CompuClever Blog

How Defrag Hard Drives to Speed Up Your PC

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One of the most effective ways of speeding up your PC is to defrag your hard drive. This article contains a full layout of how to dramatically improve the health and performance of your PC by using the PC TuneUp Maestro Defrag Disk utility. We will cover, in brief, preparing your PC by removing unwanted files. Next we will lay out step-by-step instructions for using the Disk Defrag tool. To wrap up, we will cover some additional tips and features such as frequency of defragmentation and automation of the Defrag tool. So, let’s begin.

Download free defrag tool

You can get lots of information on the subject of defragmentation in the following articles:

Best Practices

There are a few best practice recommendations to outline from the start.

Clean Up: Before you can organize, it is always best to do a quick clean up.  This is also true with your Hard Disk Drive (HDD).  If you stop to think about it, the defragment process works to organize scattered data caused from installing, modifying, and deleting files and software.  Before doing a defrag is the best time to do a quick removal of junk items including files in the recycle bin, temp files (unwanted items that are created as temporary storage), outdated cache items, log files, and more.  With even the free trial version of PC Clean Maestro you can do this quickly and easily.

Close Applications: It is best to close down any applications that are running.  Software programs can be a challenge for Defrag tools as files are altered or created through regular program operations (even ones that occur behind the scenes from a running application).

Give it Time: We recommend leaving the PC alone during the defrag process.  Not only will you experience poor system performance during this time (as the HDD is engaged in reorganizing data), but the act of changing files through the operations you make could be challenging for the defragmentation process as it has to deal with unexpected file and data revisions.  It is best to shut down all running programs and run the Defrag tool in a “down time” such as late evening or at night.  Having a Defrag scheduler is very handy in these cases and we will cover this at the end of this article.

Download free defrag tool

Steps to Defrag

We have outlined four easy steps with screenshots to guide you easily through the defragmentation process.

    1. Clean up unwanted “junk” files

As stated above, we highly recommend cleaning all unwanted files with the use of PC Clean Maestro.  The steps to take are easy – it involves scanning your PC, examining the list of detected items, and cleaning the items.

    1. Select the volume

You can select any and all volumes that are listed.  In the case that your hard drive has several distinct partitions, each one will be displayed here.  External drives and storage media devices (such as flash cards, USB sticks, external hard drives, etc.), are not included in the list of identified volumes.  In the case of Solid State Drives (SSD), – these are data storage devices that employ integrated circuit assemblies as memory to store data in a persistent manner.  They are also characterized by not having any moving mechanical parts and can often be found in laptops – PC TuneUp Maestro does not differentiate these from other volumes.

PC TuneUp Maestro – Defrag : Select disk volume

Recommendation: Do not include an SSD to be fragmented.  These types of drives are not meant to be defragmented.  Defragmentation will cause wear as additional writes are made to the flash cells which have a limited cycle life.  Also, these drives experience very little fragmentation.

    1. Scan for fragmentation

The first stage of defragmentation involves scanning the selected volume (or volumes) to assess the amount of fragmentation.  In this way you can make an informed choice of whether to go ahead with the defrag process.  When you are ready you can click the “Start” button.  While the scan is being performed you can see a visual representation of the data secotrs on your disk.  Each of these is assigned a color to identify it as empty, not fragmented, unmovable, fragmented, busy or reserved space.

PC TuneUp Maestro – Defrag: Scan for disk fragmentation

When the scan is complete the results are displayed. The most important piece of information is the overall percentage of fragmentation.  If there are only a few percentages of fragmentation you can rest easy and run this process another time (in a few weeks for example).  If more defragmentation is identified you need to continue to the next step.  For a PC that has been in use a long time and has not been defragmented, you will likely experience considerable fragmentation.

One other point to mention… you need to examine how much free space is available.  There is a column in the summary table that displays this as well.  While many Defrag tools require 15% free space, PC TuneUp Maestro can get the job done with at least 3% free space.  If you have very little free space (less than 3%), you need to re-visit step 1.

    1. Defrag – Quick and Full

You can now begin to defragment your HDD. You can click the “Defrag Now” button and the default action (Quick or Full Defrag) will initiate. Keep in mind that you can choose to perform a Quick or a Full Defrag and you can select which of these you want as the default action by using the drop down arrow (when you first run the program the default action is set to Full Defrag).

