it is because of the severe fragmentations.

Thank you in advance.
--
"An ant's nest could bring down a hill." --Japanese
/\___/\
/ /\ /\ \ Phil/Ant @ http://antfarm.ma.cx (Personal Web Site)
| |o o| | Ant's Quality Foraged Links (AQFL): http://aqfl.net
\ _ / Nuke ANT from e-mail address: NT
( ) or

Ant is currently not listening to any songs on his home computer.
  #2  
Old March 7th 09, 06:09 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Patrick Keenan
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 4,415
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

"Ant" wrote in message
...
Hello.

Yesterday, I was defragging my office computer with XP Pro. SP2's default
disk defragger, but it was too fragmented with many huge files (mostly
VMware v5.5.9 images) and had limited free disk spaces. Are there any
better ones that doesn't cost a cent? My PC feels slower and I think it is
because of the severe fragmentations.



It's the one that comes with XP.

This won't run with less than 15% free space, and if your drive is that
cramped, you should move files elsewhere.

Get another hard drive to store the VMware images. Where I am,
half-terabyte drives are under $100, decent cases around $30, and that would
end your problem for some time. If this is an office computer, it's
probably a tax-deductible business expense.

HTH
-pk



Thank you in advance.
--
"An ant's nest could bring down a hill." --Japanese
/\___/\
/ /\ /\ \ Phil/Ant @ http://antfarm.ma.cx (Personal Web Site)
| |o o| | Ant's Quality Foraged Links (AQFL): http://aqfl.net
\ _ / Nuke ANT from e-mail address: NT
( ) or

Ant is currently not listening to any songs on his home computer.



  #3  
Old March 7th 09, 08:09 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Jose
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 3,140
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. SP2with limited free disk spaces?

On Mar 7, 12:09*pm, "Patrick Keenan" wrote:
"Ant" wrote in message

...

Hello.


Yesterday, I was defragging my office computer with XP Pro. SP2's default
disk defragger, but it was too fragmented with many huge files (mostly
VMware v5.5.9 images) and had limited free disk spaces. Are there any
better ones that doesn't cost a cent? My PC feels slower and I think it is
because of the severe fragmentations.


It's the one that comes with XP.

This won't run with less than 15% free space, and if your drive is that
cramped, you should move files elsewhere.

Get another hard drive to store the VMware images. *Where I am,
half-terabyte drives are under $100, decent cases around $30, and that would
end your problem for some time. * *If this is an office computer, it's
probably a tax-deductible business expense.

HTH
-pk



Thank you in advance.
--
"An ant's nest could bring down a hill." --Japanese
* */\___/\
* / /\ /\ \ * * * * Phil/Ant @http://antfarm.ma.cx(Personal Web Site)
*| |o * o| | * * * *Ant's Quality Foraged Links (AQFL):http://aqfl.net
* * \ _ / * * * * Nuke ANT from e-mail address:
* * *( ) * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * or
Ant is currently not listening to any songs on his home computer.


Is this your desktop computer your office computer?

Why are you not running SP3? Why are so many that people that post
problems here not even current on software updates that are free and
highly recommended?

You are not current on your MS software. Your IT people, or somebody
you probably know, needs to fix this. I don't know of too many people
that are going to be happy to help you figure out why old software
does not work as you expect it to or believe it should.

Why do you have think you have VMWare images on your office computer?
Are you the VMWare administrator? Do you keep VMWare images on your
personal desktop computer? Do you know what a VMWare image is or do
you just see some big files that don't want to defragment and you
think they should?

VMWare usually runs on a separate and powerful VMWare server and
supplies the resources of an actual physical servers (boxes) as
virtual machines where physical servers are not available or possible
due to cost, environmental or personality factors. is your desktop a
VMWare server?

If you want VMWare to be happy, a VMWare server should be dedicated to
being a VMWare server only - happy with it's virtual machines and not
much else. You should not be touching it or defragmenting it if you
don't know what you are up to.

Do any of these situations apply to your environment?

Do you have a VMWare problem or is your desktop just not performing to
your expectations?

