Formatting Hard Drive or defrag???

A

ashes1991

Registered
Hey,

I've been advised to format my start up HDD as the data on my HDD is dispersed over such a large area, so I cannot partition my HDD.

I am just wondering the best way to format my HDD, whether it be to use a bootable clone on a separate external HDD, or to format using the start up disk (i.e. as restarting the computer pressing c, and going on from there on?) and having a back up on time machine, and restoring after. As these are backups, this means everything will be exactly the same doesn't it? As I have been advised to do this to make the area smaller that they cover, wont it be exactly the same?

If that is the case am I best just starting from scratch and having all my files copied to a disk and partitioning, then adding the files after? Could a defrag programme sort this, is there any good ones for the mac?

Thank you

Ash
 
Mac OS X already defragments file up to 20MB in size. The best way to further defrag and optimize your file system is with DiskWarrior.

If you end up facing the need to erase and start over, though, the process is not quite as simple as you describe. You'll start up from the install disc, erase your hard disk and reinstall Mac OS X, and then tell the installation process at the end to migrate your data from a Time Machine backup. This will probably take a good long while.

Or, I wonder if all would be simpler if you just installed a larger hard disk, partitioned it as desired, and migrated your existing data to the appropriate partition.
 
Hey, I know it isn't that simple, I just simpled it down a bit. I have got over 80GB of video on my mac and they average 300MB in size, think that they are the problem.

I have a 160GB HDD installed already, I got a 250GB external for my videos now, but the partition is for bootcamp.

This is why I was thinking of starting from scratch. But will try disk warrior.

Thanks

Ash
 
Hey think thats gna be the best option. Does the Hard Drive have to be a certain brand i.e. fujitsui or can it be of any brand? And does the HDD speed matter? Will a 7200 rpm HDD run better? And does the HDD have to be of a certain cache?

Once inserted into my MacBook do I insert install disk and start the mac up? And go on from there?

Thank you again

Ash
 
In hard disks, generally the bigger numbers are better. Faster spinning drives read and write faster. More cache means they deliver frequently accessed data better. And naturally, you'll spend more on better features, quieter drives, etc. Brand doesn't matter too much, except that some manufacturers make some lower-quality disks. I recommend the selection at OWC because they're all thoroughly tested. If you can find the same model elsewhere for less, more power to you. You might also be able to get a nominal rebate from OWC on your old drive if you choose not to hold onto it after upgrading.
 
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