Since 1984 - Specializing in Helping Seniors Who Are New to Computers
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Scandisk, Chkdsk, Defrag, & Disk Cleanup

Windows comes with some utilities which are essential for maintaining top PC performance.

They are ScanDisk (in Win95/98/ME), ChkDsk in WinXP, and Defrag (in all versions of Windows).

ScanDisk and ChkDsk can scan your hard drive and repair all kinds of errors, including ones you don't even know you have.

Defrag will "Defragment" your hard drive and eliminate "gaps" that may have been left where files were deleted or moved. It will realign all the files on your hard drive, making it more quickly and efficiently accessible.

In Win95/98/ME these programs may stop running and display error messages. These problems can be avoided by always running ScanDisk before running Defrag. This is because the former will fix errors that keep the latter from working properly.

In WinXP this is not an issue - you can run Chkdsk and Defrag in any order you prefer.

Temporarily turning off programs operating in the background, such as a screensaver, will help Windows 95/98/ME get through Scandisk and Defrag more easily.

(See bottom of page for more details.)
Another tool that helps keep your PC running smoothly is "Disk Cleanup."

Double-click My Computer and then right-click the C: icon. Choose "Disk Cleanup" and follow the prompts to get rid of all kinds of "temporary" files that are just taking up valuable disk space.
In Windows 95/98/ME, start by running ScanDisk, which can be run in any of the following three modes:
   (A) Windows, (B) DOS, (C) Safe Mode
(D) For Windows XP run Chkdsk (see instructions at bottom of this page).


   (A) Windows Mode:
    1 - Go to Start, Run and type SCANDISK, where you'll find Standard and
         Thorough. Choose the latter and be sure "Automatically Fix Errors" is checked.

NOTE: Caps have been used for emphasis only. Typing ScanDisk, Scandisk, or scandisk brings the same results.

Alternative ways of accessing Scandisk in Windows Mode are as follows:

Go to Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, and click ScanDisk.
   ...or... Double-click My Computer and right-click your C-drive icon. Choose Properties and click the Tools tab. Finally, click "Check Now."
   ...or... Go to Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, and click Maintenance Wizard to set up a schedule where ScanDisk and Defrag will run automatically in the future. Some folks have their settings scheduled to run each program weekly at 4:00 AM (an hour at which one's computer would normally not be in use).

   (B) DOS Mode:
  1 - Run ScanDisk in DOS by going to Start, Shut Down, Restart in DOS. At the C:\Windows prompt, type SCANDISK and press Enter. Six items will be displayed to be checked. The first five will be checked automatically, and you'll be told about the disposition of any errors that might have been found.
   2 - Finally, you'll be asked if you want to run the sixth item, Surface Scan. This one can take a long time, so I usually do it when I expect to be away from the PC for a few hours.
   3 - When finished running ScanDisk in DOS, type EXIT and press Enterr to return to Windows.

   (C) Safe Mode:
  1 - Go to Start, Shut Down and click Restart. When the PC begins to restart, hold down your Esc* key while the rebooting takes place. This puts most PCs into "Safe Mode:" whereby it bypasses a number of different "Start" options, such as printer and scanner drivers, which may be running in the background and interfering with running ScandDisk or Defrag.
   2 - After running ScanDisk and Defrag in Safe Mode, go to Start, Shut Down and turn your PC off. Turn it back on again and it should reboot into the regular Windows mode.
Occasionally it may take two or three shutdowns to get back to Windows.
          *On some computers the F8 key is used instead of the Esc key.

     (D) Windows XP Instructions:

In WinXP, the word SCANDISK has mysteriously disappeared and been replaced by the words CHECK, ANALYZE and/or CHKDSK (the latter being a throwback to pre-Windows DOS commands). In any case, they all mean your hard disk will be "analyzed" before you run DEFRAG.
     Go to Start, All Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Disk Defragmenter. Click the Analyze button, and then click Defragment after the analyzing has been completed. However, if you click the Defragment button first, you'll be told your disk is being "analyzed," after which defragmenting will begin.
    Another approach is to go to Start, My Computer, and right-click Local Disk C. Click Properties, Tools and you'll find buttons for Check Now and Defragment Now. Having done this, you may be told that these programs can't run without rebooting your computer, and asked if you'd like to run them the next time you restart.
    If this all sounds rather convoluted, there is yet another approach. You can go to Start, Run and type CHKDSK. Click OK and WinXP's equivalent to SCANDISK will commence in a DOS window.

Some final notes on ScanDisk and Defrag.
    The main thing that keeps these utilities from running successfully is having other programs running in the background, including your ScreenSaver and Anti-Virus program. Turn off the former by right-clicking your Desktop and choosing Properties. Go to ScreenSaver and choose None.
    Turn off your Anti-Virus software by right-clicking its icon (on your Taskbar near the digital clock) and choosing Disable. It will come back on the next time you restart your computer. Finally, press your Ctrl, Alt and Delete keys simultaneously and look at the window this brings up. You'll see a list of programs, including Explorer. The others, with the cryptic names, should each be clicked, followed by clicking End Task. When Explorer is the only file left, exit this window and run ScanDisk or Defrag in any of the Windows modes described above.

Use MSCONFlG to Manage Startup Programs
      Another important thing to help improve Windows performance is to disable all the unnecessary "start-up shortcuts" found in the System Tray. The icons seen near the digital clock in the Windows Taskbar are "shortcuts" which have told various programs to start running when your computer is booted (on the theory that you'll be able to get into them more quickly when you need them).
     But what if you don't need them? Should they be running in the background and using system resources? Why not turn them off and just launch them when you need them (except for your AV program, as mentioned above)?
     Click on Start, Run and type in MSCONFIG (upper or lower case letters optional). Click OK and then click on the Startup tab. Finally, UNcheck all the shortcuts you don't need.
     So how do we know which ones are needed when so many have such strange, cryptic names? Click here to learn more about this.

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