Defrag
When we add programmes or files to our computer system, the computer stores the information within gaps on the hard drive. For example, you have removed a game from the system and then save a word document. That document could take up a small amount of the gap created by removing the game. Then, you decide to install a new game. The computer puts that programme in a new section of the hard drive, leaving that small gap left over from where you removed the old game. This leaves your hard drive fragmented.
To put it in easier terms. You have a flower bed. (your hard drive) you remove some spring flowers ready to plant summer ones. (removing old game, ready for a new game) Someone you love gives you a pretty plant (your word document) and you place it where you’ve just removed the spring flowers from, leaving some room around it as it’s not as big as your spring flowers. You go to the shop and see a brilliant plant, take it home, but it won’t fit in the gap you have next to your pretty plant, so you find some space in your flower bed where are no plants and plant it there. Your garden looks nice, but has gaps where flowers once were.
By running defrag the computer gets all the little files and folders and fills in the gaps, making it quicker for the system to find these files and folders when you need them. A bit like taking flowers from crowded areas of your garden to fill in the gaps in your flower bed.
Go to system tools as above for Disk cleanup and click on defrag. Or follow the directions for Error-checking (win xp/Vista)
A new window will pop up and you are given the choice between analysing your hard drive and defragmenting it. If you have never defragmented your computer before click on the defragment button. Otherwise click on the Analyze button.
If you decide to Analyze your computer first, the computer will check your hard drive and open a report window, letting you know the fragmented percentage of your computer and also recommending if it needs to be defragmented or not.
When you choose to defragment your computer, the computer will analyze the hard drive first, but automatically start the defragment programme. Depending on how fragmented your computer is this can take between 2 minuets and 5 hours or more. The more defragmenting the computer has to do, the longer it takes, which is why I recommend you run this programme once a week if you are a heavy user, once a month for medium users and once every two-three months for light users.
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Error-Checking. Otherwise know as scan disk.
For operating systems below xp, please follow the guidelines for running a disk clean-up but click on scan-disk.
For XP users and above,
1. Open my computer.
2. Right click on your hard drive, (normally C) and click on properties.
3. Open the tools tab.
4. click on Check Now under the error-checking area.
This will open a new window where you can choose between automatically fix file system errors and scan and attempt recovery of bad sectors.
Choose one or both options and click start.
This may bring up a new window which will ask if you wish the programme to start next time you start your computer. Click yes, exit all running programmes and restart your computer for error checking to take place.
This is another very handy tool to keep your computer running smoothly and it allows you to know when you have bad sectors on your hard drive. Bad sectors can cause the computer to run sluggish and be a sign of potential problems in the future.