Maintain Your Computer. System Maintenance

Some Of The System Maintenance Routines Are, And In Order:

Preliminary Moves:

1.	Right click on Start and click on Explore.
2.	Empty C:\Windows\Temporary Internet Files folder.
3.	Empty C:\Windows\Temp folder.
4.	Clean out any file folder and program folder with unwanted or improperly placed files. (Get to know your Explorer and where certain programs store there cache)
5.	Empty Recycle Bin.
6.	Now to check what programs are running in the background. These programs will stop and restart your Defrag. You can't have any running programs while defrag is in operation if you want a fast defrag. On your keyboard, depress and hold the Ctrl+Alt+Delete keys. Close Programs dialog box appears showing the programs that are running.
7.	End Task on all running programs except Explorer and Systray by returning to Ctrl+ Alt+Delete for each item to End Task on.
8.	You are now ready to run the Defragmenter or Scandisk.
9.	Left click on Start, point at Programs, point at Accessories, point at System Tools and left click on Defragmenter or Scandisk. (depending on which one you want to perform)
10.	The order of doing these tasks would be Scandisk then Defragmenter. It has been suggested by other tech sites that a Scandisk should be run before a Defrag if you plan to do them both.
11.	The panels below show how to setup the options of these maintenance programs.

Scandisk

Click on Start,Programs,Accessories,System Tools,Scandisk

Panel 1
Copy these panels with the appropriate marks

scandisk preference settings
Panel 2
Click on Options for this Panel

Click OK

Panel 3
Click on the Advanced button

scandisk advanced settings
Click OK

Start Your Scandisk.

Disk Defragmenter

What the Defrag does is it creates a contiguous file structure. This means it rearranges all the files and programs so that your files are found faster and your programs start faster. Rearranging your programs is based on your usage over a period of 90 days. The system keeps a log of used programs and the frequency in which they were used. Use a program a lot and it gets moved to a position where it can load faster.

The graphics below show how a Fragmented file system looks compared to a contiguous file system.
Lets say you open up your favourite word processing program and you request your document file. Looking at the "Fragmented" graphic, the file, for example is the red one in the bottom right hand corner. Your hard drive has to read all the file system to get to it. The white areas are where files have been removed. Your hard drive still tries to read them but nothing there. It goes on to the next cluster and the next stumbling along the way on the empty clusters until it reaches all the way down to the requested file. Way at the other end of the file system.

The Contiguous graphic shows you where it ended up after a defrag. A lot less file system to go through and the hard drive had an easier time getting there ta-boot! Less wear and tear on the hard drive and a reduced seek time.

Fragmented

Contiguous

To run Disk Defragmenter, you have to shut down running programs.
Please refer to step 6.

Click on Start,Programs,Accessories,System Tools,Defragmenter

To run Disk Defragmenter, you have to shut down all running programs as well. Refer to steps 6 through 9 for performing this task.

Panel 1
Select the drive you wish to defrag

defragmentor drive options
Panel 2
Click on Settings button to get to this panel

Click OK on this panel and on the next panel click the Start button
and you are on your way!

When the Scandisk and/or Defrag is finished, restart your computer.

If performing both a Defrag and a Scandisk, do the Scandisk first and it is not necessary to restart your computer between the 2. Besides, you would have to end task on any programs set to start with Windows if you restart between running the 2 maintenance programs.

Hope you are having fun,

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