It's worth noting though that this only happens on spinning hard drives, so if you have a solid state drive (SSD) you won't need this software at all. That's why the best disk defragmenter tools are essential as an ongoing ally in the work of keeping your machine running optimally. Since fragmenting happens as you use your machine, this is a constant battle that needs to be carried out. This software, essentially, tidies up your drive so that it can run more efficiently.

By having everything defragmented, so the computer knows where to find it immediately, you can have a far smoother experience. You can still use your computer during the defragmentation process.Drives are bigger than ever now meaning there is more and more data to fill them, which needs working through each time you want to access certain files. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.ĭisk Defragmenter might take from several minutes to a few hours to finish, depending on the size and degree of fragmentation of your hard disk. If the number is above 10%, you should defragment the disk.Ĭlick Defragment disk.

Once Windows is finished analyzing the disk, you can check the percentage of fragmentation on the disk in the Last Run column. If you're prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation. To determine if the disk needs to be defragmented or not, click Analyze disk. Under Current status, select the disk you want to defragment. In the search box, type Disk Defragmenter, and then, in the list of results, click Disk Defragmenter. Open Disk Defragmenter by clicking the Start button.

Disk Defragmenter runs on a schedule, but you can also analyze and defragment your disks and drives manually. Disk Defragmenter in Windows rearranges fragmented data so your disks and drives can work more efficiently. Removable storage devices such as USB flash drives can also become fragmented. Fragmentation makes your hard disk do extra work that can slow down your computer.

Windows 10 disk defragmenter