  #4  
Old March 8th 09, 03:01 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Ant
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 398
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro.SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

On 3/7/2009 11:09 AM PT, Jose typed:

Is this your desktop computer your office computer?


Office. Employer has no budget to get me a bigger/new HDD.


Why are you not running SP3? Why are so many that people that post
problems here not even current on software updates that are free and
highly recommended?


IT doesn't support it yet.


You are not current on your MS software. Your IT people, or somebody
you probably know, needs to fix this. I don't know of too many people
that are going to be happy to help you figure out why old software
does not work as you expect it to or believe it should.


What old software doesn't work in XP Pro. SP2? I do keep it updated when
critical updates appear in Automatic Updates.


Why do you have think you have VMWare images on your office computer?
Are you the VMWare administrator? Do you keep VMWare images on your
personal desktop computer? Do you know what a VMWare image is or do
you just see some big files that don't want to defragment and you
think they should?


They are for VMware Workstation and I do testings. According to XP's
defragger, these huge files are very fragmented and can't be defragged
due to low free disk spaces.


VMWare usually runs on a separate and powerful VMWare server and
supplies the resources of an actual physical servers (boxes) as
virtual machines where physical servers are not available or possible
due to cost, environmental or personality factors. is your desktop a
VMWare server?


No.



Do any of these situations apply to your environment?


Nope.


Do you have a VMWare problem or is your desktop just not performing to
your expectations?


My computer HDD can be slow. PC is like 3-4 years old. It's a Dell
Optiplex GX270 I think.
--
"Ants can lift up to 50 times their own weight. And your monitor is
missing. Time to bring out the bugspray." --BBspot's Geek Horoscopes
(2/28/2003)
/\___/\
/ /\ /\ \ Phil/Ant @ http://antfarm.ma.cx (Personal Web Site)
| |o o| | Ant's Quality Foraged Links (AQFL): http://aqfl.net
\ _ / Nuke ANT from e-mail address: NT
( ) or

Ant is currently not listening to any songs on his home computer.
  #5  
Old March 8th 09, 05:07 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Daave
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 3,568
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

"Ant" wrote in message
...
On 3/7/2009 11:09 AM PT, Jose typed:


Why are you not running SP3? Why are so many that people that post
problems here not even current on software updates that are free and
highly recommended?


IT doesn't support it yet.


That's a pretty lame IT department! The good news is updates for SP2 are
still available. But the end date for that keeps getting closer...


  #6  
Old March 8th 09, 06:59 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Swifty
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 476
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro.SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

Daave wrote:
That's a pretty lame IT department! The good news is updates for SP2 are
still available. But the end date for that keeps getting closer...


Our "IT Department" supports well over 100,000 systems worldwide.
Some of our corporate applications come from 3rd party suppliers who
have not yet upgraded their code to cope with SP3
Some of the applications are known to fail on SP3

Would you force SP3 into such an environment? What lame excuses would
you use when people asked you why their applications no longer worked?

--
Steve Swift
http://www.swiftys.org.uk/swifty.html
http://www.ringers.org.uk
  #7  
Old March 8th 09, 10:01 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Ant
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 398
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro.SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

On 3/8/2009 9:07 AM PT, Daave typed:

"Ant" wrote in message
...
On 3/7/2009 11:09 AM PT, Jose typed:


Why are you not running SP3? Why are so many that people that post
problems here not even current on software updates that are free and
highly recommended?

IT doesn't support it yet.


That's a pretty lame IT department! The good news is updates for SP2 are
still available. But the end date for that keeps getting closer...


Yeah. I know IT will force SP3 when SP2 ends its support. For now, SP2.
--
"Ants can lift up to 50 times their own weight. And your monitor is
missing. Time to bring out the bugspray." --BBspot's Geek Horoscopes
(2/28/2003)
/\___/\
/ /\ /\ \ Phil/Ant @ http://antfarm.ma.cx (Personal Web Site)
| |o o| | Ant's Quality Foraged Links (AQFL): http://aqfl.net
\ _ / Nuke ANT from e-mail address: NT
( ) or

Ant is currently not listening to any songs on his home computer.
  #8  
Old March 11th 09, 10:58 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Phil
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 279
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. S

Jose,

I apologize for posting off topic here, but a reply to your post is right on
target.
I am responsible for maintaining 38 computers here, and SP3 has turned 21 of
them into electric paper weights.

