6 replies to this topic

[steve1368]

When I hd was running short of space, I compressed by C:
Now I have more space available., but continue to keep C: as compressed.

I was told that it is not very good to keep C: compressed, as it is has to work harder
when opening file, i.e. originally compressed , uncompress to open, compress again after use.

So, is it true that it is bad for the pc?

Cheers

[DjLizard]

It's only bad for the hard drive in the sense that it will not last as long, due to twice as much read/write activity. Hard drives will die anyway, and at random times, so it doesn't really matter. All I can tell you is that you might want to be prepared; if your data is important to you, back-up frequently, and pick up a copy of Spinrite from grc.com. It's only $89 and it's a lifesaver. It will test your drive's integrity [I'm aware this causes more wear and tear] and truly repair bad sectors. It can keep you from losing data in the first place. It still doesn't beat regular backups though.

What size is your hard drive?

[steve1368]

DjLizard, on Jul 15 2005, 08:09 PM, said:

What size is your hard drive?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Only 40 GB

[DjLizard]

How'd it get full? What kinds of files do you keep on it? Are there large games you can uninstall? Mp3s you can archive to CD?

Re XP's disk compression: If your computer is fast enough and has enough memory, you won't notice much of a performance hit [decompression is done in memory, and is lightning-fast, but takes up to 2x to 4x the amount of memory as a normal file].

[steve1368]

DjLizard, on Jul 16 2005, 08:01 AM, said:

How'd it get full?  What kinds of files do you keep on it?  Are there large games you can uninstall? Mp3s you can archive to CD?

Well here is the breakdown

C: Total size 19.1 , free space 12.3 GB
D: Total size 19.1, free space 4.07

C is compressed.Besides the normal stuff, I have mp3 that is about 700 MB. I think this is OK. My concern is whether to uncompress C: . I compressed C: long time ago, when free space went as low as 2 GB.

D: is low becos I have a lot of movies down there. , but this not compressed, so this not my current concern

DjLizard, on Jul 16 2005, 08:01 AM, said:

Re XP's disk compression: If your computer is fast enough and has enough memory, you won't notice much of a performance hit [decompression is done in memory, and is lightning-fast, but takes up to 2x to 4x the amount of memory as a normal file].

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

System : Intel® Pentium® 4 CPU 2.40Ghz , 768 Mb of RAM. Windows XP Pro Version 2002, SP2

So based on above system info, can you please explain what you mean in your second para. Thanks

Cheers

[DjLizard]

Your system is fast enough to handle disk compression without tanking your performance too much.

[steve1368]

DjLizard, on Jul 16 2005, 11:50 PM, said:

Your system is fast enough to handle disk compression without tanking your performance too much.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I guess , that means I can maintain my C: as it is.....compressed.

Thanks