It is important for the operating system to maintain optimal reliability and best performance, which the Windows 2000 operating system implements through built-in system tools called Disk Defragmenter. Disk Defragmenter is developed through mutual collaboration between Microsoft Corporation and Executive Software International. Keep watching for more information about disk fragmentation and defragmentation, and how Disk Defragmenter supports disk-efficiency maintenance.
Fragment Type
Fragmentation is caused by creating and deleting files and folders, installing new software, and downloading files from the Internet. The computer does not have to save the entire file and folder in one space on the hard disk, which is stored in the first available space. After most of the hard disk space is used, most subsequent files and folders will be saved as a few paragraphs throughout the volume. (In this discussion, the term disk and volume are often used interchangeably.) When a file or folder is deleted, the space that is subsequently vacated is randomly populated with the newly saved file. This is the process of producing the fragments. The more fragmented the volume, the lower the input and output performance of the computer files. There are two main types of disk fragmentation: file fragmentation and free space fragmentation.
File Fragmentation
All parts of a file are stored in one location on the disk, known as "continuous." If a file is not contiguous, it is dispersed throughout the disk to form multiple fragments. All Windows NT and Windows 2000 file types (file allocation table (FAT) and NTFS file system (NTFS)) are prone to fragmentation.
After file fragmentation is generated, the disk's performance is reduced because the head takes more time to move back and forth at different points of the disk as it reads the fragmented file portion. This is the main reason for the gradual decrease in system performance--The specific reason for the longer read and restart times.
Free Space Fragmentation
A locally filled disk contains unused space, which is what we call free space. Ideally, this space should be some contiguous available portion of the hard disk. It's a good thing we have free space, but it's not going to happen if it's fragmented. Free space debris means that the file space is divided into multiple segments and not connected together. For this fragment type, the hard drive performance is reduced because the head is moved to a different point on the hard disk to find free space and then write to the file. The free space to produce fragmentation increases the likelihood of file fragmentation (resulting in file fragmentation) when the file is larger than the hard disk space to write.
Analyze defragmentation
Defragmentation is the process of re writing noncontiguous files to the continuous sector of the hard disk, which can increase the speed of data access and retrieval. Because FAT and NTFS disks can degrade and produce more fragmentation over time, it is important to defragment to optimize system performance.
Debris Analysis Research
How does the system form a fragment? In June 1999, American Business Research Corporation of IRVINE, Calif., analyzed the debris and found that of the 100 enterprise offices that did not use Defragmenter, 50% of the respondents had 2 server files , 000 to 10,000 pieces-another 33% of the respondents, whose files were divided into 10,333 to 95,000 pieces. The results of various scenarios are similar: Server and workstation performance is significantly reduced.
good housekeeper.
Even new computer systems can cause file and free space fragmentation as a result of loading the operating system. You can test this by loading the operating system on the new machine and then running the profiling feature of the Disk Defragmenter (described below).
For individual users, you should run Disk Defragmenter after the operating system is loaded, and then perform a manual check periodically. Determine the time to defragment based on the type of work in progress-remember that the general and day-to-day use of the computer produces fragmentation. You should consider defragmenting after compressing and decompressing files and installing the operating system and applications. Typically, for moderate and heavy usage, defragmentation can be done on a weekly, intermittent use to reduce the sorting frequency.
Disk Defragmenter can be used to analyze disks before determining whether to defragment them. After disk profiling, a dialog box is displayed that prompts you for the percentage of fragmented files and folders in the volume and recommends a series of actions. Periodically analyze volumes and implement actions when Disk Defragmenter recommends defragmentation.
Disk analysis and defragmentation should be performed regularly for all Windows 2000-based servers and workstations to ensure that the disks are running optimally.
Secure Defragmentation
During the development phase of Windows NT, the Defragmentation application Programming Interface (API) was developed and built into Windows NT to ensure that files are securely moved while the operating system is running (no loss of data, system crashes, or corruption occurs). In Windows 2000, Microsoft has further refined, tested, and certified these defragmentation APIs to ensure that files created using Windows 2000 can be defragmented without risk.
The process of performing disk defragmentation
To ensure protection against data loss, system crashes, and file corruption, Windows 2000 Disk Defragmenter can be used with file systems and APIs.
Disk Defragmenter can optimize the disk and keep the disk running efficiently by doing the following:
1. Find fragments of every file in the entire disk.
2, copy it continuously to a new position.
3, ensure that the copy is the exact copy of the original.
4, update the Master File Table (MFT) to set the location of the new file.
5, unassign the original location and reclassified it as free space.
I have a matter of mind
It is the file system, not the Disk Defragmenter, that is responsible for all data movement.
The API does not support the MFT, paging file, FAT directory, or defragmentation using open files such as the Windows registry.
The NTFS directory can be defragmented in Windows 2000.
Elements of the disk defragmentation process
To maintain the efficient operation of your disk, you need to understand and control the following key sections: Master File table, paging file, hibernation file, and directory.
Master File Table
NTFS contains a file called the Master File Table (MFT). The MFT is an index file that maps all objects stored in a disk. In the MFT, each file (including the MFT itself) on an NTFS disk has at least one mapped item. The items in the MFT contain the following data: size, time and timestamp, security attributes, and data location.
Once the MFT is fragmented, Disk Defragmenter cannot defragment it. However, because the MFT can be used consistently to access all other files on the disk, it is also gradually fragmented, resulting in longer disk access times and reduced disk performance. NTFS minimizes this impact by reserving 1/8 of the disk space for the MFT-specific purpose. This area of the disk (called the MFT Zone) maintains its continuity as far as the MFT increases
Paging File
The paging file is the disk space that Windows 2000 uses to Exchange data from or to random access memory (RAM). When the storage space required exceeds the total physical RAM, the virtual Memory manager transfers the oldest data stored in RAM to the paging file. This allows RAM to be used in higher priority use. If the paging file is fragmented, disk performance may be severely affected by increased disk input and output times.
