Computer Has Slowed Down

[Neeranam]

Any tips on how to get my computer back to normal speed?

It was fine a few days ago when I got True high-speed internet.

Now it it sort of sticking and a window takes ages to appear.

Also my winamp doesn't work and I deleted it but can't download it again. It says something is "corrupt"

I downloaded quite a few things - songs and the like.

Could it be a virus? How do I check for one? What is the best anti viral thing to download?

I know I should know this by now.

Should I restore to last week, de-fragment(still don't know what that means), delete some programs?

Advice appreciated.

Cheers

N N

[rcm]

Hi there,

How did you get the Winamp deleted ...did you uninstall it through the "Control Panel/Add or Remove Software"?

What i like to do if too many things go wrong....i make a good back up of the Files i want to keep either on a external drive or Dvd Rw's and install Windows new again If you happend to have two Partitions you use the one Partition for the OS and the other Partition with the Files to keep ....

Reason for that doing is ...i want to be sure that all the spyware / adware is gone too. This very often causes the slow down on the PC . Another thing you should look into , get some Antivirus that doesn't take too many resources .

I had Norton(very slow) and changed to the free Avast (thats already a bit faster) now i am on AVG and i find this very good.

If all sucks , give Linux a try , it is fast and you don't need any Antivirus there...

hope this helps,

rcm

[Neeranam]

How did you get the Winamp deleted ...did you uninstall it through the "Control Panel/Add or Remove Software"?

Yes

Thanks for the advice RCM.

What is Linux? Anti virus?

[rcm]

How did you get the Winamp deleted ...did you uninstall it through the "Control Panel/Add or Remove Software"?

Yes

Thanks for the advice RCM.

What is Linux? Anti virus?

Hi there,

Linux is another operating system based on Unix . There are many distributions available . What i found most easy to install and use is suse (google it for suse novell) .

If you choose to do that be sure you get yourself well informed about Linux too .

We also have a Forum for " Linux in Thailand " so you might look there too.

Good luck,

rcm

[Maigo6]

Neeranam, you could have downloaded a host of spyware too.

Run Spybot Search and Destroy and get rid of all spyware, you will be surprised how much this can speed up your computer.

Edited March 31, 2006 by Maigo6

[sungod]

Neeranam, you could have downloaded a host of spyware too.

Run Spybot Search and Destroy and get rid of all spyware, you will be surprised how much this can speed up your computer.

Spybot causes my lap top shutdown, it is very heavy on usage, any ideas why?

[Mister Doom]

If all else fails, back absolutely everything you need to keep, and get the machine reformatted. Then put some new anti virus software on as recommended in this thread. I got all that done for 600 Baht in Pattaya, and the guy even saved all the data put it back on the hard disc, and reinstalled all the Windows stuff etc. for me. But mine crashed, so he jhad to do it, but if the m/c was like your's, I would have backed up myself onto an external hard disc.

My lap top was getting really slow and cranky - had endless probs over the past few months . It's now like a new machine All for 600 Baht.

What a wonderful country - In England I'd be chucking it out and buying a new one.

[rcm]

Neeranam, you could have downloaded a host of spyware too.

Run Spybot Search and Destroy and get rid of all spyware, you will be surprised how much this can speed up your computer.

Spybot causes my lap top shutdown, it is very heavy on usage, any ideas why?

Another option to spybot s& d, is lavasoft ad-aware

rcm

[Jockstar]

ad-aware

Thst what i use. As for anti virus i use McAfee. Never had any problems with both. BTW never delete any prgrams without uninstalling. What browser do you use? If its IE then i suggest changing. IE gets alot more spyware etc than other browsers.

[Maigo6]

ad-aware

Thst what i use. As for anti virus i use McAfee. Never had any problems with both. BTW never delete any prgrams without uninstalling. What browser do you use? If its IE then i suggest changing. IE gets alot more spyware etc than other browsers.

Even better, stop surfing Porn sites!!!!

