Review of Top Defrag Programs

Built-In Defrag Program Reviews

• Contig Defragmentation Utility: The contig command defragments single files. It is often useful to those who work on large files that become fragmented quickly and change often.

• Diskeeper by Diskeeper Corporation: Diskeeper is a defragmentation program that is included in Windows 2000, 2003 and XP systems. Unlike the Windows defragmentation program, Diskeeper allows users to schedule automatic defragmentation. In addition, it offers the Intelligent File Access Acceleration Sequencing Technology (I-FAAST) that evaluates the frequency of file usage and organizes them accordingly. I-FAAST improves file access and prevents future fragmentation.

• Windows Disk Defragmenter by Diskeeper Corporation/Microsoft: Windows Disk Defragmenter is the built-in disk defragmentation program included in most versions of Windows. While it is able to organize files, the full-system scan can sometimes take hours to complete. In addition, it is unable to defrag paging files, or files used to run Windows. As a result, users must shut down the computer, begin the defragmentation program before Windows and wait for the defragmentation program to be completed. This can be a time-consuming and inconvenient task.

Freeware Defrag Software Compare

• Defraggler by Piriform Ltd: A freeware program, Defraggler was developed by Piriform Ltd. for Microsoft Windows systems to defragment individual files. The latest version offers background scans, consolidation of free space and a quicker defragmentation algorithm than other freeware defragmentation programs.

• JkDefrag by Jeroen Kessels: JkDefrag, the first open source defragmentation software, is a fully automated program, eliminating buttons or menus to the user. In addition, it offers screensaver defragmentation, alerting users when the scan is being performed.

• Page Defrag by Sysinternals/Microsoft: Page Defrag is a freeware disk defragmentation program for Windows that begins at the start-up of a computer. It defrags virtual memory page and Registry files quickly if the files are not fragmented. A major downfall of Page Defrag is that it defragments the placement of files and not the actual contents of the files themselves. In addition, if the files in the virtual memory page and Registry are fragmented, the scan may take hours to complete.

• UltraDefrag by Dmitri Arkhangelski and Justin Dearing: UltraDefrag is an open source defragmentation program for Windows. It offers a variety of features, including file filters, full source code and the ability to view reports of the fragmentation status.

Best Defrag Purchase Software Reviews

• O&O Defrag by O&O Software: O&O Defrag is a Windows disk defragmentation program. It offers a variety of features, including automatic scheduling and background scans. In addition, it features five different defrag methods to treat users individual needs. O&O Defrag also determines the volume for errors before the scan.

• PerfectDisk by Raxco: PerfectDisk by Raxco has received high praise from both customers and reviewers. It features automatic scheduling, allowing users to schedule a daily, weekly or monthly time for the program to run. In addition, users can schedule the program to run during their idle time, as well as stop running as soon as the user is active again. Perfect Disk also features single file defrags and free space consolidation. In addition to its features, Perfect Disk by Raxco is one of the only products available that offers customer service to users, which proves helpful in computer crashes or shutdowns.

• Vopt by Golden Bow Systems: Sold by Golden Bow Systems, Vopt for Windows is one of the oldest defragmentation products on the market. It performs scans quickly and also cleans cookies, internet cache, temporary files and the recycle bin before defragmentation. It features the option to begin defrag as soon as you turn on the computer. However, many software reviews comment on this program's inefficiency at defragmenting all the files on the system.