Log off network connections before starting Disk Defragmenter, or network communication may stop the defragmentation process and restart it at the beginning. Also, do not use your keyboard or mouse during the defragmentation process or the process may stop and restart at the beginning.

Important A disk defragmentation utility does not ship with Windows NT, but you can purchase one. If you purchase a defragmentation program, make sure it can defragment the NT File System (NTFS).

To use Disk Defragmenter:

1Double-click the My Computer icon on the desktop. The My Computer window opens.

2Click the drive you want to check.

3Select File, then Properties. The drive’s properties window opens.

4Click the Tools tab.

5At Defragmentation status, click Defragment Now. The defragmentation process begins. If your drive has a high percentage of fragmentation, it may take a half-hour or longer to defragment it, depending upon the size of the hard drive.

Hard drive management practices

By deleting unneeded files from your hard drive and managing the space that is automatically allocated for saving certain files, you can help maintain the performance of the hard drive.

Checking hard drive space

In Windows, you can see a chart of the available hard drive space.

To check hard drive space:

1Double-click on the My Computer icon on the desktop. The My Computer window opens.

2Click the drive you want to check.

3Select File, then Properties. The drive’s properties window opens. The General tab shows you the available and used space on the drive.

Maintaining and managing your hard drive

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