[JSixpack]

How to fix a SLOW computer:

http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/slowcom.htm

[Beachcomber]

What i like to do if too many things go wrong....i make a good back up of the Files i want to keep either on a external drive or Dvd Rw's and install Windows new again If you happend to have two Partitions you use the one Partition for the OS and the other Partition with the Files to keep ....

Reason for that doing is ...i want to be sure that all the spyware / adware is gone too.

Hi

RCM do you mean that you put ONLY the OS (Windows as it comes on the installation disc) on the first partition?

Any installed programs (ACDSee – Winamp – Blah! Blah!) you put on the second partition?

Does this help with virus and other nasties? do they only install themselves on the in OS on the first partition?

Also when you do an upgrade or update to an installed program it knows where the original program is (C:/programs\something\somewhere) If you put everything on the second partition will the update still find it?

Thanks.

[rcm]

What i like to do if too many things go wrong....i make a good back up of the Files i want to keep either on a external drive or Dvd Rw's and install Windows new again If you happend to have two Partitions you use the one Partition for the OS and the other Partition with the Files to keep ....

Reason for that doing is ...i want to be sure that all the spyware / adware is gone too.

Hi

RCM do you mean that you put ONLY the OS (Windows as it comes on the installation disc) on the first partition?

Any installed programs (ACDSee – Winamp – Blah! Blah!) you put on the second partition?

Does this help with virus and other nasties? do they only install themselves on the in OS on the first partition?

Also when you do an upgrade or update to an installed program it knows where the original program is (C:/programs\something\somewhere) If you put everything on the second partition will the update still find it?

Thanks.

Hi there,

I used to do this on my PC.

I have 2 Partition one is named C the second i named D.

I have the OS (windows ) sitting on C drive same as you already have , you also may install winamp, MS Office... and all the other stuff on C.

All the Documents worksheets music Files....you store in the D Drive.

Lets say you have a problem with your Windows installation again just install Windows on your C Drive again and you never lost your Work, document music...

It is unavoidable today to not get any spyware and adware when surfing, downloading... . So your Computer will become slower at some stage . Spyware removers may help a bit but never remove all of the bad stuff , or may take out the "good " stuff. So every 6 month or so i used to install windows and than you will be back on a speedy, adware, spyware and popup free PC .

In short system files is C personal files on D .

I hope that helps,

rcm

[Beachcomber]

Hi

Thanks RCM that’s what I wanted to clarify.

I read something about this on the forum before and had it in mind to do in the future but was not 100% sure what they meant.

Will use that setup next time I need to do a re-install.

Thanks.

Beachcomber

[Neeranam]

How to fix a SLOW computer:

http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/slowcom.htm

Great site - thanks!

[stumonster]

Spybot causes my lap top shutdown, it is very heavy on usage, any ideas why?

I recently had to clean a box which had been infected with the bronstab worm/trojan and one of its effects was to cause the machine to shutdown if it detected variuos programs trying to run - one of those being spybot.

it was a bastard to get rid of as it disabled regedit , substituted its own hosts file every 1-10mins and gave me a very limited process explorer to use.

there is no automatic removal tool for it yet so it all has to be done manually - not for the faint hearted.

neeranam - if you have connected to ADSL and are not running a software firewall and using Internet explorer your machine is likely now a zombie under the control of spam networks.

minimum is at least the winXP built in firewall needs to be on - but it is recommended to install a free software firewall such as zone alarm ( www.zonelabs.com - look for the free for personal use ) or another free firewall.

spybot ( http://security.kolla.de ) and adaware ( www.lavasoftusa.co ) are recommended , and should be updated every 2 weeks and run.

try using firefox as your internet browser ( www.mozilla.com ) - once you appreciate the efficiency of using tabs you will wonder why so many people still use explorer.

[sungod]

Interesting, How do you suggest I can check for this.. You say there is no automatic way to remove, but can I scan to see if it is there? I have run a few different scans but nothing shows.

[elkangorito]

As rcm indicated, putting your personal programs/files on a separate partition is the way to go.

