Powerful defragmenter. Overview of hard drive defragmenters
Before choosing the best defragmenter, you should understand the main function it performs. Files that end up on the local disk of the computer are placed quite chaotically. Over time, this can cause the system to operate slowly, since, having accumulated in a large volume, various data will interfere with fast reading. This process is called fragmentation. To correct the situation and organize files, defragmentation is used, which redistributes information, freeing up space and reducing the time the system processes data.
Windows 7 OS is currently a very popular system that has a beautiful design and is more convenient to use than its predecessor. However, it is also susceptible to fragmentation, which makes it very important to consider the question of how to choose the best defragmenter for Windows 7. Considering the main contenders, we can highlight the top five.
The first on the list is Diskeeper, which has proven itself well on Windows XP. It not only copes well with its main task, but also makes the fragmentation process more difficult in the future, which has a positive effect on the speed of the system and its programs. According to many experts, Diskeeper is the best defragmenter for Windows 7. It has one very characteristic feature. Even 1% of free disk space is enough for it to work. In comparison, any other application will need at least 5% of clean space to start functioning.
The disadvantages include low operating speed. In fact, it is the slowest defragmenter. And besides, it only works with entire disks, so it won’t be possible to speed up the work of individual sectors.
The O&O Defrag application from German developers is also familiar from Windows XP. One of the generally recognized leaders in the segment. He has a number of distinctive abilities that allow him to act as efficiently as possible. Compresses system files, MFT areas and Works with any file systems, copes well with very large disks. We can safely say that O&O Defrag and Diskeeper are the best defragmenters.
Among the disadvantages of this application, high system load is noted, which makes it difficult to use on weak computers. Very rarely, but still sometimes it freezes during operation and offline defragmentation fails.
The Raxco PerfectDisk defragmenter has proven itself well. It works quite quickly, has several modes and can defragment not only entire disks, but also individual files. The big disadvantage, especially for novice users, is the complex interface.
Ashampoo Magical Defrag. A pretty good defragmenter, but nothing more. It performs its main function better than the standard Windows tool, but it does not stand out in anything special and is much inferior to the applications described above. Unlike the top three, the program is absolutely free.
Auslogics Disk Defrag. This is perhaps the best defragmenter for Windows 7 that you don't have to pay for. You can use both the installed version of the product and the portable one. Demonstrates the speed of the system before and after defragmentation. The disadvantages include the relatively low functionality of the program, especially in comparison with commercial versions, but the high speed and efficiency of operation have allowed it to achieve wide distribution.
Each user must decide for himself which defragmenter is better, since each of them has its own weaknesses and
Auslogics Disk Defrag– a free defragmenter program for the hard drive of a personal computer. Using Auslogics Disk Defrag in Russian, you literally revive the hard drive of your PC. The program will independently restore order to the computer’s file system, organize all data, and optimize work with it. This, in turn, will affect the operation of the operating system as a whole. You will notice that programs run faster, and the number of errors when working with files will noticeably decrease.
Comparing Auslogics Disk Defrag with its standard Windows counterpart, you can see real advantages. Auslogics Disk Defrag creates a separate fragmented block into which all system files and folders are transferred. Such a procedure, in the future, will allow quick access to these files, which will have a beneficial effect on the operation of the system. If you decide to defragment your computer's hard drive, you can run a preliminary scan of the hard drive and issue a full report on the state of the disk, the so-called disk map. Also Auslogics Disk Defrag latest version allows you to run the process in the background or program it to defragment automatically. If you do not need to do a complete defragmentation of the HDD or SSD, you can perform this operation with individual files and folders. This will significantly save your time.
Main features of Auslogics Disk Defrag for Windows 7, 8, 10:
- Defragmentation of a hard drive in a short time;
- Ability to run defragmentation in the background;
- Ability to configure defragmentation automatically;
- Ability to pre-analyze the hard drive;
- Possibility to get a full report, create a disk map;
- Ability to create a separate fragmented block;
- Consumes few system resources;
- Simple, intuitive interface.
Disk Defragmenter on Windows 7, 8, 10 it happens almost unnoticeably; the program does not affect the performance of the computer in any way, since it consumes few system resources.
Previously, defragmenting a hard drive was a completely ordinary procedure, even if it was not clear how to do it. The only thing everyone knew was that it somehow speeds up the computer. In the past, I have written many articles about defragmenting the hard drive, page file, and registry. During the popularity of Windows XP, defragmentation was important and it made significant changes to performance.
Over time, many companies began selling third-party defragmenters that supposedly did the job faster and more thoroughly. Some programs were quite good, but for the most part, they did everything the same as the built-in Windows defragmenters or even worse. Sometimes, after installing a third-party defragmenter, there was no need to be surprised that the computer was running slower than before.
