HOW DO I DECOMPRESS FILES ON ENTIRE HARD DRIVE?

Question

I did a Disk Cleanup including compressing old files.   I wish now that I hadn't done it since I how have slow computer performance.  I found instructions from Microsoft saying to click properties on C:/ and clear the 'Compress drive to save disk space' check box.  When I did that the check box was already cleared. Am I right to assume that doing a System Restore would not decompress the files?  Any help with this will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, Chuck Message Edited by lakehaven on 12-02-2005 08:26 PM

Denny Denham · Answer

lakehaven,

Compressing old files will not cause a decrease in performance. The files are decompressed on the fly but only when they are used. I don't believe there is any way to decompress them separately, as System Restore does not alter data files.

Compressing an entire hard disk will exact a price in performance, though. To remove compression, according to this page do the following: "To uncompress a file or folder, simply reverse these steps and clear the compression check box where appropriate. When you uncompress a folder or volume, you will be asked if you want to uncompress subfolders contained within that folder/volume."

Message Edited by Denny Denham on 12-02-2005 07:32 PM

tgsmith · Answer

Lakehaven, Click on Start|Run.  Type  cmd and press Enter to get to the command prompt: If you compressed the entire drive and wish to decompress it, type cd\ and press Enter to get to the root directory of your drive. Now type compact /u /s /i *.*   This will decompress your entire drive. If you only want to decompress your Windows folder, type compact /u /s:Windows /i *.* Read on for more complete details.File Systems Compact is the command-line version of the real-time NTFS compression functionality used in Windows Explorer. Compact displays and alters the compression of folders and files on NTFS volumes. It also displays the compression state of folders. The syntax of Compact is: compact [/c|/u] [/s[:folder]] [filename [...]] Table 17.14 describes the switches available with Compact. Table 17.14 Compact Switches SwitchDescription noneDisplays the compression state of the current folder. /cCompresses the specified folder or file. /uDecompresses the specified folder or file. /s[ : folder]Specifies that the requested action (compress or decompress) be applied to all subfolders of the specified folder, or to the current folder if none is specified. /aDisplays files with the hidden or system attribute. /iIgnores errors. /fForces a specified folder or file to compress or decompress. /qReports only the most essential information. filenameSpecifies a file or folder. You can use multiple file names and wildcard characters. /?Displays user help. The following are reasons to use this tool rather than the Windows Explorer equivalent: You can use Compact in a batch file. Using the /i switch enables you to skip files that cannot be opened when you are running in batch mode, such as files already in use by another program. If the system failed during compression or decompression when using Windows Explorer, the file or folder is marked as Compressed or Uncompressed, even if the operation did not complete. You can force the operation to complete by using Compact with the /f switch (with either the /c or /u switch). Note Compact automatically compresses or decompresses all of the files and subfolders when you change the compression state of a folder. It does not ask whether you want to change the compression state of the files or subfolders in it. For more information about real-time compression support in NTFS, see 'Volume, Folder, and File Compression' earlier in this chapter. When you attempt to compress a volume that is very low on free space, you might receive an error indicating that there was insufficient space to perform the action. These errors indicate that the system needs additional free space to perform a compression. The system is not designed to manipulate the data in place on the disk. Additional space is needed to buffer the user data and to possibly hold additional file system metadata. The amount of additional free space required depends on the cluster size, file size, and available space. Here for more details. http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/Windows/2000/server/reskit/en-us/Default.asp?url=/resources/documentation/Windows/2000/server/reskit/en-us/prork/prdf_fls_bufq.asp Message Edited by tgsmith on 12-03-2005 04:11 AM Message Edited by tgsmith on 12-03-2005 04:12 AM

lakehaven · Answer

Thanks Denny and tgsmith for the replys. It seems that I mistook my internet provider having problems yesterday for blaming my slow internet experience on compressing my files. I haven't done any decompressing so far.

Another problem I'm having is that Internet Explorer has a 6 second delay on its initial opening. Going site to site after that is no problem. This started a few days ago after I updated Java and Real Player. I've tried 3 system restore points before that time and I get the notice that it can't be done. Did compressing files not accessed in over 50 days on my C: drive cause this?

Thanks, Chuck

Denny Denham · Answer

lakehaven,

Compressing old files would not have had that effect. A failure of System Restore to work is indicative of a corrupted restore database. All you can do to correct the problem is to purge the database by disabling System Restore (Start|Contol Panel|System|System Restore tab) and rebooting, then reenabling System Restore. This will get rid of the unusable restore points currently stored.

lakehaven · Answer

Denny, I guess the only way to correct the 6 second delay for Internet Explorer to open is to take my operating system back to factory settings and start over. Regards,  Chuck

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HOW DO I DECOMPRESS FILES ON ENTIRE HARD DRIVE?

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