I would like to make additions to this concept as follows;

i) Your harddrive should be partitioned thrice (into 3) & in NTFS...not FAT32. Assuming that Windows XP is going to be the OS, 'C' drive should be a minimum of 5 gigabytes (to allow for updates & future installed programs).

'D' drive should be a minimum of 1 gigabyte & be dedicated for use by the 'virtual memory' (aka Swap File or Page File). No other programs or files shall be placed onto this drive. Setting the Virtual Memory to use a particular partition can be done through "Settings, Control Panel, System, Advanced, Performance." Once the Virtual Memory is dedicated to this drive, the 'Fragmentation' of the computer will be greatly reduced.

'E' drive will take up the remainder of the harddrive space & is reserved for your programs/files.

If you do a lot of CD/DVD burning, then it is recommended to use 'D' drive for any 'image files' that are commonly used by burning software. In this case, the size of the 'D' partition will need to be increased to the minimum size of the largest recordable media. For example, if you burn many Double Sided DVD's, the size of the 'D' drive should be about 10.5 gigabytes (9.5 gBytes for the image file & 1 gByte for the virtual memory). Of course, you must ensure that your 'burning' software uses this drive for it's image files.

Following the above will help maintain the integrity of your files, increase performance & reduce maintenance. If your computer is attacked by viruses, it's normally 'C' drive that is affected & under the above conditions, 'C' drive can be formatted & the OS re-installed, without interferring with your personal programs/files that are at a safe distance on drive 'E'.

ii) Do not use Microsoft Internet Explorer. Use Firefox instead. Much safer & quicker.

iii) Do not use Microsoft Outlook or Outlook Express. These devices are virus magnets & riddled with security flaws. Use a Mozilla based email client instead. Better still, don't use an email client at all...use Webmail (browser only).

iv) Use only "Certified" RAM like Kingston. Cheap RAM is likely to fail.

I have installed 2 gigabytes of RAM into my computer & I have disabled 'virtual memory'. This has noticeably sped up my computer. I also use System Mechanic to further tweak it for increased reliability & speed.

My system is;

AMD Athlon 64 3700+.

2 gigabytes Kingston RAM Dual Channel.

200 gigabyte parallel ATA Maxtor HDD.

ASUS A8V motherboard.

nVidia GeForce FX5700 128Mbyte graphics card.

Windows XP Professional SP2.

[stumonster]

Interesting, How do you suggest I can check for this.. You say there is no automatic way to remove, but can I scan to see if it is there? I have run a few different scans but nothing shows.

either ctrl-alt-del to bring up the windows process explorer or there are other free alternatives. Then have a look at the list of processes running . some names will be self evident , but others will be fairly crypitic - but you have to type the names of the processes into google and find out what they are.

this is the symantec page with the bronstab removal info

http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/venc/[email protected]

this is also an excellent free program to allow you to control what programs start when windows starts

http://www.mlin.net/StartupCPL.shtml

very small and a standalone exe.

[JSixpack]

As rcm indicated, putting your personal programs/files on a separate partition is the way to go.

I would like to make additions to this concept as follows;

i) Your harddrive should be partitioned thrice (into 3)

I respectfully disagree w/ regard to partitioning in normal circumstances if you're running Windows XP. (It makes more sense for Windows 98, however, where the registry is less dominant.) I have tried it and I have followed the arguments pro and con on microsoft.public.windowsxp.general. In the end I've concluded it isn't worth doing because it adds unnecessary complication and bother, and it gives one the illusion that his data is somehow safer when it really isn't. Specifically,

1. Reinstalling Windows doesn't normally trash your old data even when it's on the same paritition. You should back up your data to another drive or CD/DVD before reinstalling Windows anyway.

2. Even if your programs are on another partition, they won't work after you do a full reinstall (as opposed to a repair reinstall), because their registry entries are lost and you'll have to reinstall them as well.

3. There are no speed advantages to having the drive read/write head skip over to another partition on the same drive.

4. You have to consciously decide to install every program on the other partition, meaning having to stop an installation during its progress and give it the drive letter of the other partition, rather than choosing the default C:. Similary, you have to consciously save documents to the other partition and its document folder, unless you redirect My Documents/My Pictures etc. It gets tiresome.