PC TuneUp Maestro – Defrag: Quick vs. Full
  • Quick Defrag: You have the option of saving some time by performing a Quick Defrag – a good choice if there is a lot of available space, the percentage of fragmentation is low, and you do not have a lot of free “down” time and want to use your PC.When performing a Quick Defrag, PC TuneUp Maestro does not re-allocate free space on the volume in order to defrag items. The best example to visualize is having ten fragmented files and only three can be moved to areas where the free space already exists. It would be like having a picture puzzle and only moving joined pieces to free space rather than shuffling empty space to create larger free space.
  • Full Defrag: This option is more thorough and will take more time. When performing a Full Defrag, PC TuneUp Maestro will re-allocate free space on the volume to get the job done. It would be like having a picture puzzle and efficiently organizing the free spaces so that all joined pieces can be moved to space that has been made available.The time this process takes depends on many factors including how defragmented the files are, how large the defragmented files are, and the number of files. Keep in mind the point made above: it is best to leave your PC alone during this process. You need to set aside some time for this to complete. If you want to perform the Full Defrag another time then cancel the procedure. Simply pick a time when you are away from the computer. You can even use the Disk Defrag Schedule to automate all of this.

Download free defrag tool

Additional

You now have the fundamental knowledge required to perform defragmentation on your PC.  There are only a few additional tips to pass along as you get better and better at performing this function.

  1. Regular Defrag – Frequency: How often to defragment your PC is going to depend on how often you and your family use your PC and what kind of activities are performed. If there is a lot of time being spent on the PC with a lot of installation of software and downloading and editing of large files (such as multi-media files), you will need to examine the fragmentation levels on a regular basis – maybe every week or two weeks. If you notice that you need to do this on a regular basis and would prefer to have this run when your PC is on and you are not using it, we recommend using the Schedule tool.
  2. Schedule / Automate: You can schedule PC TuneUp Maestro to run on a regular basis. There are several options you can set including which volume(s), what time of day, day of the week, and whether you would like to simply scan your PC to assess the defragmentation or you would like to have an automatic scan and defragmentation.

    PC TuneUp Maestro: Schedule automatic disk defrag scan

Now that you know the process of defragmentation, you are well underway to taking on one of the most influential steps in improving your PC performance – disk defragmentation.  We plan on providing you even more PC optimization skills.  It is our hope that this and future articles are useful to you and together we can optimize the functioning and overall health of you PC.

A Close Brush with McAfee

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“Safe is not a privilege.  It is a right.  Safe never sleeps.”

This is the message that McAfee delivers on their home page.  They claim to provide comprehensive anti-theft protection.  So what is theft?  What kind of price do we expect and are asked to endure in order to get “protection”?  Let’s look at the details which we at CompuClever experienced first-hand.

McAfee

  • Prior to Sept. 17 2012:  We were contacted by McAfee Web Security team about renewing our web security monitoring service for the next two years.  We had been using this service for the past four years, but given there are comparable services with better pricing plans, we decided not to renew.  The expired American Express credit card information was stored on our McAfee account.  The card expired in May 2012 and we decided to not update the card record, thinking that no one could do anything using a credit card with invalid expire date.
  • Oct. 22, 2012:  We discovered a transaction of $3,910.44 was charged by McAfee on Sept. 17th 2012, for a two-year web security monitoring service that we didn’t want to renew.  No bill, invoice, or notification of any sort was sent by McAfee.  After reviewing our account information, we also discovered that McAfee had altered the credit card expiry date by adding one year to it.  We immediately contacted our McAfee Account Manager by email and asked him to reverse the charge.
  • Nov. 8, 2012:  We did not receive any reply from McAfee.  We called our account manager, who transferred us to the Renewals Account Manager.  She replied that we should have provided a written notice to cancel our renewal and since we are beyond the 30 day period she would not reverse the process.  She also stated that we have to play according to the “terms” and there was nothing at all she could do.
  • Nov. 8, 2012:  We filed a complaint with the McAfee Ethics Point group, which is McAfee’s corporate business ethics governance department, and McAfee’s PR department.
  • Nov. 9, 2012:  Someone from the McAfee Security team called us and offered us a partial refund.  We refused.
  • Nov 13, 2012:  McAfee Ethics Point sent an email saying that they are looking into the case.  This is the last piece of communication we received from McAfee.

American Express (AMEX)

  • Oct 22, 2012:  We contacted AMEX to report the case.  At the beginning the AMEX agent tried to brush us off after she learned that we had had a previous relationship with McAfee.  Then we pushed the fact that McAfee had forged our credit card expiry date and AMEX actually let this illegal charge go through.  AMEX then agreed to establish an investigation to look into the matter.
  • Nov 2, 2012:  AMEX notified us that the charge was temporarily suspended while they were investigating the incident.
  • Nov 21, 2012:  AMEX informed us about the result of the investigation – they revoked the illegal charge and credited our account.  More specifically, AMEX stated that “the merchant (McAfee) has not provided us with information required to resolve this matter”.

