Disk Defragmenter Windows XP and Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows 8

Disk Defragmenter is a utility in Microsoft Windows designed to increase access speed by rearranging files stored on a disk to occupy contiguous storage locations, a technique called defragmentation. Defragmenting a disk minimizes head travel, which reduces the time it takes to read files from and write files to the disk.

When your computer writes data into a file on your hard drive, it's not always able to place all of the data together. A section of a file might be written near the beginning of the disc, the rest of that file could be written near the end. This causes programs to run slowly, as the computer spends time retrieving the file fragments from all over the disk.

Defragmenting your disk volume arranges files (and free space) in an orderly manner, reducing the time taken to read a file. There are various tools available to defragment the computer, and one version is included with MS Windows. Here are some methods for defragmenting your Windows computer.

To defragment your hard disk

1. Open Disk Defragmenter by clicking the Start button . In the search box, type Disk Defragmenter, and then, in the list of results, click Disk Defragmenter.
2. Under Current status, select the disk you want to defragment.
3. To determine if the disk needs to be defragmented or not, click Analyze disk.  If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
   Once Windows is finished analyzing the disk, you can check the percentage of fragmentation on the disk in the Last Run column. If the number is above 10%, you should defragment the disk.
4. Click Defragment disk.  If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.

Disk Defragmenter might take from several minutes to a few hours to finish, depending on the size and degree of fragmentation of your hard disk. You can still use your computer during the defragmentation process.

Now, when you open the Disk Defragmenter (Choose Start→All Programs→Accessories→System Tools→Disk Defragmenter), you’ll see the familiar schedule box, but you’ll also see a Current Status box that shows you each of your drives, when they were last defragmented, and a completion percentage for the current session.

Windows 7 automatically defragments once a week.

 

 

 

Or 

 

1

Note things that you don't need to do. Some older advice may still be in your mind when you set out to defragment; this list shows what you don't need to be concerned about:

• It used to be recommended to open Windows in "Safe Mode". This is not necessary now.
  
• It's not necessary to remove programs you don't use or need. However, as a general housekeeping rule, it's always a good idea to discard what you don't use.
  
• You don't need to close all unnecessary programs or cancel any programs scheduled to run.
  

 

 

2. 
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   If Windows recommends that you defragment your drive, simply follow its prompt and click on "Defragment Disk". Easy!

EditMethod 1 of 7: Windows details

1. 1
   Note that different versions of MS Windows display different levels of detail of the before and after usage of the volume. This table sets out the meanings of the colored areas:

xxx	BLUE areas are sections where the files and directories are contiguous and adjacent.
	WHITE areas are unused.
	RED areas contain pieces (fragments) of files which need to be collected and placed in a location with enough unused space so the resultant file is in one (or as few as possible) pieces.

EditMethod 2 of 7: Windows 7

1. 
   1
   Note that Windows 7's Defragment feature runs automatically but if you want to control it manually, follow the next steps.
2. 
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   Open the Control Panel.
3. 
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   Open "System and Security".
4. 
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   Click on "Defragment Your Hard Drive".
5. 
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   Select a drive to analyze. For example, the "C:" drive.
6. 6
   Click "Analyze Disk".
   • Note that the time it takes to do the defragmentation is dependent on the size of the volume and the amount of fragmentation (red).
     
   • While you can continue working while the defragmentation tool is running, the system response will often be very slow. Consider starting up a defrag before you retire for the evening and letting it run overnight.
     
   • If you need to do work once the defragmentation has begun and you cannot tolerate the poor performance, pause or stop the defragmentation tool. If you stop files that have been defragmented as still consolidated. The advantage of pause is that the tool will continue where it left off when it resumes.
     
7. 7
   Change the defragmentation schedule as follows. If you want to control the day of the week used for defragmentation, do the following:
   • Click "Configure Schedule".
     
   • Open the day menu.
     
   • Select "Day (e.g., Sunday)".
     
   • Click "OK".
     
   • Click "Close".
     

EditMethod 3 of 7: Other Windows

1. 
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   Click "My Computer" on Desktop. Right click on the drive to defrag, for example, "C:" and click on properties and driver properties (dialogue box will appear.)
2. 
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   In driver properties box, Click on the "Tools" tab.
3. 
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   Click on "Defragment Now".

EditMethod 4 of 7: Running again

 

Adding a disk to the schedule

If you decide to leave the external disk connected to your computer, you may want to add it to Disk Defragmenter's schedule. To do so, click the Configure Schedule button and then click the Select Disks button. When you see the Select Disks for Schedule dialog box, just select the check box adjacent to the disk, if it is not already selected, as shown in Figure D.

Figure D

 Thank you
Asraful islam