Ok, I'm trying it. I started Disk Cleanup 20 mins ago and it still has the message "calculating; compress old files". I don't have that much stuff on the drive....should it take this long for a 120gb hd? I don't even have the list of items to check yet.
Ok, I'm trying it. I started Disk Cleanup 20 mins ago and it still has the message "calculating; compress old files". I don't have that much stuff on the drive....should it take this long for a 120gb hd? I don't even have the list of items to check yet.
Mike
Yeah it will take awhile if it is the first time you ran it.
Ok, I'm still working on this. Stats so far: Disk Cleanup: time to execute: 5+ hours. Defrag: almost 12 hours and still executing (only 46% complete). Is this right for defrag? I only have 9gb of the 120gb drive taken up (just installed the drive 1 month ago...haven't had time to fill it up yet).
I would recommend stopping the disk cleanup and then re-running it after unchecking the box next to "Compress old files". This optionn has been reported as causing problems for many users and significicantly increases the amount of time necessary to complete the disk cleanup.
Ok, I'm just letting it run. Disk Cleanup is already done. I ran virus and adware checks first when the problems started (I run adware check at least once a week anyway using Adaware).
Ok, Disk Cleanup and Defrag is complete (defrag took 24 hours). This provided only a minor improvement in performance. It still takes a long time for webpages to render and for programs to start. An example: Quicken 2004 takes about 1.5 mins to fully open after I double-click the icon. That's crazy. It should be 5-10 secs, max.
Is there any utility I can use to test if my HD controller or some other HW component is interfering with the HD? Any thoughts?
Thanks for directing me to this tool. I downloaded Sandra and placed it on both of my 4550 machines. The only real discrepancy I could see on the PCs was in the ATA test area. Both reported slightly different statistics on S.M.A.R.T data (I guess that's the difference between the hard drives, since the PC having problems has a new 120gb Seagate, versus a 30gb Maxtor on my good PC).
My good 4550 has a Seek Error Rate value of 0 ( 0 Threshold, 253 Worst, 252 Maximum)
My "unhealthy" 4550 has a Seek Error Rate value of 31662 (30 Threshold, 75 Worst, 60 Maximum)
I also noticed my environment temp report on the faulty PC said 96.8F, whereas my good PC reported 89.6F.
Does this indicate anything? Should I run anything else in Sandra? As with all programs on my problem PC, Sandra takes a long time to run diagnostics (especially the HD and ATA tests), whereas my good 4550 runs them pretty quick.
Good idea (swapping cables). However, it didn't help. I changed out the Dell cable with the new one provided with the Seagate drive.....no change in performance. I'm now running Sandra again and running the Performance Tune-up Wizard to see what it says. It is currently busy on checking the drives (has been for the last 30 mins.......as usual, way too long). I'll wait and see if Sandra has anything interesting to report......
I'm considering swapping the HDs between my 2 4550's. They have basically the same components (one has slightly more memory and a modem, and they have different DVD burners). Any harm in that? This would tell me if the HD is causing the problem, versus something else on the motherboard (seems logical, but maybe not).
jankerson
2.8K Posts
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March 23rd, 2005 15:00
mike_tx
23 Posts
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March 23rd, 2005 16:00
Ok, I'm trying it. I started Disk Cleanup 20 mins ago and it still has the message "calculating; compress old files". I don't have that much stuff on the drive....should it take this long for a 120gb hd? I don't even have the list of items to check yet.
Mike
jankerson
2.8K Posts
0
March 23rd, 2005 16:00
Yeah it will take awhile if it is the first time you ran it.
jankerson
2.8K Posts
0
March 24th, 2005 11:00
mike_tx
23 Posts
0
March 24th, 2005 11:00
Ok, I'm still working on this. Stats so far: Disk Cleanup: time to execute: 5+ hours. Defrag: almost 12 hours and still executing (only 46% complete). Is this right for defrag? I only have 9gb of the 120gb drive taken up (just installed the drive 1 month ago...haven't had time to fill it up yet).
Mike
volcano11
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28K Posts
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March 24th, 2005 15:00
mike-tx,
I would recommend stopping the disk cleanup and then re-running it after unchecking the box next to "Compress old files". This optionn has been reported as causing problems for many users and significicantly increases the amount of time necessary to complete the disk cleanup.
Steve
mike_tx
23 Posts
0
March 24th, 2005 16:00
Ok, I'm just letting it run. Disk Cleanup is already done. I ran virus and adware checks first when the problems started (I run adware check at least once a week anyway using Adaware).
Mike
mike_tx
23 Posts
0
March 25th, 2005 21:00
Ok, Disk Cleanup and Defrag is complete (defrag took 24 hours). This provided only a minor improvement in performance. It still takes a long time for webpages to render and for programs to start. An example: Quicken 2004 takes about 1.5 mins to fully open after I double-click the icon. That's crazy. It should be 5-10 secs, max.
Is there any utility I can use to test if my HD controller or some other HW component is interfering with the HD? Any thoughts?
Thanks, Mike
jankerson
2.8K Posts
0
March 25th, 2005 21:00
jankerson
2.8K Posts
0
March 26th, 2005 17:00
mike_tx
23 Posts
0
March 26th, 2005 17:00
mike_tx
23 Posts
0
March 26th, 2005 18:00
Good idea (swapping cables). However, it didn't help. I changed out the Dell cable with the new one provided with the Seagate drive.....no change in performance. I'm now running Sandra again and running the Performance Tune-up Wizard to see what it says. It is currently busy on checking the drives (has been for the last 30 mins.......as usual, way too long). I'll wait and see if Sandra has anything interesting to report......
I'm considering swapping the HDs between my 2 4550's. They have basically the same components (one has slightly more memory and a modem, and they have different DVD burners). Any harm in that? This would tell me if the HD is causing the problem, versus something else on the motherboard (seems logical, but maybe not).
Mike
jankerson
2.8K Posts
0
March 26th, 2005 21:00
Ok run the Seagate tool and check the drive and see if it's ok.
Make sure your drivers are up to date with the latest from the Dell website.
mike_tx
23 Posts
0
March 26th, 2005 21:00
jankerson
2.8K Posts
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March 27th, 2005 12:00
Ok goto the Dell website and download the latest MB drivers for your system.
That should fix it.