Defragging every day= hdd problems??

Vizy93 · 05-07-2008, 05:16 AM

I know what the basis of defragging the harddrive does. Ever since i got my new hdd (its actually taken off a buddys rig) windows is going alot faster and stuff so i am defragging every day now. The defragging of all 4 of my partitions takes about 5 minutes since i do it every day. Is my defragging habit going to mess up my HDD in anyway? Thnx guys

hermeslyre · 05-07-2008, 05:54 AM

Constant defragging shouldn't cause any long term damage, or problems, at least no more than running on a fragmented drive would.

I do it about once a week, when I remember. Once a day seems obsessive, but whatever floats your boat man.

lion149 · 05-07-2008, 06:11 AM

Its been claimed to "shorten" the life of a HDD.

hackapelite · 05-07-2008, 06:29 AM

^ Probably because defragging = heaps of head movement, but thenagain reading data off a fragmented drive should cause "excessive" head movement... in the end you'd probably have it equally stressed either way, so I can't see a problem...

dznutz · 05-07-2008, 06:16 PM

depends on the type of defragmentation.

there's one that will move every single file in the computer. say for instance a "last modified" defrag when you move files according to last access. this is recommended (by my defragging program) to be used once every 2 - 3 months. that method will generate a lot of head movement whereas a "simple" defrag just defrags fragmented files makes less head movements and is ok for daily use.

however, an article published by google indicated that excessive hard drive wear is recommended for newer hard drives to weed out the crappy ones that will die early (within 6 months) and overall excessive activity doesn't decrease the hard drive's lifespan if it is less than 2 years old. the older drives (3+ years) show that excessive activity decreased it's lifespan. i posted this article before

Vizy93 · 05-08-2008, 03:01 AM

Thnx guys.

Dznuts, i first used Tune-up Utilities 2008 drive defrag, then after i tried defragging it after a fresh defrag it didnt let me. So then i used the windows defrag thing. and that 'last modified thing' idk what tune-up 2008 does.

Any suggestions for defrag program?

hermeslyre · 05-08-2008, 03:18 AM

Easy tunes defragger takes far too long IMO, even when the HDD is just lightly fragmented. I use the free version of O&o, it's a pretty popular replacement for the default windows defragger, I have no complaints, fast, seems reliable..

Vizy93 · 05-08-2008, 03:35 AM

Thanks hermeslyre. I'll check on it. But, do you think it would be better than Tuneup utilities defrag. I spent $30 on it lol.

dznutz · 05-09-2008, 04:38 AM

i use "ultimate defrag." http://www.disktrix.com/UDIntroduction.htm

it's the absolute best if you're willing to read the "readme" file to do customized defrags. i also like their "disk" interface.

however, there is an "auto" option for those who want it simple.

they also have the "quick" defrag option that i was telling you about. this option is the exact same method windows uses.

every 4 months or so i would do a full defrag. every 2 days or so i would do a simple defrag.

ANNR · 05-09-2008, 06:14 AM

PerfectDisk. have you tried that? It is my favorite and works very good.

Diskeeper. it is also good. Windows defrag is a strip down version of the Diskeeper.

both of them are good. Check them out

05-07-2008, 05:16 AM	#1 (permalink)
Vizy93 Diamond Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: LA, Westside Age: 14 Posts: 2,174	Defragging every day= hdd problems?? I know what the basis of defragging the harddrive does. Ever since i got my new hdd (its actually taken off a buddys rig) windows is going alot faster and stuff so i am defragging every day now. The defragging of all 4 of my partitions takes about 5 minutes since i do it every day. Is my defragging habit going to mess up my HDD in anyway? Thnx guys __________________ RnB Session- get updated Hulu- TV quality clips/shows/movies My Slurpee Cup- life's elixir

05-07-2008, 06:11 AM	#3 (permalink)
lion149 Gold Member Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: NJ Posts: 280	Its been claimed to "shorten" the life of a HDD. __________________ Rig#1: OS: XP Home Sp3 CPU:Intel Pentium 4 (3.20ghz) MB Biostar p4m900-m4 HDD:160 gb 7200rpm RAM:2gb Kingston DDR2 GPU:EVGA 8600gt DDR3 512mb PSU:Apevia 500w Rig#2: HP a110n-XP Pro-Celeron D 3.06ghz-80gb-2gb-ati x1550 Rig#3: Compaq Deskpro-Ubuntu 7.10-Pentium III 600mhz-10gb & 7gb slave-384mb-Agp rage pro 2x

05-07-2008, 06:29 AM	#4 (permalink)
hackapelite Platinum Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Solicitor's office Posts: 953	^ Probably because defragging = heaps of head movement, but thenagain reading data off a fragmented drive should cause "excessive" head movement... in the end you'd probably have it equally stressed either way, so I can't see a problem... __________________ BY READING THE ABOVE POST, YOU AGREE TO THE FOLLOWING: "The above post is provided solely for entertainment purposes and is not to be taken as professional advice. Therefore, I shall not be held responsible for any damage or losses that are result from anything I have posted, to the extent applicable by law. In the unlikely event that I CAN be held responsible, I have never been here, I am not here, and I will never be here, and it will be highly questionable whether I even exist."

