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| Thread ID: 24131 | 2002-09-04 04:01:00 | powerdefrag | hukcomse (1516) | Press F1 |
| Post ID | Timestamp | Content | User | ||
| 76312 | 2002-09-07 11:53:00 | It's been said before Roofus (in this thread I think as well) Power Defrag uses Windows defrag.exe. All PD does is carry out an orderly shutdown of all operating programs (or possibly reboot to a clean winows shell, though I can't quite see how) then defrag the HD followed by a reboot to restore normal operation. Anything that happens on the HD during defragging is purely MS Defrag's problem. It is not much more than an elegant batchfile though no doubt it uses more sophisticated software than plain DOS. I don't much care, it works flawlessly for me, every time. I reckon the problem is either a Trojan, failure to run scandisk or the consequences of interrupting defrag while it was in full flight. Cheers Billy 8-{) Now I'm off to bed! |
Billy T (70) | ||
| 76313 | 2002-09-08 02:53:00 | OK, so ..... PowerDefrag reboots clean, runs MS Defrag, reboots full. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the last time I ran MS Defrag it automatically scandisks and corrects the hard drive (less a surface scan), before commencing the defrag process. This is why so often people see MS Defrag "hanging" at 10%. MS Defrag has this process (by default): # Scan the disk and correct any problems. (a la ScanDisk) - approx 10% complete # Read the entire disk for file information - approx 15% complete # Read sector contents into RAM, then back to the disk to create contiguous files - 100% complete. Have a look for yourself, start Defrag and click the Show Details button as soon as it starts. Is it likely that PowerDefrag bypasses the scandisk portion of MS Defrag?? I don't have the program, but I would consider it unlikely; to try and speed up a defrag by turning off that option is nuts. I agree that it is a waste of time/resource defragging the likes of temp files, swap space, etc. but this should not have affected hukcomse's outcome. There are several possible reasons for his/her settings being screwed (virii, trojans, etc), but I still refuse to believe it was due to an interrupted defrag. |
antmannz (28) | ||
| 76314 | 2002-09-09 00:10:00 | Wow!! I didn't realise what I was getting into when I asked the question. But I have to say a special thanks to all who have tried to help on this one....:) The machine is back from the technicos and is fixed but I dont know what they did to it........it went back twice coz only some of the probs were fixed the first time. They say it was OK the second time despite it not doing its thing for me. Currently it IS working again.... Defrag is usually part of Norton System check for me. I have it automatically running once a week during the night. But lately I have found it hanging up and never completing the task, which is why I tried Powerdefrag. This computer is an office machine primarily and HAS to be used every day. So if the defrag is unfinished it gets reset. But it DOES usually follow scandisk etc. Some of the ideas suggested seem interesting and I might try them when I feel brave again. Some ideas are way over my head - I am a user of computers not a technician - so I will leave them to those who know. Again, thanks to all who have offered help. |
hukcomse (1516) | ||
| 76315 | 2002-09-09 00:44:00 | it sounds like your pc had a problem before powerdefrag. i would stick to nortons speed disk. make sure you run nortons optomiser before you run speeddisk for the first time. with speeddisk it pays to tick the verify writes as it sometimes picks up hardrive faults. |
tweak'e (174) | ||
| 76316 | 2002-09-09 02:28:00 | Glad your PC is working the way you want it again, hukcomse. If you do get to find what was wrong with it, post back so we can all learn :) |
antmannz (28) | ||
| 76317 | 2002-09-09 05:03:00 | Hi Billy T Please explain about your custom boot disk. |
Damien (1751) | ||
| 76318 | 2002-09-09 05:29:00 | tweak'e, are you saying that Nortons is better than the Windows defrag? I am using XP Pro, and haven't found any problems with the Windows app - always do the clean out, scandisk, restart in safe mode thing. Could you say why you recommend Nortons Speedisk please? Thanks John |
John H (8) | ||
| 76319 | 2002-09-09 08:03:00 | While my name is not Tweak'e, i think i can answer your question on nortons speed disk. Basically the main diff between Windows Defrag and Speed disk, is that windows will put the swapfile at the end of the disk, and stick common files at the start. However speed disk sticks the swap file at the start of the disk, then the important files. Now if you don't have a lot of ram, this could result in a performance increase as the heads of the hd don't have to go so far to read the info. (but we are talking fractions of a second here) While it is a little more detailed than i have said, it is the main guist. And there is debate as to wether speed disk does result in an increase over speed disk, as sometimes the difference is negligable |
roofus (483) | ||
| 76320 | 2002-09-09 09:15:00 | speed wise i think the XP is about the same however speed disk gives you a few more optoins like what files get placed where. i use win98 and nortons is WAY faster than stock 98 defrag. the single biggest difference is moving the swapfile. |
tweak'e (174) | ||
| 76321 | 2002-09-09 09:33:00 | Thanks roofus and tweak'e. Very interesting, thanks. I always used Norton Utilities (and Speedisk as part of that suite) when I was a happy Mac user, and always thought it was faster than PC/Windows defrag, which I have used since being forced to swap platforms. It wasn't necessary to do a safe mode boot on the Mac either, which is painfully slow to achieve with XP Pro (the boot stops for ages mid stream). However someone (a computer techie) warned me not to use Nortons with a PC (I forget why now) so I have only ever used Nortons for its AV protection, and relied on Windows Scandisk and Defrag for maintenance. Thanks. Next time I have some spare roubles I may look at the price of Nortons. John |
John H (8) | ||
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