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What disk defragment program do you guys use?
- Thread starter 5150 Joker
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no it isn't, however OSX doesn't do a very good job at it, i use Norton Defrag, because after about 6 months my mac becomes slow and gets clogged up, i'm still pondering how to get that 'New mac' speed from my computer. macs just seem to get slower with time, like my powermac G4 used to start in 12s flat (yes it's true) but now it takes about 30
I've used TechTool Pro 4 and Drive Genius but it's almost always unnecessary. HFS (since 1985) and HFS+ work in a way that they're fragmentation-resistant.
Also, since Mac OS X since 10.3 does some behind-the-scenes defragmenting on 20 MB and smaller files when they're opened, it's even less noticeable.
I can tell you that the gain is less than the pain. It takes longer to de-fragment than it gives back. That's not the case with Windows and FAT32 and to a lesser extent, NTFS. FAT16/FAT32 see huge gains because they are extremely simple file systems originally conceived before 1981.
This is true because of the extents file but it's an uncommon occurrence.
Also, since Mac OS X since 10.3 does some behind-the-scenes defragmenting on 20 MB and smaller files when they're opened, it's even less noticeable.
I can tell you that the gain is less than the pain. It takes longer to de-fragment than it gives back. That's not the case with Windows and FAT32 and to a lesser extent, NTFS. FAT16/FAT32 see huge gains because they are extremely simple file systems originally conceived before 1981.
This is true because of the extents file but it's an uncommon occurrence.
cube said:
Which has almost nothing to do with fragmented disks.
Disk failure/data loss is not the exclusive domain of frag'd drives. Not by a long shot.
Count me in as another iDefrag user. Although I've only used it once since I purchased my iMac in April 06. I don't think Mac's *am a recent switcher* are as prone to fragmentation as Windows, therefore its not AS necessary to defrag the drive as a Windows system is. However I felt much better after that defrag just knowing I got all rid of the fragmentation.
Did it speed up my system? I personally think so but only slightly. I don't think I'll be using iDefrag often. Twice a year perhaps.
Did it speed up my system? I personally think so but only slightly. I don't think I'll be using iDefrag often. Twice a year perhaps.
sort of on the same wavelength...
I jsut reformatted a partition and since it has been awhile I forgot what type I should format it in.
Mac OSX Extended (Journaled) was the default
Mac OSX Extended was my other idea
reading up on Journaling I figure it was worth it, but the partition i am speaking of is strictly a scratch disk, always downloading, uploading, moving, copying and deleting.
does journaling slow my HD down at all, is it" worth" it? Though it costs nothing.
I jsut reformatted a partition and since it has been awhile I forgot what type I should format it in.
Mac OSX Extended (Journaled) was the default
Mac OSX Extended was my other idea
reading up on Journaling I figure it was worth it, but the partition i am speaking of is strictly a scratch disk, always downloading, uploading, moving, copying and deleting.
does journaling slow my HD down at all, is it" worth" it? Though it costs nothing.
Journaling is very useful for recovering from file system errors.
That being said, if it's strictly a scratch disk, then journaling and it's overhead isn't needed.
THAT being said, I'm fairly certain the overhead for journaling is so miniscule that you wouldn't notice a difference either way.
That being said, if it's strictly a scratch disk, then journaling and it's overhead isn't needed.
THAT being said, I'm fairly certain the overhead for journaling is so miniscule that you wouldn't notice a difference either way.
It doesn't seem to be a big deal on the G4s I have, but then, it doesn't cover much. It's concerned with the directory structure, not the file contents, so it shouldn't be all that processor intensive.
If you think about it, there seem to be fewer people complaining about disk troubles, so journaling is probably handling a lot of the smaller issues automatically.
Your average user shouldn't need to defrag, though that's quickly changing in my experience. Mac OS X defrags files under 20MB automatically. Anything larger than that would result in lessened system performance as the OS constantly trys to defrag larger files. That said most people don't deal with a lot of files over 20MB, sure the occasional video files or imovie projects but nothing major.
I do some heavy video editing as well as use multiple virtual machines in Parallels, I can assure you defragmenting every so often helps me out. The best tool I have found to defrag is iDefrag. Not Norton, Not Tech Tool, Not Drive Genius. They seemingly have mastered the art of optimizing my drive and they have a neat free utility to make a bootable disk(make sure you have enough RAM).
Is defragmenting neccecary. No. Especially not in the way a Windows user would be expecting.
Is defragmenting useful under certain situations. Yes. Even then is it neccecary. No
Will we eventually come to a point where it will be neccecary. Maybe?
As photo files become bigger and more people use imovie and other large media sources files over 20MB will become the norm and not the exception. However by that time I expect drives and processors will be fast enough that Mac OS X will be able to defrag 40 or 60 or 100 MB files by itself with out performance hits.
If you are dealing with large files like I do I think you will be pleasantly pleased in performance by iDefrag.
***EDIT***
Nothing really to do with the topic but Diskwarrior is the greatest utility ever. I've seen it save more butts than Sir Mix A Lot could shake a stick at.
I do some heavy video editing as well as use multiple virtual machines in Parallels, I can assure you defragmenting every so often helps me out. The best tool I have found to defrag is iDefrag. Not Norton, Not Tech Tool, Not Drive Genius. They seemingly have mastered the art of optimizing my drive and they have a neat free utility to make a bootable disk(make sure you have enough RAM).
Is defragmenting neccecary. No. Especially not in the way a Windows user would be expecting.
Is defragmenting useful under certain situations. Yes. Even then is it neccecary. No
Will we eventually come to a point where it will be neccecary. Maybe?
As photo files become bigger and more people use imovie and other large media sources files over 20MB will become the norm and not the exception. However by that time I expect drives and processors will be fast enough that Mac OS X will be able to defrag 40 or 60 or 100 MB files by itself with out performance hits.
If you are dealing with large files like I do I think you will be pleasantly pleased in performance by iDefrag.
***EDIT***
Nothing really to do with the topic but Diskwarrior is the greatest utility ever. I've seen it save more butts than Sir Mix A Lot could shake a stick at.