How Does Disk Defragmentation Help Windows XP?
Disk defragmentation can drastically increase the speed of a computer depending on how badly it is fragmented. Defragmentation is considered an important maintenance step in keeping your computer healthy and running efficiently. A fragmented hard disk drive can slow down a computer substantially if it is not defragmented on a regular basis. It is performed with a utility included with most operating systems. Windows XP includes Disk Defragmenter, a simple and straightforward tool. A hard disk drive becomes fragmented when the operating system does not store a particular file as a whole unit. Instead, it breaks up the file and writes it to different locations, depending on the circumstances. Over time, the disk becomes more and more fragmented. The files become more spread apart and the hard disk drive must search longer to find the proper pieces of the file. Disk defragmentation simply reorganizes the data on a hard drive so it can be accessed more quickly. Defragmentation can be perfo