The best defraggers for disks and registry

[silicongod 0]

What's the best defragger under WinXP Pro for:

-> hard disks

-> the registry

 

Are they worth running?

 

I've tried Diskeeper 7.0 but it wouldn't complete after hours and hours (40GB HDD about half full). Apparently, version 8.0 doesn't like partitions once Partition Magic has worked with them ;(

[clutch 1]

I have used Raxco PerfectDisk and O&O Defrag, both of which were very nice. PerfectDisk was really nice on drives that were both very full and very fragmented. As for the registry, I couldn't tell you too much about that as I rarely keep Windows client installs around long enough to care.

[Sampson 0]

I have used O & O Defrag pretty much exclusively. As to the registry, there are several programs you could look at. SysInternals puts out a hive defragmenter called SystemFile Defragmenter (it's free). Likewise, System Mechanic (shareware) has a similar defragmenter. Dachsund Software puts out Hare which also "defragments" in its own way the registry. It's shareware.

[Four and Twenty 0]

i use o&o for files and sysinternals for registry

[mezron 0]

Quote:

I've tried Diskeeper 7.0 but it wouldn't complete after hours and hours (40GB HDD about half full). Apparently, version 8.0 doesn't like partitions once Partition Magic has worked with them ;(

I think something is wrong with your partition. I use Diskeeper 7 and have never seen it take more than about 30 minutes to complete, even on drives that haven't been defragged in over 3 years!

I'm not sure about the registry. I just looked at mine with the Sysinternals software a couple of people have mentioned here. All of mine are reporting 1 fragment, so that leads me to believe Diskeeper is defragging my registry as well. It probably does that during the boot time defrag.

[silicongod 0]

The partition checks out according to Window's disk checker. I wonder if that means there are no problems or that the checker didn't find one ;(

 

I found O&O to leave the partition partially fragmented just like the built-in Windows one (which is a stripped down diskeeper) on both my machines. It was a older version though. Maybe I should try the newest one.

[ViperZ2000 0]

Quote:

I have used Raxco PerfectDisk and O&O Defrag, both of which were very nice. PerfectDisk was really nice on drives that were both very full and very fragmented. As for the registry, I couldn't tell you too much about that as I rarely keep Windows client installs around long enough to care.

Lol. Same here. PerfectDisk works great and I too barely keep an install of Windows around long enough. Usually, if I keep it around for more than a month or so, it's unusual.

[jmmijo 1]

Alec, seems the MajorGeeks links are broken. I even did a search for APK and it didn't find anything

 

I finally did a google search and found a link to Torry's Delphi site and d/l the complete Toolkit in hope this includes the Registry Cleaner

[shassouneh 0]

I have personally used two defraggers.

 

1.) The built in Windows 2000 defragger

 

2.) Symantec Norton SystemWorks Norton Speedisk (2003)

 

I have had mixed results with both. Defragging a hard drive is a tremendously time consuimiung (and somewhat resource consuming process) so It is really hard to tell WHICH is better.

 

I think Speedisk has an entirely different approach to defragging disks than the built in Windows 2000 one.

 

I don't know which to recommend, but I would most probably stick with the Norton one

[jmmijo 1]

@APK, thanks for the info, it was a nice read as to what happened. To bad about Majorgeeks

 

Well I did install it according to the readme file and so it's running quite nicely until just about 30 mins ago, came up with some kind of application error when the systray applet started. Not sure the exact error as I'll test for the same occurance on the next reboot.

 

Thanks again for a nice collection of tools and apps for us power users

 

EDIT: APK, one note about your hosts file, please edit the entry, www.ntcompatible.com with the correct IP address, you have the old one in there. Here's the new one, 66.98.158.201

[ghayes 0]

"What's the best defragger under WinXP Pro for:

-> the registry"

 

Are you referring to internal fragmentation of registry hives (due to deleted registry keys) and compacting the registry hive to recover space?

 

OR

 

are you referring to defragmenting the registry hives as they exist on disk - so that the hives are contiguous?

 

If the latter, then no "special" defrag software is needed. Microsoft's defrag APIs fully support defragmenting registry hives while Windows is running. ANY defragmenter should be able to defragment registry hives.

 

- Greg/Raxco Software

Microsoft MVP - Windows File Systems

 

Disclaimer: I work for Raxco Software, the maker of PerfectDisk - a commercial defrag utility, as a systems engineer in the support department.

[ViolentGreen 0]

Quote:

Quote:

I finally did a google search and found a link to Torry's Delphi site and d/l the complete Toolkit in hope this includes the Registry Cleaner

http://www.torry.net/apps/utilities/system/apkwin2ktools7.zip

It does & a more current build w/ more feature than the link test here above (SR-5), that is the latest folks out there can get at for "General Public Consumption" really... duhmez, a member here, was my last tester for this release & was credited in the ABOUT box iirc. He gave me alot of useability enhancements to put into it by suggestions he made to me in fact.

I do have a newer improved build here of course, & one that improves that registry cleaner with CPU process priority control of its OWN CPU allocation from inside of itself (good for making it run quicker).

That new app is one I had been working on in my spare time as well, & that is a HOSTS file normalizer...

Anyhow, the application itself is great for HUGE hosts files & good for internet speed fiends.

HOSTS files are great for banner ad blocking & also speedup of page loads &/or site loads (each type of entry results in increased internet surfing speeds: banner ad blocks so you don't waste time calling to their servers & loading them, + direct IP to URL resolution so you don't have to query a DNS server to resolve a URL).

This new program's main purpose is removal of repeated entries & alphabetizing all the member entries in a HOSTS file (so it is easier to manage by you & the program itself since its lists are already sorted), + lastly checking for repeats if you add more entries to the HOSTS file!