When Windows 2000 starts, disk space is allocated to the MFT and paging files for their exclusive use. It is important to understand that the APIs that enable security defragmentation do not support the movement of these files when they cannot be moved securely. Therefore, it is recommended that the MFT and paging file be defragmented when Windows 2000 is not running. However, because this method is beyond the scope of daily defragmentation, the standard solution is to use Third-party Enterprise Defragmenter to defragment the MFT and pagefile during startup.
Hibernate file
The hibernation file is the disk space that memory data stores when the computer shuts down. Because the location of the hibernation file is determined at the initial stage of the startup process, it cannot be moved. However, it can be defragmented at startup using a Third-party enterprise-level defragmentation program.
Directory
Catalogs can also create fragmentation, which increases the time it takes to access files. The Windows 2000 directory on NTFS can be defragmented while the operating system is running. However, the FAT directory can only be defragmented at startup.
Windows 2000 Disk Defragmenter
Disk defragmentation is a compressed, manual system tool that supports fat 16, fat 32, and NTFS (which supports compressed and encrypted files). This includes an analysis program that describes the extent of disk fragmentation. Analysis display describes the disk status before defragmentation, and "defragmentation display" indicates what happens after the disk is collated. For individual users, Disk Defragmenter can fully meet the need to maintain high levels of disk performance operations.
Using Disk Defragmenter
Disk Defragmenter's Easy-to-use interface provides two Disk management options: Analysis and defragmentation.
Figure 1 Analysis and defragmentation options
Analysis and Defragmentation
Analysis is a diagnostic tool that checks the status of the selected disks and shows whether disk defragmentation is required. In the following example, when the analysis tool is used, the display does not have to be on the volume (C:) To defragment. If you need to defragment the disk, the message box will display the appropriate information, just press the "Defragment" button, the defragmentation process will start automatically.
Figure 2 "Parsing" message box
Whether you are profiling or defragmenting a volume, Disk Defragmenter can only run on one volume at a time, and each volume is manually selected by clicking. After you select a good volume and the action that you want to perform, the interface displays a graphic that describes the current fragmentation state of the disk.
Run the Disk Defragmenter program
The following steps describe the process of using Disk Defragmenter in detail:
1, click Start, point to Accessories, System Tools, and click Disk Defragmenter.
2, select the volume you want to check for fragmentation.
3, click Analyze and wait for the message box to show whether the defragmentation is required.
4, if you need to defragment, click Defragment.
Note Although you can perform other tasks while Disk Defragmenter is defragmenting the volume, it is not recommended. This is because the defragmentation process can reduce the response time for the entire system. It is recommended that you run Disk Defragmenter after your computer completes the day of use.
5. When the defragmentation process is complete, select the next volume to defragment (if there are other volumes) until all the volumes have been defragmented and merged.
Understanding color code display Diagrams
Disk Defragmenter uses a color code system to display the organization of different file types and free space in a volume. Fragmented files are red, contiguous files are blue, system files (including MFT and paging files) are green, and free space is white. The size of each color block on the display diagram represents how much space each file element occupies in the volume and its relative position.
Figure 3
It is important to understand the "approximate" status of the disk represented by the color code map. In fact, each elephant pixel (72 pixels = 1 English?) Typically represents thousands of clusters, some of which may be mixed with fragmented files, contiguous files, free space, and system files. With this in mind, the algorithm determines what color to display according to the main specific file elements that make up the disk sector (represented by each image pixel). In addition, Disk Defragmenter displays a slightly skewed disk condition because it is approximate.
For example, if the displayed image pixel represents 1000 clusters, where 51% is contiguous and 49% is free, Disk Defragmenter displays the segment as a continuous blue. The result hides the free space and the total amount of free space on the display appears to be much smaller than the actual number reported by Windows Explorer. However, after the disk defragmentation succeeds, the color display will show more accurate disk conditions and more accurate representation of the available space.
defragmentation requires enough space on the disk
If the fragmentation of the disk that you want to defragment is already very serious, there may not be enough space on the disk to run the defragmentation process. This is because before the original cluster is marked as available, a full backup of the defragmented file is made at the new location after defragmentation.
After disk defragmentation, Disk Defragmenter may still report: "It is recommended" and "Defragment this disk." (It is recommended that you defragment this disk.) This indicates that there is too little free space on the disk to effectively perform the defragmenter. At this point, you should do the following:
Temporarily delete some large files from the disk.
. delete files that are no longer needed.
Calculate the amount of free space required
As described above, 1/8 of the disk is allocated to the MFT zone in the sector that describes the primary file table. Although this area is marked as free space, it is reserved only for the MFT dedicated by Windows 2000. When defragmenting, Disk Defragmenter cannot move files to the MFT zone to take advantage of the space. Therefore, when calculating the total free space for defragmentation, you must subtract 12% from the free space reported by Windows Explorer. It is recommended that you keep an NTFS-formatted disk with 30% free space to ensure that there is sufficient space for effective defragmentation.
Summary
File fragmentation can adversely affect the speed and performance of the operating system. To maintain the best performance when using Windows 2000, you should periodically analyze the disk status (preferably once a week for moderate and heavy use, and reduce frequency for intermittent usage) and defragment as needed.
Disk Defragmenter is used primarily for stand-alone and users with administrator privileges, and not for network defragmentation. Administrators who require network control, automatic scheduling, and defragmentation at the same time for multiple partitions and MFT and paging files should consider upgrading to a third-party defragmenter that can be performed on the network.
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