05-07-2008, 06:16 PM	#5 (permalink)
dznutz Platinum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: california Age: 28 Posts: 539	depends on the type of defragmentation. there's one that will move every single file in the computer. say for instance a "last modified" defrag when you move files according to last access. this is recommended (by my defragging program) to be used once every 2 - 3 months. that method will generate a lot of head movement whereas a "simple" defrag just defrags fragmented files makes less head movements and is ok for daily use. however, an article published by google indicated that excessive hard drive wear is recommended for newer hard drives to weed out the crappy ones that will die early (within 6 months) and overall excessive activity doesn't decrease the hard drive's lifespan if it is less than 2 years old. the older drives (3+ years) show that excessive activity decreased it's lifespan. i posted this article before __________________ ANTEC 900 COOLERMASTER EXTREME 500w MSI NEO-F p35 INTEL E4500 EVGA geforce 7300gs 2gb CORSAIR XMS2 SAMSUNG SH-203N SATA SEAGATE BARRACUDA 1Tb SATA AIRLINK 101 300n pci XP PRO 32 bit, VISTA ULTIMATE 64 bit

05-08-2008, 03:01 AM	#6 (permalink)
Vizy93 Diamond Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: LA, Westside Age: 14 Posts: 2,174	Thnx guys. Dznuts, i first used Tune-up Utilities 2008 drive defrag, then after i tried defragging it after a fresh defrag it didnt let me. So then i used the windows defrag thing. and that 'last modified thing' idk what tune-up 2008 does. Any suggestions for defrag program? __________________ RnB Session- get updated Hulu- TV quality clips/shows/movies My Slurpee Cup- life's elixir

05-07-2008, 05:54 AM	#2 (permalink)
hermeslyre VIP Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Portland, Oregon Age: 18 Posts: 4,940	Constant defragging shouldn't cause any long term damage, or problems, at least no more than running on a fragmented drive would. I do it about once a week, when I remember. Once a day seems obsessive, but whatever floats your boat man.

05-08-2008, 03:18 AM	#7 (permalink)
hermeslyre VIP Member Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Portland, Oregon Age: 18 Posts: 4,940	Easy tunes defragger takes far too long IMO, even when the HDD is just lightly fragmented. I use the free version of O&o, it's a pretty popular replacement for the default windows defragger, I have no complaints, fast, seems reliable..

05-08-2008, 03:35 AM	#8 (permalink)
Vizy93 Diamond Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: LA, Westside Age: 14 Posts: 2,174	Thanks hermeslyre. I'll check on it. But, do you think it would be better than Tuneup utilities defrag. I spent $30 on it lol. __________________ RnB Session- get updated Hulu- TV quality clips/shows/movies My Slurpee Cup- life's elixir

05-09-2008, 04:38 AM	#9 (permalink)
dznutz Platinum Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: california Age: 28 Posts: 539	i use "ultimate defrag." http://www.disktrix.com/UDIntroduction.htm it's the absolute best if you're willing to read the "readme" file to do customized defrags. i also like their "disk" interface. however, there is an "auto" option for those who want it simple. they also have the "quick" defrag option that i was telling you about. this option is the exact same method windows uses. every 4 months or so i would do a full defrag. every 2 days or so i would do a simple defrag. __________________ ANTEC 900 COOLERMASTER EXTREME 500w MSI NEO-F p35 INTEL E4500 EVGA geforce 7300gs 2gb CORSAIR XMS2 SAMSUNG SH-203N SATA SEAGATE BARRACUDA 1Tb SATA AIRLINK 101 300n pci XP PRO 32 bit, VISTA ULTIMATE 64 bit

05-09-2008, 06:14 AM	#10 (permalink)
ANNR Platinum Member Join Date: May 2005 Posts: 805	PerfectDisk. have you tried that? It is my favorite and works very good. Diskeeper. it is also good. Windows defrag is a strip down version of the Diskeeper. both of them are good. Check them out __________________ Vista Ultimate x64 Antec 900 Q6600 Zotac 8800GTs 2x2GB Dual DDR800 SEAGATE ST3500320AS 500GB 2x500GB WD Slave 27" LCD

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