In this cyber age when a good portion of us purchase products and services online by providing and entrusting our credit card information to vendors like Amazon and eBay, this awakening experience provoked us to think twice about “Who Can You Trust“.  As individual PC users who interact with the online world through our computers, we need to practice caution before storing credit card information with a vendor, even if that’s with McAfee, a supposedly trustworthy business entity.

This experience has hit close to home for us at CompuClever as both product users and product suppliers.  As a product vendor and service provider, we see the need to scrutinize our practices to insure our business ethics are upheld and adhered to while at the same time we are driven to create revenue and profit for our stakeholders.  Correspondence and communication with our users enables a two-way relation which stands in stark contrast to dealing with clientele as faceless entities within a system; clientele that are required to play according to a one-sided set of terms.  We hope this article has been of use to you and we encourage your feedback.

Who Can You Trust?

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There are software producers that are dedicated to security, safety, and to combat online crime.  One of the guiding principles for CompuClever is to assist users in making their PC secure by removing confidential and private information such as banking and credit card data.  There are many security vendors that protect our computers from viral attacks – viruses and malware and the like.  We come to rely on these companies and trust they employ high standards of ethics.  However, when it comes to the “bottom line” – money and the pursuit of profits – you need to be vigilant and you need to take precautions.  In some cases, such as the example described here, you need to take a stand.

McAfee Forges Credit Card

McAfee is a security software company based in California which was purchased in 2010 by Intel for $7.68 billion.  We are no less than shocked to experience first-hand that McAfee, a company whose objective is to protect its clientele from fraudulent behaviour, would go as far as to force a transaction by arbitrarily picking a new credit card expiry date.  This was done all for the purpose of renewing a software service license.  In this article we will provide an overview as follows.  The specifics and details of this case can be seen in detail in our blog (provide link).

  1. We had been a McAfee Secure customer for the past four years until September 2012.  We made a conscious decision to not renew our service contract by not updating our credit card information which had expired.
  2. McAfee went ahead to make the charge anyhow without notifying us or presenting us with the bill or invoice.
  3. The charge went through based on a forged credit card expiry date.  American Express had accepted the charge and processed it without due diligence of the altered expiry date.
  4. We followed up with both McAfee and American Express.   Refer to the blog article for details.

The Response

What has been the response from McAfee when confronted?  Rather than apologizing and reversing the wrong-doing we had some alarming comments back from McAfee representatives.  We were told that the onus was on us to provide a written notice to cancel our renewal.  We were told that we needed to: “play according to the terms”.  We were also told that the change to the credit card expiry date was the result of adjustments that occur within “the system”.  These responses are indicative of a failure to take responsibility and to practice good ethics when conducting business.

McAfee has taken measures that resemble the classic case of a “bad cop” – someone who is on the take and have put themselves above the law.  Their actions and lack of good practices (such as providing clear measures to exit the license subscription), are a form of entrapment.  This transgression either reflects unethical business practices or in fact willfully fraudulent and illegal action.  In either case, trusting the very businesses that prides themselves on protecting you from malicious and malevolent actions, is fundamentally taking advantage of the good faith we place in our day to day relationships and transactions.

How to Protect Yourself

The following list includes recommendation on how you can prevent these kinds of occurrences from happening.

  1. Be careful of entering a renewable products/service contract.   Examine the details of how the renewal of a software license occurs.  Be especially clear if it happens automatically with online banking.
  2. Be very clear of the cancellation policy.  If you want to cancel it is best to have some evidence of this.  Use email, fax, or write a letter to the service provider.
  3. Always review your credit card bill.  Be vigilant for any items that are not authorized.
  4. Do not store credit card information with vendors and service providers as they can be misused as is clear in this case presented here.
  5. Guard your credit card information.  Do not leave sensitive personal and private information on your PC or in any place that it can fall into the wrong hands.

Good Business Practices

There are business practices that we must expect from the companies we do business with.  We need to set a standard.  We need companies to gain our permission – explicit permission – when renewing licenses.  We need to demand that companies not store our credit card information.  One only has to recall how Sony was the victim of online theft not only once but twice in the beginning of 2011.  The first time data thieves pilfered personal information that was not encrypted.  The second time was a security breach that involved theft of over 12,000 credit card numbers.

At CompuClever we provide perpetual software usage (the user can continue to use the software indefinitely), that comes with one year of product updates and customer support which can be renewed.   Prior to the expiration of the one year subscription, the user makes the explicit decision to renew product updates and customer support.  We also make it our business to not store payment information.  Every renewal is treated like a new transaction using trusted e-commerce service providers to keep confidential information safe and secure.

