Defrag Immovable Files

As it defragments, your defragmenter needs to be able to pick up files and file fragments and move them to empty spaces on your hard drive. Yet there are some files which cannot be moved and as a result cannot be defragged in the usual way. To defrag immovable files you need a special kind of disk defragmenter such as Diskeeper that is capable of doing what is called a boot defrag. Read on to understand more about immovable files and boot defragmentation.

What Are Immovable Files?

Immovable files are Windows system files that are crucial to the functioning of your operating system. These system files are contain data that is transferred into and out of your computer’s memory as well as information critical to the structure of your operating system. The Windows operating system is constantly writing data to and deleting data form these files while it is running and as a result they expan and contract. To be safe and ensure their integrity, Windows locks them into place on the hard drive and they cannot be moved while the operating system is started up.

Some examples of immovable system files include:

• Pagefile.sys, also known as the page file, the paging file, the swap file and the virtual memory file. This file functions as additional memory capacity enabling your computer to continue load data and programs when your RAM has been all used up.

• The Master File Table (MFT). This file contains the table of contents of all the files on your hard drive. When your hard drive is instructed to find a file, it first looks up the location of the file on the MFT and then it goes to the exact location on the hard drive.

• The hibernate file (hiberfil.sys).The hiberfil.sys file contains an exact copy of your computer’s memory. This file is created when your computer goes into hibernate mode.

Do You Need To Defrag Immovable Files?

The answer to this question is yes. System files such pagefile.sys, the MFT and hiberfil.sys do become fragmented. In fact, because they are very large files (usually hundreds of megabytes) over time they can end up heavily fragmented and scattered around your hard drive. Because they cannot be moved, this can cause your free space to become heavily fragmented too which lowers the effectiveness of defragmentation as it reduces the amount of free space available to place consolidated fragments.

Why Can't Immovable Files Be Defragged?

While your operating system is booted up you can’t defrag immovable files. To achieve its objective, your disk defragmenter must be able to move files around your hard drive in order to bring fragmented files back together again. However, immovable files are completely locked into position by the operating system. When your defragger encounters an immoveable file fragment it is told to leave it alone and move on to other fragments.

How Do I Defrag Immovable Files

The only time that immovable system files are available for defragmentation is before the operating system locks them up, or in other words, before you boot up your computer. Defragging your computer before you start up the operating system is known as performing a boot defrag. Most defragmenters, including the defragger that comes packaged with the Windows Operating System are not capable of doing a boot defrag. Diskeeper is one of the more advanced disk defragmenters available and can perform boot defrags.

Return From "Defrag Immovable Files" To "Do A DIsk Defrag" Return To www.Speed-Up-Your-Slow-Computer.com Home Page

Custom Search