5. When your Windows partition fails, it's almost certain that your other partition(s) will fail too and so you've lost everything anyway. Even complicating the partition table sometimes leads to instability and more complicated data recovery in a crash, esp. if it wasn't done correctly. (It always *seems* to have been done correctly until you find out that actually it *wasn't*. )

6. Folders will do as well as partitions for organizing purposes.

I think it's far, far better to have a second hard drive, internal or external, rather than a partition for *automated* imaging, cloning, and backups to the second drive--its only purpose other than storage of, say, temporary or huge video files that you don't wish to put on the first drive for various reasons--such as, you don't need for those files to be backed up or imaged over. Hence I get on quite well with two drives with one partition each, even in stressful (computer-wise) circumstances.

Edited April 2, 2006 by JSixpack

[The Skipper]

Once in a while I do this:

Go to:

PROGRAMS,

ACCESSORIES,

SYSTEM TOOLS,

DISC CLEANUP,

DISC DEFRAGMENT.

And somtimes I go to Pantip and have a nerd reload Windows for 500bt.

[francois]

hi'

WRONG!!

just go into registry and set the path for program files on the partition you want and reboot, you'll see ...

if you plan to install all programs on another partition that the C one, you need to go into registry to change the partition letter for the programs installed!

and for the key, you know "search for"? "Programs Files" for the path

francois

[elkangorito]

As rcm indicated, putting your personal programs/files on a separate partition is the way to go.

I would like to make additions to this concept as follows;

i) Your harddrive should be partitioned thrice (into 3)

My comments are in Blue.

I respectfully disagree w/ regard to partitioning in normal circumstances if you're running Windows XP. (It makes more sense for Windows 98, however, where the registry is less dominant.) I have tried it and I have followed the arguments pro and con on microsoft.public.windowsxp.general. In the end I've concluded it isn't worth doing because it adds unnecessary complication and bother, and it gives one the illusion that his data is somehow safer when it really isn't. Specifically,

1. Reinstalling Windows doesn't normally trash your old data even when it's on the same paritition. You should back up your data to another drive or CD/DVD before reinstalling Windows anyway.

I agree. Backing up your data is an exceptionally good thing BUT the registry IS the HEART of any operating system. Also, it is not a good idea to rely upon any Windows Recovery program

2. Even if your programs are on another partition, they won't work after you do a full reinstall (as opposed to a repair reinstall), because their registry entries are lost and you'll have to reinstall them as well.

Granted but at least the "saved" (& important) information will still exist.

3. There are no speed advantages to having the drive read/write head skip over to another partition on the same drive.

There are speed advantages. If your partition(s) has/have the vitual memory used upon it. Over time, the use of the virtual memory within these drives/partitions, fragments the drive, thus slowing down the drives with the 'page file/virtual memory' upon them.

4. You have to consciously decide to install every program on the other partition, meaning having to stop an installation during its progress and give it the drive letter of the other partition, rather than choosing the default C:. Similary, you have to consciously save documents to the other partition and its document folder, unless you redirect My Documents/My Pictures etc. It gets tiresome.

This is simply 2 keystrokes. Also, one of the biggest problems that people have with computers is their lack of knowledge of SIMPLE 'file management'. This knowledge is essential for the normal & proper use of any computer. The amount of my 'clients' who experience difficulties because of their lack of 'file management' knowledge, far exceeds the amount of clients who experience difficulties because of their lack of hardware/software knowledge.

5. When your Windows partition fails, it's almost certain that your other partition(s) will fail too and so you've lost everything anyway. Even complicating the partition table sometimes leads to instability and more complicated data recovery in a crash, esp. if it wasn't done correctly. (It always *seems* to have been done correctly until you find out that actually it *wasn't*. )

This totally validates the need to BACK-UP regularly. A catastrophic failure like this cannot be predicted. No matter what you do, you will be in the poo unless you BACK-UP.

6. Folders will do as well as partitions for organizing purposes.

See the above, which explains why this will not do.

