How can I speed up a defrag on WIndows XP?

Question

Defragging takes forever. I have seen 3rd party apps that claim to speed up the defrag process by restarting your computer in an optimal configuration. Well why pay for that software? Does XP defrag faster in safe mode? What else can help speed up the defrag process on XP?

Answer 1

the defrag utility in the windows XP is sufficient to help you do defrag of the hard disk with ease. the reason why the use of the software inside is because of stability. some softwares does claim that it is easier and faster but then it all comes down to 1 fact. the fact is , the bugger the hard disk volume the longer it will take. lets break down it to a truth fact. when the hard disk for example is in a few partititon, by defrag on the partition 1 by 1 , it will speed up and cause the defrag to be efficient because it does not read the whole full volume of the hard disk as 1 big chunk. unless you do not have partitions then naturally, it will be longer. some 3rd party software sometimes might just be a little faster, but then the effects might not be what you wanted.
the performance of the computer plays a part. the processor and RAM can be a compliment to the speed of the defrag process but the 1 true fact is about the hard disk which i mentioned. the best is to do monthly as it will also help to be faster. lastly, if the answer i answered to you is not what you wanted , feel free to try out this website.

http://safety.live.com/site/en-US/article/defraghd.htm

Answer 2

Some 3rd party apps might use a slightly different algorithm that could speed up the process. And doing a defrag in safe mode could also speed it up. But at the risk of sounding like an a**hole, the best way to speed up the defrag process is to do it more often. There's nothing wrong with a once a week schedule if you add/delete a lot of programs and files, run different apps, etc. The initial defrag will take the longest. I know some people who schedule a defrag every night after they go to sleep.

Answer 3

You don't need to pay for extra software - the defragmenter in Windows XP will do...but alas, the first time defragging will always be the longest.

To really speed up the defragging process, do it regularly, like once a week. In this way, the file system won't get too messed up over time that defragging takes an inordinate amount of time.

Answer 4

There is no "optimal" configuration for a defrag. Depending on your hard disk drive size, you may have to get very patient. Utilities that claim to help you defrag faster are about as full of it as the supposed "download accelerators", because it is based off of your computer speed and your hard drive's input/output and buffer size. So obviously, a SATA drive will defrag a fraction bit quicker than an EIDE drive of the same capacity.

My suggestion is: defrag overnight when you go to bed. It's the perfect solution for me.

Hope this helps.

Answer 5

You can't and it really isn't necessary anymore to defrag hard drives since they are so huge. In fact, some hard drives never need to be defragged their whole life time. If you insist that you have added and removed so much data that you need to defrag, you will have to wait it out. Start it before bed, and it should be done in the morning. I do recommend you do it in safe mode though, so that other programs running in the background don't interrupt it and it starts all over again. If your not sure how to get into safe mode, just goggle it! (usually F8 on boot)

Answer 6

My best guess is make sure you do not have anything running in the background that may interfere with the scan and defragmenting of the hard drive. Cause it will need to either skip over that part of the hard drive, or it will keep restarting the defragmenter, because of it.

Answer 7

There is not much you can do... i just start the defrag when i am leaving the house or going to bed...
If i need to do it right away i would close all programs and including those not needed in the sys. tray, and turn off the screen saver. then just wait it out...

Answer 8

The only way is to get rid of unnecessary files. Empty Recycle Bin, system restore (or reduce the space allocated), Internet cache and so on. third party apps are move efficient though.And stop apps that write to disk a lot.

Answer 9

Turn off your background applications (antivirus, instant messenger, etc.) while you run the defragmenter. It may not make a huge difference, but there will be fewer things to interfere with the process. Just make sure you turn your antivirus, anti-spyware, and firewall programs back on when you are finished.

Answer 10

You can set it up to work overnight? If your hard drive is large though, I've always been told that it's no longer necessary to defrag...