Contiguous files - why does MS Windows fragment files?

Question

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I use both Ubuntu Linux and MS Windows. Linux has very few, if any non-contiguous files (files that are whole and not fragmented). But MS Windows seems to fragment files, even when there seems to be plenty of room to save them as whole (contiguous) files.

Anyone know why MS fragments so many files?

Is there a way to force MS to save files as contiguous files when there is room to do so?

Defrag is time consuming. I don't have to defrag is Linux.

Thanks in advance.
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Answer 1

This mostly depends on free space and the file system type.

Linux uses Extfs2 and 3 as a standard. This is an Inode-Group block filesystem. This means that the whole disk is split in block groups. So a lot less interaction can happen between files, which explains a reduce fragmentation.

There is also the compression which is really bad in FAT32. This compression can lead to more than one file on a single block. This is extremely bad for fragmentation because a 1 byte change causes fragmentation.

NTFS is actually a kind of mix of the two meant to improve FAT32 with concepts from inode systems.

Answer 2

Some operating systems just search for the first available free space on the disk and start writing files on it, whether its large enough to hold all the file data or not.
I think its done as such so that when the file is written to the disk, the OS doesn't have to search through all the disk to find a free space large enough to hold all the file.
You might say that if they where written contiguously, there wouldn't be small free spaces. You might be right, but not in all cases.
Just imagine deleting and writing files. Files have different size, and some files are related to running programs, so they can't be moved.
So, whatever you do, you will reach a time when your files will be fragmented. So, why to waste time searching for free space large enough.
Disk Defragmenting takes much time for the first time. But doing it every week, it will take less.

Answer 3

whilst De-fragmenting a disc, those are the three document types. Fragmented records are records that have been broken into products and the products stored in distinctive places. it extremely is okay despite the fact that it slows down the gadget. non-end records are records that have not been broken into products previously storing. that's what you pick for. Unmovable records are records the gadget needs to stay the place they're. so which you could't defrag an Unmovable document. wish that helps.

Answer 4

it basically depends on the type of filesystem used.
Microsoft never like to create new stuffs, they just update the existing ones until finally the whole windows system crashes at Microsoft itself.

That's why i use linux. Now microsoft has made windows vista and made everything even slower and infact you will need to buy a new faster machine to install vista.