I think it's far, far better to have a second hard drive, internal or external, rather than a partition for *automated* imaging, cloning, and backups to the second drive--its only purpose other than storage of, say, temporary or huge video files that you don't wish to put on the first drive for various reasons--such as, you don't need for those files to be backed up or imaged over. Hence I get on quite well with two drives with one partition each, even in stressful (computer-wise) circumstances.

Other harddrives (external or internal) cost extra cash. If you don't want to spend the dollars, the first step is to PARTITION your PHYSICAL drive into 3 LOGICAL drives. It's not fool proof but it's a step in the right direction.

If you are referring to RAID drives, these are a bit extreme for the average user. If not, the 'lost time' it takes to access the other harddrive equates to the same lost you spoke about earlier. ie another partition. RAID 0 (Redundant Array of Independant Disks) is useless for data protection. It's very good for data read/write speed (2 harddrives...a Striped Array). If one harddrive breaks down, you lose all of your data. Very unsafe.

RAID 1 is similar although there is no gain to write speed but read speed is much faster. Also, even though you might have 2 x 100 gigabyte harddrives installed, you will essentially have only 100 gigabytes of storage space. It is still unsafe with regard to data loss.

Where the first & only level of RAID 'data recovery' exists, is at RAID 5, whereby 3 x harddrives are used.

The last RAID option is RAID n+1 (or 0+1) in which all RAID drives are Striped & Mirrored. A most safe & fast alternative (albeit expensive).

If you're not talking about RAID, then you can expect slower write times to your 2 x IDE harddrives...much the same as writing to a different partition.

Still, the best alternative is to BACK-UP regularly onto removable media (CD-ROM/DVD ROM).

Edited April 2, 2006 by elkangorito

[Neeranam]

neeranam - if you have connected to ADSL and are not running a software firewall and using Internet explorer your machine is likely now a zombie under the control of spam networks.

I use firefox now rather than IE. I'm a bit confused with all the computer language, i guess i have to learn though.

What exactly is a firewall? Is it highly recommended to get one?

[JSixpack]

hi'

WRONG!!

just go into registry and set the path for program files on the partition you want and reboot, you'll see ...

if you plan to install all programs on another partition that the C one, you need to go into registry to change the partition letter for the programs installed!

and for the key, you know "search for"? "Programs Files" for the path

francois

As I said, those Places paths can be redirected--by a knowledgeable user. But nothing very useful is gained by doing so, really.

[JSixpack]

neeranam - if you have connected to ADSL and are not running a software firewall and using Internet explorer your machine is likely now a zombie under the control of spam networks.

I use firefox now rather than IE. I'm a bit confused with all the computer language, i guess i have to learn though.

What exactly is a firewall? Is it highly recommended to get one?

If you're behind a router, a firewall becomes less important as the hardware probably takes care of a lot of port blocking for you. Still a firewall that deals w/ both incoming (unlike the Windows firewall) and outgoing traffic can be helpful. For example, if a trojan is calling home, you'll know it right away and it will be stopped. I like to know exactly what programs are accessing the net and which address. However, inexperienced users usually just allow trojans through because they don't like being annoyed by their firewall messages and don't even know that they have a trojan. So the firewall may or may not be very effective.

If you don't mind dealing w/ a firewall and the configuration issues that sometimes come up, a fairly simple free one like Outpost or Kerio 2.1.5 is not a bad idea. IMO a bloated firewall like the latter Zone Alarms or Norton take over too much of your computer and aren't worth it, esp. if you know how to avoid malware anyway and keep up with the latest Windows security patches.

[JSixpack]

but at least the "saved" (& important) information will still exist.

As it will still exist even if it's on the same partition, or if it's backed up; if it's important, it of course should be backed up; and for backing up, another folder on the same drive will do as well as another partition on the same drive, though best would be a separate drive and/or CD/DVD.

There are speed advantages. If your partition(s) has/have the vitual memory used upon it. Over time, the use of the virtual memory within these drives/partitions, fragments the drive, thus slowing down the drives with the 'page file/virtual memory' upon them.