This software was deployed after waiting months to allow it to be fixed.
Well you could have fooled me by all the GOOD reports about it being safe to
install this poorly written software.

Thanks Microsoft, for all the extra overtime I will now have to put in, in
order to correct your premature publication of a (so called) "Critical"
update.

My advice on SP3 is don't bother installing it, unless you like to gamble
with your companies time and resources.

SP3 may work for some SYSTEMS, but it is it far from prime time ready.



"Jose" wrote:

On Mar 7, 12:09 pm, "Patrick Keenan" wrote:
"Ant" wrote in message

...

Hello.


Yesterday, I was defragging my office computer with XP Pro. SP2's default
disk defragger, but it was too fragmented with many huge files (mostly
VMware v5.5.9 images) and had limited free disk spaces. Are there any
better ones that doesn't cost a cent? My PC feels slower and I think it is
because of the severe fragmentations.


It's the one that comes with XP.

This won't run with less than 15% free space, and if your drive is that
cramped, you should move files elsewhere.

Get another hard drive to store the VMware images. Where I am,
half-terabyte drives are under $100, decent cases around $30, and that would
end your problem for some time. If this is an office computer, it's
probably a tax-deductible business expense.

HTH
-pk



Thank you in advance.
--
"An ant's nest could bring down a hill." --Japanese
/\___/\
/ /\ /\ \ Phil/Ant @http://antfarm.ma.cx(Personal Web Site)
| |o o| | Ant's Quality Foraged Links (AQFL):http://aqfl.net
\ _ / Nuke ANT from e-mail address:
( ) or
Ant is currently not listening to any songs on his home computer.


Is this your desktop computer your office computer?

Why are you not running SP3? Why are so many that people that post
problems here not even current on software updates that are free and
highly recommended?

You are not current on your MS software. Your IT people, or somebody
you probably know, needs to fix this. I don't know of too many people
that are going to be happy to help you figure out why old software
does not work as you expect it to or believe it should.

Why do you have think you have VMWare images on your office computer?
Are you the VMWare administrator? Do you keep VMWare images on your
personal desktop computer? Do you know what a VMWare image is or do
you just see some big files that don't want to defragment and you
think they should?

VMWare usually runs on a separate and powerful VMWare server and
supplies the resources of an actual physical servers (boxes) as
virtual machines where physical servers are not available or possible
due to cost, environmental or personality factors. is your desktop a
VMWare server?

If you want VMWare to be happy, a VMWare server should be dedicated to
being a VMWare server only - happy with it's virtual machines and not
much else. You should not be touching it or defragmenting it if you
don't know what you are up to.

Do any of these situations apply to your environment?

Do you have a VMWare problem or is your desktop just not performing to
your expectations?


  #9  
Old March 12th 09, 04:27 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Unknown
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 6,007
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. S

Suggest you find the problem instead of blaming Microsoft.
"Phil" wrote in message
...
Jose,

I apologize for posting off topic here, but a reply to your post is right
on
target.
I am responsible for maintaining 38 computers here, and SP3 has turned 21
of
them into electric paper weights.

This software was deployed after waiting months to allow it to be fixed.
Well you could have fooled me by all the GOOD reports about it being safe
to
install this poorly written software.

Thanks Microsoft, for all the extra overtime I will now have to put in, in
order to correct your premature publication of a (so called) "Critical"
update.

My advice on SP3 is don't bother installing it, unless you like to gamble
with your companies time and resources.

SP3 may work for some SYSTEMS, but it is it far from prime time ready.



"Jose" wrote:

On Mar 7, 12:09 pm, "Patrick Keenan" wrote:
"Ant" wrote in message

...

Hello.

Yesterday, I was defragging my office computer with XP Pro. SP2's
default
disk defragger, but it was too fragmented with many huge files
(mostly
VMware v5.5.9 images) and had limited free disk spaces. Are there any
better ones that doesn't cost a cent? My PC feels slower and I think
it is
because of the severe fragmentations.

It's the one that comes with XP.