Third party defragmentation procedure
The only time I could really recommend using third-party defragmenters is when your computer is completely loaded with different data stored in different places. For example, if you have four different hard drives installed on your computer, each of which contains different types of data, such as music, videos, operating system files, etc. In this case, third-party programs allow you to defragment each disk in a specific way.
If one drive contains a large number of small files that are frequently used, you can use third-party programs to defragment the drive so that all files are sorted according to the last date they were used or the date they were created. For discs that have huge music and video files that are not frequently used, the disc can be sorted according to folder size or file size.
If you wish, you can also defragment only specific files or folders instead of the entire drive. Obviously, as you can see, only individual cases are beneficial, and the time and effort spent on this do not lead to serious consequences.
Another case where a third-party defragmenter would be useful is a client whose hard drive was almost full. I needed to use a third party program to move all the data to the beginning of the disk. This helped free up some space and speed up the computer.
The built-in Windows defragmenter is the best
For 99 percent of people reading this article, Windows' built-in defragmenter is ideal for keeping their hard drive running well.
A group of people went through the trouble of testing various defragmenters such as Defraggler, MyDefrag, etc., and found that in Windows 7 and above, these programs do not speed up reading and writing data on the hard drive by a noticeable amount.
This is because modern hard drives are much larger and thus have more free space. Because of the extra space, Windows does not fragment files in large quantities.
In addition to large hard drives, modern computers and hard drives allow you to access data much faster than before. Thus, if your hard drive is partially fragmented, you will not feel much difference in the speed of data access. Only if your hard drive is highly fragmented will you see some slowdowns, but this is almost impossible to track due to Windows' built-in defragmenters.
In Windows 7 it is called Disk Defragmenter, and in Windows 8 and above it is now called Optimize Drives. By default, it automatically runs this program once a week, trying to keep your disk close to 0% fragmentation.
Solid State Drive (SSD) does not need to be defragmented
The days of automatic defragmentation are gone thanks to the SSD (Solid State Drive). This type of drive does not read or write data like a traditional hard drive and does not need to be defragmented. Apparently Windows automatically disables disk defragmentation on SSDs because defragmentation wears out the drive.
If you are looking for a performance boost when data is read and written, you need to purchase an SSD. Even the cheapest and slowest SSD is much faster than a traditional hard drive.
My Windows 7 computer took over 40 seconds to boot up and now takes less than 5 seconds after I upgraded my 7200 rpm hard drive to a 256GB Samsung SSD. SSDs are usually smaller in size due to their higher price, but just loading an operating system on an SSD can make a big difference, even if you store all other data on a separate, slow hard drive.
Conclusion
I hope that everything I said above is clear, but if not, then I will summarize what I said. If you're using Windows XP on an old computer, you really need to upgrade. If you are deprived of this opportunity, then manually enable the built-in defragmentation. If you're using Windows Vista or higher, you don't need to upgrade anything, since Windows will automatically defragment any traditional hard drive and eliminate SSD defragmentation.
If you are a tech freak and want to squeeze the last drop out of your computer, then install a decent third-party defragmenter and set the settings accordingly. Otherwise, sit back and enjoy your already optimized hard drive. Another way to improve your computer's speed is to uninstall unused or unlicensed software.
To improve the performance of your computer, you should periodically clean up your hard drives. Defragmentation utilities allow you to move files within one partition so that the components of one program are located in sequential order. All this speeds up the computer.
The best disk defragmentation programs
Today, there are several popular tools for defragmenting a computer disk. Each has its own advantages.
Defraggler
One of the best free utilities for cleaning up computer hard drives. Allows you to optimize the operation of not only the entire disk, but also individual subsections and directories.
Smart Defrag
Another free disk defragmentation application. You can run the application during boot, which will allow you to move system files.
There is a free and paid version of the program. The latter has more advanced functionality. The tool allows you not only to put things in order on the storage medium, but also to check it for errors.
Puran Defrag
It has all the functions of the programs described above. At the same time, it allows you to program a disk defragmentation schedule.
Disk Speedup
A free utility that works not only with disks, but also with files and directories. It has advanced functionality that allows you to set certain settings for defragmentation.
Thus, you can move rarely used program components to the end of the disk, and frequently used ones to the beginning. This significantly speeds up the system.
A program that optimizes your hard drive several times faster than a regular OS application. After starting the program, just select the desired partition and start defragmentation.
An optimization system that includes many functions, including disk defragmentation.
The program has a simple, intuitive interface, as well as the usual functions for such an application, including the ability to check the disk for errors.
The tool allows both beginners and experienced users to work, depending on the program settings. In the latter case, advanced functionality allows you to perform complex operations to optimize the system.
MyDefrag
This is an almost complete analogue of the previous program, created by a single programmer for himself.
Disk defragmentation programs can optimize system performance and improve computer performance. If you want your device to work for a long time, then you should not neglect system utilities and applications. In addition, there are many options for both experienced users and beginners.