Hence as you say the drive is slowed down no matter how many or few partitions you have. And so you regularly defrag your drive, which you do no matter where your virtual memory is located. However, on modern systems the speed advantages gained by defrag pale in comparison to other issues: see http://www.techbuilder.org/recipes/59201471. For a pagefile defragmenter, see here: http://www.sysinternals.com/Utilities/PageDefrag.html.

This is simply 2 keystrokes. Also, one of the biggest problems that people have with computers is their lack of knowledge of SIMPLE 'file management'. This knowledge is essential for the normal & proper use of any computer. The amount of my 'clients' who experience difficulties because of their lack of 'file management' knowledge, far exceeds the amount of clients who experience difficulties because of their lack of hardware/software knowledge.

It's 2 keystrokes too many, it's stopping or forgetting to stop, it's thinking or forgetting to think, it's just plain an unnecessary annoyance. Clients don't really need that little complication, esp. when My Documents doesn't contain their documents and photos and then they have to waste time hunting around on E:\Documents and E:\Pictures. And it always happens that *some* of them are there and *some* are in the old My Documents, some programs are in E:\Program Files and some (those where you forgot those 2 keystrokes) are in C:\Program Files--further complicating the backup issue . . . .

6. Folders will do as well as partitions for organizing purposes.

See the above, which explains why this will not do.

Well, sorry, the above just didn't at all explain why this will not do.

If you are referring to RAID drives

No, simple imaging etc. with tools like Acronis or Ghost etc., and regularly copying data with, say, xcopy, will do in the average case. The tools have schedulers and the Windows task scheduler can be used simply and effectively, or just a batch job that runs at boot up or shutdown may be quite sufficient. Just depends on how current and how extensive the backup needs to be. At the extreme, you have redundancy and rollback. For average users, just My Documents or Documents and Settings once a day or once a week may be sufficient.

If you're not talking about RAID, then you can expect slower write times to your 2 x IDE harddrives...much the same as writing to a different partition.

I'm glad that the fact of slower write times w/ different partitions has now been acknowledged. Now (speaking of the average user on an average PC), if you try to do a backup while you're also trying to do something else, you will be affected as your computer slows down for the duration, no matter the location of the backup. Normally then you schedule a backup for its own time slot. It can be at bootup, at shutdown, at night, or lunchtime. Whenever. Safety does come at a cost and each user has to decide how much it's worth to him.

So I stand by my original post, I think all its points are still valid, and I suggest average users of Windows XP not bother about any extra partitions.

Still, the best alternative is to BACK-UP regularly onto removable media (CD-ROM/DVD ROM).

Or removable hard drive or both. So much data, so little time . . . .

[stumonster]

What exactly is a firewall? Is it highly recommended to get one?

If you don't mind dealing w/ a firewall and the configuration issues that sometimes come up, a fairly simple free one like Outpost or Kerio 2.1.5 is not a bad idea. IMO a bloated firewall like the latter Zone Alarms or Norton take over too much of your computer and aren't worth it, esp. if you know how to avoid malware anyway and keep up with the latest Windows security patches.

if you are just using the supplied ADSL modem , yes it is recommended to be running a sofware firewall.

A good basic software firewall once installed blocks all incoming and outgoing and outgoing UART ports. (65535 of them). when you use a program that requires access out to the internet , the firewall will pop up a notification box , naming the program and port number and asking you to permit it to access the internet - if it is a program you use all the time , say firefox , you should also check the box that says ' allow this program to automatically access the internet. You will have to do this for all the programs you routinely use to access the internet the first time you use them after installing the firewall.

what this does is stops any incoming requests that someone might try to use to control your computer , and also alerts you to programs you might not know that have installed themselves ( trojans/worms/etc) when they try and "phone home". when an event like this occurs , you can say no and block its access to the internet and then track down the problem.

Zonealarm used to be the ducks nuts for a free personal firewall ( for windows users ), but as JoeSixpack has noted it has become very bloated so its worth maybe trying another. Outpost is a good free one - but its interface is not as simple as zonealarms is - another good one was the sygate personal firewall , but it seems since symatec has bought them out its not on offer for free anymore.

