How often should i defragment my computer and do a disk clean? And what and why is the reason for this?

Question

I am learning but if i have no one to ask then how do i know, right? Thanks.

Answer 1

Depending on how often you save things, usually about 2 Months


It's kinda hard to explain; but when you save things, if the hard drive hasn't been defragmented recently, It stores part of the file in one spot, part in another and the rest in another spot of the hard drive. Defragmenting basically makes files and stuff load/ open quicker. I defrag mine about every 6 weeks, depending on how much I use the computer. Your computer can tell you if you go to the "defrag now" screen...

Once a week is also fine...
The more you do it, the less time it takes to do;
If you havn'd defragmented in months, it may take all night to do. If you last defraged a week or 2 ago, it wouldn't take nearly that long.

To check if you need it defragmented:
right click on the drive (usually C;\) then go to properties, then tools. Press the defragment button, this will give you the ability to analyze your drive and let you know if it needs defragmenting.

Answer 2

Some people say Defrag after deleting a program from your PC. If you analyze before running Defrag & see a ton of stuff that you know doesn't have to be there\red lines, too many white lines, stuff all over the place, DEFRAG. The #1-only-time not to defrag is when your PC is messed up & you need to fix it 1st, cause you may never find what you need then if fragmented files are swept someplace else. Otherwise, defrag 1 to 4 times a month if you want. This is totally arbitrary.

Answer 3

Depending on how much you use your computer directly relates to how often you should do a disk clean. If it gets slow, then clean it up. Windows Washer is an excellent program for this type of thing.

As for defrag, if your in Win XP, right click on the drive then go to properties, when in properties go to tools. Then, hit the defragment button, this will give you the ability to analyze your drive and let you know if it needs a defrag. Rule of thumb is that if your pc is more than 15% fragged, you will need to defrag it. Norton Utilities is also a good tool to keep an eye on your pc for you.

Good luck!

Answer 4

Let the system tells you.
Windows defrag comes with a "do i have to defrag this disk" feature that lets you know if this is the interesting or not.
you can not keep a disk unfragemented but when reaching some level of frangementation its valuable to perform a defrag to put some order in the way data are written on your drive(s)

Fragmented data are split in chunks (blocks) all across the drive making output slower. This is why performing a defrag from time to time is important and will insure you a high speed rate.

Answer 5

If you can, get a copy of the new Diskeeper. It will automatically defrag in the background. Uses little resources. Probably the best defrag tool I have ever used.

Personally, I defrag everyday - right after I use all the necessary tools to remove any temporary or junk files, registry scans, etc. I always make sure to at least defrag prior to shutting down my pc's.

Michael
http://www.supremecenterhosting.com

Answer 6

if you open a lot of progs, or if you change a lot of files, or if you download a lot of things, you need to defrag daily. why? imagine this: you work in a room full of file cabinets. hundreds of people a day come there and ask for entire files, or single pages from a certain folder. when they are done with what they got from you they bring it back so quickly that you do not have the time to put them back where they belong before the next next arrives. at the end of the day, imagine what your office looks like. now, tomorrow comes. your job depends on you being able to present whatever is requested instantly, but yesterday you didnt put all of the files back where they belonged. you didnt " defragment " the files in your office, so now instead of being able to produce whatever is requested, you have to get part from here, part from there................... get the picture?

Answer 7

Your system will let you kow when you have to do it. If you do alot of disk intensive work, for instance editiing music or phots, you need to do it more than other people. A good rule of thumb is 3-4 months for regular people. highend users 1-3 months

Answer 8

at least once a week for both it helps your computer to perform better and run faster

Answer 9

It's kinda like brushing your teeth and taking out the garbage.

Answer 10

Do it once weekly.