On Your PC

On a final note, securing credit card information and other confidential data needs to be a part of your security routine.  If online theft can break through whatever systems Sony had in place, it’s a sure bet you could be a victim of online theft.  The safest action you can take is to NOT store confidential data on your PC.  PC Clean Maestro can assist you in keeping information from falling into the wrong hands.

Safety and ethical business practices go hand-in-hand.  That is to say, you need to keep your information safe and be certain that the companies you deal with are using ethical business practices.  We at CompuClever make it our business to re-define quality of service; we dedicate ourselves to re-establishing trust.

Windows 8 Flavors – RT, Basic, and Pro

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Something new always brings an element of excitement thrown in with a bit of apprehension.  Windows 8 is now available and it comes in three flavors.  This article shines some light on the versions offered in an effort to make them a little more familiar.  The latest versions of Windows 8 are: RT, Windows 8 (Basic) and Windows 8 Pro.  Here is a little about each.

Windows 8 Versions (Credit: Microsoft Windows 8 Product Guide)

Windows RT

The “RT” stands for Runtime.  The first most important aspect anyone needs to know is that it is only available on tablets; in this case the thin and light PCs with extended battery life, designed for mobility, and are “touch enabled” (that is, they support touch screen functionality such as swipe, tap, pinch-and-stretch, and more).  As it is only available on tablets, this means it is not available as a separate download.  Instead, anyone interested will need to go to a retail store to try one out and test run the operating system.  The software that runs on Windows RT comes exclusively from the Windows App store.  It includes Windows Update to keep your system and apps up-to-date, and Windows Defender for virus and malware protection.

Features: Windows RT includes some different features than Windows 8 and some features that are not included. Read this official Windows RT FAQ for more information.

  • Windows Update and Windows Defender are always on and up to date.
  • Device encryption: advanced data protection to keep your information more secure.
  • The PC can turn on instantly with connected standby.
  • Microsoft Office Home & Student 2013 RT Preview with touch-optimized desktop versions of the new Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote.

Features that are not include in Windows RT: Windows Media Player, Windows Media Center, HomeGroup creation (you can join an existing HomeGroup but you can’t create a new one), Remote Desktop, and Domain join.

One comfort for those who like to use peripherals… it is mouse and keyboard enabled.

Windows 8 (Basic)

Windows 8 is the basic edition of Windows – the standard edition.  This is targeted at the typically consumer and provides all of the basic new Windows 8 features.  This includes: the Start screen with semantic zoom, tiles, Windows Store, connected standby, Microsoft account integration, Internet Explorer 10, and the Windows desktop among others.

Terms explained:

  • Semantic zoom: touch-optimized technique used by Windows Store apps for presenting and navigating large sets of related data or content.
  • Tiles: numerous square tiles each of which is connected to a person, app, website, playlist, etc.  Tiles light up when there is new information available.
  • Windows Store:  The central repository and download centre for Microsoft applications.  It opened on October 25, 2012 with 7,873 applications.
  • Connected standby:  This is a power management feature similar to the way you use a mobile phone: when the screen is on, you have access to the full power and capabilities.  When the screen goes dark, the system is standby: a low-power mode designed to extend battery life.
  • Microsoft account integration:  this is a single web service that you can sign into which was developed by Microsoft to enable the ability to log into many websites with one account.
  • Windows desktop:  For those familiar with previous version of Microsoft, getting adjusted to the new Windows 8 Start screen will be an undertaking.  For some it will be comforting to know that the familiar Windows desktop is easily accessible as a tile on the Start screen.

Windows 8 Pro

Simply stated, the Pro version is for more advanced users that use their computer for both personal and business use.  First and foremost – you need to know that it includes all the Windows 8 standard features.  It also includes: Remote desktop connectivity, File system encryption, Hyper-V, Virtual Hard Disk booting, BitLocker, Group policy, and more.

Terms explained:

  • Remote desktop connectivity:  This involves the ability to access applications and data on a computer remotely through the use of a network connection.
  • File system encryption:  This technology involves having files transparently encrypted (encoded) to protect confidential data from attackers with access to the computer.
  • Hyper-V:  This relates to platform virtualization and is associated with Windows Server.  Microsoft states that these tools can assist organizations of all sizes to realize cost savings and operational efficiencies.
  • Virtual Hard Disk booting:  A file format which represents a virtual hard disk drive (HDD).  This enables the user to interact with a virtual representation of what is typically on a physical hard disk, partitions and a file system with files and folders.
  • BitLocker:  An encryption feature for the entire disk.
  • Group policy:  A feature from Windows NT.  It is designed to control the working environment of user accounts and computer accounts in a network.