This won't run with less than 15% free space, and if your drive is that
cramped, you should move files elsewhere.

Get another hard drive to store the VMware images. Where I am,
half-terabyte drives are under $100, decent cases around $30, and that
would
end your problem for some time. If this is an office computer, it's
probably a tax-deductible business expense.

HTH
-pk



Thank you in advance.
--
"An ant's nest could bring down a hill." --Japanese
/\___/\
/ /\ /\ \ Phil/Ant @http://antfarm.ma.cx(Personal Web Site)
| |o o| | Ant's Quality Foraged Links
(AQFL):http://aqfl.net
\ _ / Nuke ANT from e-mail address:

( ) or

Ant is currently not listening to any songs on his home computer.


Is this your desktop computer your office computer?

Why are you not running SP3? Why are so many that people that post
problems here not even current on software updates that are free and
highly recommended?

You are not current on your MS software. Your IT people, or somebody
you probably know, needs to fix this. I don't know of too many people
that are going to be happy to help you figure out why old software
does not work as you expect it to or believe it should.

Why do you have think you have VMWare images on your office computer?
Are you the VMWare administrator? Do you keep VMWare images on your
personal desktop computer? Do you know what a VMWare image is or do
you just see some big files that don't want to defragment and you
think they should?

VMWare usually runs on a separate and powerful VMWare server and
supplies the resources of an actual physical servers (boxes) as
virtual machines where physical servers are not available or possible
due to cost, environmental or personality factors. is your desktop a
VMWare server?

If you want VMWare to be happy, a VMWare server should be dedicated to
being a VMWare server only - happy with it's virtual machines and not
much else. You should not be touching it or defragmenting it if you
don't know what you are up to.

Do any of these situations apply to your environment?

Do you have a VMWare problem or is your desktop just not performing to
your expectations?




  #10  
Old March 12th 09, 06:19 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Gordon
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,140
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. S

"Unknown" wrote in message
...
Suggest you find the problem instead of blaming Microsoft.



Can't see the OP, but if he's RESPONSIBLE (?) for many machines, surely he
TESTED it first?

--
Asking a question?
Please tell us the version of the application you are asking about,
your OS, Service Pack level
and the FULL contents of any error message(s)

  #11  
Old March 7th 09, 10:10 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Swifty
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 476
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro.SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

Ant wrote:
Are there any better ones that doesn't cost a cent? My PC feels slower and I
think it is because of the severe fragmentations.


http://www.kessels.com/Jkdefrag/

But no defragmenter can be bothered to defragment huge files on a disk
with little free space.

If you are a gambler you could offload the large images to a memory key,
defragment the disk, then copy them back. Memory keys sometimes lose data.

The standard XP defragmenter defragments the files, but doesn't
defragment the free space. This is where JKDefrag is better; it
defragments the files, and as far as possible conglomerates the free
space as well.

--
Steve Swift
http://www.swiftys.org.uk/swifty.html
http://www.ringers.org.uk
  #12  
Old March 7th 09, 11:24 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Gerry
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 9,437
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

Ant

How limited is the free disk? Like Patrick I have long been an advocate of
using the Microsoft Disk Defragmenter. There are ways of getting round the
15% rule but it would be helpful to see a Disk Defragmenter report before I
make suggestions.

Open Disk Defragmenter and click on Analyse. Select View Report and click
on Save As and Save. Now find VolumeC.txt in your My Documents Folder and
post a copy. Do this before running Disk Defragmenter as it is more
informative.

An interesting relatively new entrant to the market is Defraggler
(freeware for home users) which I am currently testing. It is worth
looking at and does not with any negative reports. It also comes
from the software house providing cCleaner:
http://www.defraggler.com/features


--


Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ant" wrote in message
...
Hello.

Yesterday, I was defragging my office computer with XP Pro. SP2's default
disk defragger, but it was too fragmented with many huge files (mostly
VMware v5.5.9 images) and had limited free disk spaces. Are there any
better ones that doesn't cost a cent? My PC feels slower and I think it is
because of the severe fragmentations.

