Re: OODefrag

[vgbaron]

Not sure where this post belongs but:

Using OODefrag with the name option take quite a bit of time understandably. Question - should subdequent defrags ( daily, every other day) be done with the same option or can you do the "regular defrag" after the "name" and then do "name" maybe once a month.

Thanx,

Vic

[btwallis]

I dont know man but I have this program and used it twice with some weird and disasterous results.

I have used it successfully on my flightsim dedicated drive, but.

My digital photos drive was totally corrupted using this program and has cost me a ton of time to restore and reclaim files, some have been lost forever, I dont' know why this happened but I didn't back up the drive before the defrag so lost some photos.

[W2DR]

I've had the same problem with O&O (version 8). Totally destroyed the ability to access data on my FS9 drive. I'll never run that program again. I'm back to Raxco Perfect Disc.

That said, to answer the OP's question - it depends. If you add a lot of files you'll need the full name defrag more often. If you add only a few files, you can use the stealth defrag more often with only an occasional run of the longer name defrag.

Doug

[greggerm]

Remember that all Windows defrag tools (O&O, PerfectDisk, UltimateDefrag, etc. etc.) all use the *same* Windows subsystem for moving and re-ordering files. The only difference is the algorithms used to place files. The "engine" that does the work is the same. (Copy original, write to new location, validate, delete original) Therefore, all defrag tools have the same risks in operation. The same problem could very well occur with another program.

And speaking to the original poster's questions...
It depends on what your goals are for the defrag. If you want to have a very organized disk and have every file in an ordered location, then you could run the name defrag each time. Personally, I'd find that to be a waste of time and read/write cycles - both of which are plentiful but ultimately limited. :)

After running a name defrag, I would do consolidates (defrag files only) from there on out for a good long time. If I was to install a new set of terrain mesh, with hundreds (if not thousands) of new little files, I'd probably re-run the name defrag to reorder and realign everything. Minor alterations and airplane additions shouldn't warrant a full rebuild.

This is one area where having a separate physical drive for MSFS comes in handy. You can keep all your sim items in one place, and keep them ordered nicely. (Not to mention the slight performance benefits of having the sim on it's own dedicated drive as well)

-Greg

[vgbaron]

I agree Greg - ANY defrag runs a risk of corrupted data. Your logic re the "name" vs "regular" works for me. It's pretty much what I thought but it's nice to get some validation.

I keep my system pretty clean and as a result have not had many of the problems others have described with FSX and/or SP1. Altho, like many others, I'm tweaking away the blurries as I go but so far, FSX with or without SP1 has been a fun experience for me. Planning on building a new system in a few months so I'm hoping for even better results when that's done.

Thanx,

Vic

P4 3.4/2GDDR/GF7900/512