The new Windows 8 platform is heralded as the most profound shift the Windows platform has ever seen.  Being familiar with the features and functionality of each of these editions is fundamental in making an informed decision that suits your needs.  We hope this blog article has shed some light and will help you to be In-The-Know on recent technologies.

Is an Upgrade to Windows 8 the Right Choice?

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Microsoft Windows has now released its next operating system – Windows 8.  There are many sophisticated functions and features.  In a nutshell, it is safe to say that this new operating system (OS) is a profound shift from previous versions.   In this article, we at CompuClever strive to best present some of the more technical aspects in ways that make sense in order to get a perspective and an insight that our readers can grasp without being washed out in a storm of nuances and complex technologies.  After this brief feature description, we will provide the observations that our experienced staff and technicians have noted when trying out the new OS for the first time.  Finally, we will provide our recommendation.

Windows 8 screenshot (Credit: Microsoft Windows 8 Product Guide)

Quick Facts:

Here are some of the notable features:

  • Windows RT.  The “RT” stands for Runtime.  This is one distinct version of the new OS that is available and designed for mobility so that it can run on thin and light PCs like the Microsoft Tablet PC – Surface.
  • Tiles.  The Start screen has numerous tiles each of which is connected to a person, app, website, playlist, etc.  Tiles light up when there is new information available.
  • Built-in Apps from the Windows Store.  Each of these has a particular function (Mail, Video, People, Messaging, Photos, etc.), and tie together common elements.  For example, with the Photos app you can see images from Facebook, Flickr, and all your stored images.
  • Touch screen technology.  If you have the monitor technology to support it, you can swipe, tap, pinch-and-stretch, click, and more, directly on your screen.
  • Sky-Drive.  With this feature your files can be stored on your hard drive and in the cloud.  You can access them regardless of location and from multiple PCs or from your phone device.

Windows 8 comes in three flavors, Windows RT, Windows 8 Basic, and Windows 8 Pro. Read this blog article to learn more about the three versions.

Our Observations

While there are some appealing features to the new OS, our software developers and PC support specialists came up with some observations based on their first experiences.

  1. Learning curve.  First off, you need to be mindful that unlike any other upgrades, there are several new features that will take some adjustment if not a bit of learning and training.  As a result, navigation can be a challenge.  Without touch screen capability you will have to find how to navigate the old fashioned way – mouse and keyboard.
  2. Tile interface.  Right from the start, you will notice that there is no start button.  This means getting used to navigating in a whole new way.  For those users who find Windows Explorer an essential tool for file management, this can be a challenge.
  3. Overall feeling of disorientation.  As a result of the drastic changes to the operating system, it is easy to feel disoriented when operating the new Windows 8 platform.  For instance, you need to know about the “Charms” bar in order to perform a search, alter settings (for Windows 8 and any app), share content across apps, configure external devices, and more.   You need to know how to make visible the control/settings bars when hidden.  You also need to explore how moving your mouse will reveal various features.  Move to the lower-left corner and your Start screen is revealed; upper-left corner for the most recently visited app, alongside the left edge to display your other most recently used apps.  You definitely need either a good map or a general nature of exploration to get yourself around and back again.

Our Recommendation:

Switching to a brand new operating system can be enticing – there are a lot of new toys to explore and play with.  Another motivation for upgrading may be that you are unsatisfied with the performance of your PC and present operating system.  If this is your reasoning, we strongly recommend that you take a different course of action.  In time, and through daily use, any computer system can get bogged down and cluttered.

So with this in mind we recommend the following: Optimize, Organize, and Wait.

  1. Optimize.  For the duration of time you use your current PC, keeping it running at optimal level is in your best interest.  By doing so you can make the right decision about whether to upgrade to Windows 8 or Windows 8 Pro, or to buy a new PC down the road.  Use PC TuneUp Maestro’s Smart TuneUp feature to keep your PC optimized.
  2. Organize.  Whether you are doing a migration or upgrade, it will be to your great advantage to get your files and personal settings organized beforehand.  Uninstall programs that you rarely use, get rid of unwanted “junk” files to create more free disk space, and remove personal and security related information that could potentially expose your personal identity over the Internet.  You can easily achieve all of this with PC Clean Maestro.
  3. Wait.  When first launching a brand new OS with all the bells and whistles, there will be issues and difficulties that users face.  Microsoft will have to smooth out the bugs and maybe make enhancements along the way.

When you are ready… Microsoft will hopefully have all the kinks worked out for Windows 8 and you will have a smooth and efficient PC that meets your daily needs.