When you try to add new entries to the HOSTS file using it, it will add new entry if not repeat, and if repeat warns you and does not permit its entry.

Makes for a more efficiently loaded & organized hosts file. I use them as do others here for instance...

FOR INSTANCE: In the toolset you saw @ Torry Delphi Programmer page (where I got a "HOT" rating (their best) from my peers, Delphi programmers. This is what has been my proudest achievement in coding I feel really. More than making magazines, books, etc. & more than reviews by non-coders), I have 16,000 entries in that HOSTS file I ship w/ it... quite alot.

Upon building this program I found 4,000 or so ARE REPEATS. I have a corrected build here due to running my HOSTS file normalizer over the very one I ship out there now which is alphabetized & contains approx. 12,000 unique entries for banner-ad server blocking.

(That came from pasting in lists others had online at will w/out checking their content vs. my own already built one, I saw no tools for that, so I built one... this one & it cures that repeat entry in HOSTS file hassle!)

* This time, to pass time over the winter, I am doing a re-release of the entire toolset (and will pull the timeouts that some of its apps contain, shareware stuff, that only US Time/Date users can use because of the method I used).

It will have these improvements, & that new tool... this new release should be out by January or February some time I am guessing.

Quote:

Alec, seems the MajorGeeks links are broken. I even did a search for APK and it didn't find anything

Heh, yea... we had a "falling out" one day, & here is the gist of it:

I had links to their site in that thread posted above, where my program did the same thing there too as it did here: Which to be blunt was to beat the hell out of the rest in a fair competition performed by users with their own registry data, & not some injected/added .reg test data (for jury rigging purposes as JV PowerTools uses) put into the mix.

Jim & Tim @ majorgeeks first locked & then completely removed the test post thread in their forums (which I thought was silly) after Juoni Vuorio (of JV RegCleaner) came over there saying his injected .reg file was NOT a rig-job that favored his program engine vs. others, I imagine since they had rated his program higher with "PICK" vs. my "HOT" rating there... even though mine had more downloads, etc. & outperformed JV's.

I disputed it for VERY valid reasons (below 1 & 2 enumerated later).

I also asked how they could rate a program higher than my own when I let users demonstrate that my programs outperformed his head to head, they locked the thread & later deleted it after calling me various names etc. (they judge by personal preferences, not by users preferences & results).

Their actions by that point simply prompted me to part my ways with them & remove anything I had on their site (even though I was either leading categories I was in, or in the top 1-5 spots of 100's in categories I was in there for various applications & categories thereof: their loss in downloads/views etc., not mine, I can get those elsewhere).

As far as JV's rigged .reg file test data he uses to show his program's "superiority" over others like my own? Well, heck, anyone with 1/2 a brain can see it is b.s. for 2 pretty basic reasons:

1.) Look inside his .reg file he uses for tests? lol... a good 50% of the data in that "test file" (jury rig file is more like it) is stuff you would NEVER see in your registry, & specific to his program's engines. Sure, using that, his program beats everyone.

2.) He does not let users test with their own data head to head vs. other programs... lol!

Now, letting users test straight up with their own data as I did? He loses, and BAD... as do all my competitors, & my program does not present the possibility of removal of things that can damage a system (like removing registry OLE Server related entries for instance as I mention above).

I personally needed to know myself how my work stacked up to both commercial & shareware competition... without cheating & lying to folks, letting them test mine vs. others with their OWN machines & data in the registry!

(Besides, there are plenty of other sites like MajorGeeks that don't pull stuff like that, so I stick to them).

Same results happened here @ NTCompatible with users testing the program vs. others with their OWN data (no rigged .reg file added) AND there @ MajorGeeks & let me tell you what:

I am happy about that, as it proved mine was a more accurate program of like type vs. others like it, & in an honest non-rigged test run by the users themselves, not myself or any other software creator.

I know, sounds like bragging... it's not, it's just plain-jane, straight-up & honest undiluted facts I am stating. The tests were proof to me I did a decent job of "APK Registry Cleaning Engine" vs. other programs like it.

APK

P.S.=> The HOSTS normalization engine program also has CPU priority control for itself built into itself (like APK Registry Cleaning Engine SR-6 has now).

In fact, I am considering doing that to EACH of my apps, why not? I put the code for it into a reuseable Pascal UNIT, any app can use that, like a C .h file or VB .bas module by analogous comparison... apk

I see the novelist has returned after an extended hiatus.

[el_vago32 0]

Quote:

I see the novelist has returned after an extended hiatus.

Hehehe, "novelist"..., yeah!.. what's goin' on APK??

[Dirty Harry 0]

Yeah, and worst of all the novelists keyboard is still broken, produces only double and tripple carriage returns...

The benefit of defraggers, best or worst, seem to be an item which is based on faith. Sure in some conditions they can be useful, but I haven't seen much evidence on how much they actually speed up what. I've had harddrives running without defrag for years, and seen no improvement at all after defragging them. But it feels so logical so ppl want to do it. Has anyone seen any interesting tests on this ?

 

H.

[ghayes 0]

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treevie....asp?frame=true

 

Look under the section titled Evalution Issues and look at item #1.

 

- Greg/Raxco Software

Microsoft MVP - Windows File Systems

 

Disclaimer: I work for Raxco Software, the maker of PerfectDisk - a commercial defrag utility, as a systems engineer in the support department.

[ViolentGreen 0]

Quote:

I moved from up here in my native N.Y. State in the U.S.A down to the Gulf of Mexico in Alabama (mobile)

Wow...that's one extreme to the other. Was there any culture shock? The south is quite a bit different from NY.