Edited April 3, 2006 by stumonster

[elkangorito]

The amount of 'slowdown' experienced by accessing more than one partition is negligable & hardly noticeable considering the RPM & 'burst rates' of modern HDD's.

Speed will always be sacrificed for data integrity...it's up to the user to decide what's more important.

In the meantime, I guess we'll just wait & see who starts whining about lost data due to having only one partition & perhaps a virus (or similar) invading the system. If the system is rendered partly or totally inaccessible due to this invasion, then formatting the drive & re-installing the OS is the only solution...even if the required data is backed up. Maybe the offending Virus/Malware/Spyware/ are backed up onto the removable media? This will be fun to deal with once it has been re-installed onto your 'C' drive, won't it!! Viruses normally attack the operating system, which resides on 'C' drive.

Of course, as has been said, you could fork out $ for 'imaging software' (again, copying any Virus/Spyware/Malware), which only works if your HDD is big enough. If it isn't big enough, fork out more $ for a bigger HDD so that you can fully utilise the imaging software.

At the end of the day, multi-partitioning combined with learning "2 extra keystrokes" will go a long way to preserving your data & save you money, since you will have less need for imaging software & consequently, a bigger HDD.

If one can't be bothered to learn 2 extra keystrokes, then one should either not have a computer or instead, have a lot of time, patience & money for the resulting inconveniences.

Several years ago, my sister refused to have multi partitions for many of the reasons stated in some of the recent posts but she is not a technical person. Nor did she know much about the workings of Desktop Computers. She did, however, back-up her important data but this did not prevent the inconvenience of having to wait until the OS was reloaded. Nor did it prevent a virus being backed up onto the removable media as well...which is yet another problem, since most viruses attack the OS. Because she insisted upon using Outlook Express, her computer was infected on 5 separate occassions. On each occassion, the computer was rendered inoperable (or the virus couldn't be removed) & the OS had to be re-installed. On the 5th occassion, I told her that I would refuse to do this again for her unless she allowed me to set up multi partitions & stop using Outlook Express. She submitted & has not had any problems since.

Also, instead of spending 1 hour once a month to Defrag the computer, she now only has to defrag it about once every 6 to 8 months...if that. And the speed difference is not noticeable...as with my computer.

Placing your data on a separate partitions IS SAFER, cheaper & solves many problems. It reduces the need for maintenance & therefore maintains a more 'level' computer performance for a longer time.

Edited April 3, 2006 by elkangorito

[JSixpack]

The amount of 'slowdown' experienced by accessing more than one partition is negligable & hardly noticeable considering the RPM & 'burst rates' of modern HDD's.

I quite agree. The point really is that extra partitions don't give you any speed advantage, hence negating one of the reasons cited for having them in the first place.

In the meantime, I guess we'll just wait & see who starts whining about lost data due to having only one partition & perhaps a virus (or similar) invading the system. If the system is rendered partly or totally inaccessible due to this invasion, then formatting the drive & re-installing the OS is the only solution.

It all depends on the virus. In many cases a cleanup of system files and registry restore are all that's needed. In an extreme case, the other extra partitions will have to be wiped anyway, because the infection will spread over to them as well. Which is to say, extra partitions don't really buy you more security. And so you yourself illustrate exactly my point I made earlier: partitioning is dangerous because it gives you the illusion that you are safer, when in fact you aren't, and so you then may fail to take proper measures (image/incremental backup to another drive or CD/DVD etc.) that will ensure safety with reasonable predictability.

..even if the required data is backed up. Maybe the offending Virus/Malware/Spyware/ are backed up onto the removable media? This will be fun to deal with once it has been re-installed onto your 'C' drive, won't it!! Viruses normally attack the operating system, which resides on 'C' drive.

Are you sure you're aware that your extra partitions are ALSO on the 'C' drive?

Of course, as has been said, you could fork out $ for 'imaging software' (again, copying any Virus/Spyware/Malware), which only works if your HDD is big enough. If it isn't big enough, fork out more $ for a bigger HDD so that you can fully utilise the imaging software.