Thank you in advance.
--
"An ant's nest could bring down a hill." --Japanese
/\___/\
/ /\ /\ \ Phil/Ant @ http://antfarm.ma.cx (Personal Web Site)
| |o o| | Ant's Quality Foraged Links (AQFL): http://aqfl.net
\ _ / Nuke ANT from e-mail address: NT
( ) or

Ant is currently not listening to any songs on his home computer.



  #13  
Old March 8th 09, 03:03 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Ant
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 398
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro.SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

On 3/7/2009 2:24 PM PT, Gerry typed:

Ant

How limited is the free disk? Like Patrick I have long been an advocate of
using the Microsoft Disk Defragmenter. There are ways of getting round the
15% rule but it would be helpful to see a Disk Defragmenter report before I
make suggestions.


I believe I had 8 GB free on the D: drive. I don't remember what the
total size on this partition.


Open Disk Defragmenter and click on Analyse. Select View Report and click
on Save As and Save. Now find VolumeC.txt in your My Documents Folder and
post a copy. Do this before running Disk Defragmenter as it is more
informative.


OK, I will do that tomorrow.


An interesting relatively new entrant to the market is Defraggler
(freeware for home users) which I am currently testing. It is worth
looking at and does not with any negative reports. It also comes
from the software house providing cCleaner:
http://www.defraggler.com/features


Does it handle low free disk space situations?
--
"As a thinker and planner, the ant is the equal of any savage race of
men; as a self-educated specialist in several arts she is the superior
of any savage race of men; and in one or two high mental qualities she
is above the reach of any man..." --Mark Twain
/\___/\
/ /\ /\ \ Phil/Ant @ http://antfarm.ma.cx (Personal Web Site)
| |o o| | Ant's Quality Foraged Links (AQFL): http://aqfl.net
\ _ / Nuke ANT from e-mail address: NT
( ) or

Ant is currently not listening to any songs on his home computer.
  #14  
Old March 11th 09, 01:34 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
BillW50
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 5,556
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

In ,
Gerry typed on Sat, 7 Mar 2009 22:24:04 -0000:
Like Patrick I have long been an advocate of using the Microsoft Disk
Defragmenter...


I actually have been using defraggers since the 80's and with the
exception of MFM drives, I *never* have seen an improvement from
defragging. My theory is the bus speed is slower than the reading of a
fragmented IDE drive anyway. Another possibility is that I only buy slow
CPU based machines. As I don't need Lear jet power to play DVDs.

--
Bill
2 Gateway MX6124 - Windows XP SP2
3 Asus EEE PC 701G4 ~ 2GB RAM ~ 16GB-SDHC
2 Asus EEE PC 702G8 ~ 1GB RAM ~ 16GB-SDHC
Windows XP SP2 ~ Xandros Linux - Puppy - Ubuntu


  #15  
Old March 11th 09, 03:30 PM posted to microsoft.public.windowsxp.general,microsoft.public.windowsxp.help_and_support
Gerry
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 9,437
Default What's the best freeware defragger to use in Windows XP Pro. SP2 with limited free disk spaces?

Bill

You will see a noticeable improvement if you can eliminate fragmentation but
this will only last for a while until you need to cleanup and defragment
again. I suspect that the preliminary disk cleanup helps as much as
defragmentation. Apart from resolving severe fragmentation defragmenting is
only one measure contributing to better system performance.

--


Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"BillW50" wrote in message
...
In ,
Gerry typed on Sat, 7 Mar 2009 22:24:04 -0000:
Like Patrick I have long been an advocate of using the Microsoft Disk
Defragmenter...


I actually have been using defraggers since the 80's and with the
exception of MFM drives, I *never* have seen an improvement from
defragging. My theory is the bus speed is slower than the reading of a
fragmented IDE drive anyway. Another possibility is that I only buy slow
CPU based machines. As I don't need Lear jet power to play DVDs.

--
Bill
2 Gateway MX6124 - Windows XP SP2
3 Asus EEE PC 701G4 ~ 2GB RAM ~ 16GB-SDHC
2 Asus EEE PC 702G8 ~ 1GB RAM ~ 16GB-SDHC
Windows XP SP2 ~ Xandros Linux - Puppy - Ubuntu



 




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