The Nuts and Bolts of Defragmentation

Has your computer gotten a little slow or sluggish lately? Odds are, it is not because of the new software that you've installed or that your computer has gotten old. Most likely, it's your hard drive. The hard drive is the little piece of hardware that sits inside your computer which serves as the long term memory, storing this away like your applications, your e-mail and your last vacation pictures.

As you use your computer, you are continuously adding and removing files and pieces of data from your hard drive. When your computer is first installed, most files were located in the same area of the hard drive; a file would be "defragmented" or not be split among different areas of the hard drive.

The longer a computer is used, or more accurately, the more a computer is used, the more fragmented the files will become. This can make it difficult for the computer to find files when needed, and can adversely impact performance. In other words, fragmented computer files will make your pc work slowly.

Maybe an illustration will help.

Imagine when you first move into a new apartment or house, you furnish it with beds, tables, desks, etc. You also get utensils, food, books, DVDs, etc, movable stuff. But in this house, call it "Chez Computer," every time you use something, you put it back in the wrong place. You grab a fork and after using it, put it in the bathroom. After brushing your teeth, you throw the toothpaste in the washer and the toothbrush in the freezer.

That's what happens to your computer over time. It's getting cluttered, and messy, and your computer is not able to find the stuff it needs in a timely manner.

Defragmentation is like spring cleaning. It wanders into your computer and throws out everything unnecessary, and moves everything back to where it's supposed to. Food in the kitchen, DVDs in the living room. Or in your computer's case, files in nice large continuous blocks on your hard drive.