Yep, if you want safety, you have to pay for safety, in computers as in anything else. Why should you expect a free lunch? Having said that, however, here are two FREE imaging programs:

http://www.softpedia.com/get/System/Back-U...vImagerXP.shtml

http://damien.guibouret.free.fr/en/index_frame.html

and a free cloning program:

http://www.xxclone.com/

Now, here would be a rational use for an extra partition: if you don't have another HD, use an extra partition on your main drive for holding an image of your main partition. OEMs use this technique all the time with their hidden "restore" partitions. The image could then be split if need be and backed up to CD/DVDs.

At the end of the day, multi-partitioning combined with learning "2 extra keystrokes" will go a long way to preserving your data & save you money, since you will have less need for imaging software & consequently, a bigger HDD.

You will always have need for an imaging program if you want to preserve your present system, configuration, and data in their entirety at a particular point in time. You see, the day will always come when your HD will crash beyond repair. You have a choice, which you must make in advance, as to how much you will have lost on that day.

If one can't be bothered to learn 2 extra keystrokes, then one should either not have a computer or instead, have a lot of time, patience & money for the resulting inconveniences.

Or, one can have a computer and skip the 2 extra keystrokes, spend time more productively, and not be under any illusions that extra partitioning is going to be helpful in any significant way.

Nor did it prevent a virus being backed up onto the removable media as well...which is yet another problem, since most viruses attack the OS.

Yep, you only backup when you think you've got a clean installation. This is why you do a baseline backup after first installation w/ major programs, and then do incremental backups thereafter. If one incremental backup has the virus, you rollback to the one before that. BTW, this is one of the disadvantages of mirroring--you just mirror the virus as well.

Because she insisted upon using Outlook Express, her computer was infected on 5 separate occassions. On each occassion, the computer was rendered inoperable (or the virus couldn't be removed) & the OS had to be re-installed. On the 5th occassion, I told her that I would refuse to do this again for her unless she allowed me to set up multi partitions & stop using Outlook Express. She submitted & has not had any problems since.

Millions of users use Outlook Express yet they don't contract viruses. Her problem, actually, was that of opening unknown attachments, leaving HTML turned on, lack of email virus scanning, lack of security patch updating, and lack of spam control. She should also have had a good registry backup from an uninfected time--but average users don't usually have that. I'm granting you the likelihood that the viruses came in via email rather than from other sources.

In any case, if you open a virus, it doesn't matter how many partitions you have, you have got the virus and partitions per se are not going to stop it or make any difference in anything, except to complicate data recovery if it attacks the partition table. Now, if it's a virus that also attacks Outlook Express (as many of them do) then you obviously have a problem w/ your Outlook Express--no matter how many partitions you have. In sum, partitioning is just totally irrelevant here.

Also, instead of spending 1 hour once a month to Defrag the computer, she now only has to defrag it about once every 6 to 8 months...if that. And the speed difference is not noticeable...as with my computer.

If she defrags the whole disk, the time will be about the same whether she has one or more partitions. Files get fragmented no matter where they are. She may now be ignoring the system partition so that the defragger doesn't look there. That's not necessarily good, because writes still happen on that partition. But in any case you defrag at night or when the computer is going to be idle for a few hours, once a month or so, so if she gains a little, it doesn't much matter at all. Certainly not enough to warrant bothering about extra partitions.

Placing your data on a separate partitions IS SAFER, cheaper & solves many problems. It reduces the need for maintenance & therefore maintains a more 'level' computer performance for a longer time.

Sorry, but you just haven't made that case at all, though you do seem intent on continuing to believe in it. It seems to be an instance of a solution looking for a problem. See my original post for how it's actually a bit more DANGEROUS, esp. w/ regards to the illusion of safety. Lack of proper safety can end up being very expensive indeed if the computer is used for business purposes.

But I trust everyone's gotten educated a bit on partitions by now, and there should be enough info here for people to decide about it for themselves.

Edited April 5, 2006 by JSixpack