Windows XP stores files on your hard drive in blocks of data called sectors. When a file is stored in several sectors that aren't located next to each other, it becomes fragmented, and a hard drive with lots of fragmented files can slow down PC performance. The Disk Defragmenter Utility scans your hard drive and rearranges scattered files so the hard drive runs as efficiently as possible. Running Disk Defragmenter once a month is enough for the average home user.
Defragmenting a large partition can take a long time. Plan to run Disk Defragmenter when you're not using your computer.
Go to Start | All Programs | Accessories | System Tools | Disk Defragmenter.
Sometimes Disk Defragmenter conflicts with other programs running on the computer. If this happens, shut down all other programs including anti-virus programs.
Select the drive you want to defragment and click Analyze (see Figure 1).
Look at the horizontal bar in Figure 2 labeled Estimated Disk Usage Before Defragmentation. Red represents fragmented files. If you see lots of red, you should defragment the disk.
- When the analysis is complete, a small window pops up telling you if you need to defragment the disk. Click View Report for more details.
The Analysis Report shown in Figure 3 provides all kinds of statistics about the hard disk. Click Close to continue.
Click the Defragment button to defragment the disk.
If Disk Defragmenter freezes and won't shut down, press CTRL-ALT-DELETE to shut down the program.
