Do I need to defrag my iMac hard drive like I do on a PC?

If so, how do I do this?
Thanks.

The basic answer is that there's no need to defragment drives on modern (e.g., not Microsoft) filesystems. This is as true of the Linux native filesystems as it is of the Mac OS X native ones.
The longer answer is that the strategy used to store data on disk on modern filesystems essentially avoids fragmentation altogether. The problem of fragmentation was recognized in the 1970s and more or less solved at that time. UNIX filesystems adopted these strategies 20-25 years ago and the native filesystems of Linux and Mac OS X are derived from them. The strategy works while there's sufficient free space on the disk (depending on the size,
that could be between 1% and 10% f the disk - the bigger the disk, the smaller the percentage). If the disk fills up, the last few files written may become fragmented, but at this point there's simply not sufficient disk space left to avoid it or fix the problem (Windows, likewise, reaches a point when a disk becomes so full it's effectively impossible to defragment it).
That leaves Microsoft's NTFS and FAT filesystems as the last widely-used hold-outs that experience regular fragmentation.

Similar Messages

Now that I saved everything to my LaCie external hard drive, do I need to erase my IMAC hard drive? My computer is still slow. :(

My computer is still slow after uninstalling Macbook pro and buying a LaCie external hard drive and saving everything to it. I repaired disk permissions. Am I supposed to erase original hard drive?
Thanks!

Not yet, get a second hard drive, or a second medium to backup your data. You never want there to be less than two copies of your data at anytime. If for some reason one fails, you'll always want a backup. Clone with Superduper or Carbon Copy Cloner. Note, if you have an early 2008 Mac, it is not PPC, but rather Intel. PPC indicates the chip is G3, G4, or G5. You can double check this by going to Apple menu and selecting About This Mac. Once you verified your Mac, I can ask a moderator to move this thread, so you don't have to crosspost.

I have an old imac G3 desk top computer that I would like to donate. I need to clean up the hard drive. How do I do this?

I have an old imac G3 desk top computer that I would like to donate. I need to clean up the hard drive. HOw do I do this?

If you have a Mac OS 8.x or 9.x CD (depending on the iMac model), look for a Drive Setup utility somewhere on that disc. Boot from the CD while holding down the C key. Initialise the hard disk with a 'Zero all data' option chosen.
Jan

I need to replace my late 2006 20" imac hard drive

here's what i have
VIN,IMAC (20-INCH LATE 2006)
running leopard 10.5.8
Hardware Overview:
Model Name: iMac
Model Identifier:    iMac5,1
Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed: 2.16 GHz
Number Of Processors: 1
Total Number Of Cores: 2
L2 Cache: 4 MB
Memory: 3 GB
Bus Speed:    667 MHz
Boot ROM Version: IM51.0090.B09
SMC Version (system): 1.9f4
Serial Number (system): W8******VUV
WDC WD2500JS-40TGB0:
Capacity: 232.89 GB
Model:    WDC WD2500JS-40TGB0
Partition Map Type: GPT (GUID Partition Table)
S.M.A.R.T. status: Failing
Volumes: Macintosh HD:
Capacity: 232.57 GB
Available: 106.04 GB
Writable: Yes
File System: Journaled HFS+
BSD Name:    disk0s2
disk utility shows this:
my mac is still running like a champ but as the pictures above show it's time
i've found a lot of people with the same question i have on this site with answers but most links that people suggest are broken or 2 of the hard drives they've recommended are discontiued
i've got a frys electronics and best buy near by or internet if that's the best way to go about it
what exactly do i need to look for when i'm at a store or online?
what size hard drive, any? 250GB, 500GB, 750GB, 1TB
3.5" SATA
7200RPM
does cache matter?
anything else?
people's responses to: Need to replace my late 2006 imac hard drive - what should i be looking for to replace it?
1. You can use any 3.5" Sata drive, WD or Seagate would be good choices.
2. Do not use "green" drives like the WD Blue series. WD Black are fine as are Seagates.
3. The 2T green will work fine in the Intel iMac's. I always suggest using the quieter and cooler running Blue's or Green's in the iMac's.
4. Personally I have upgraded the Hard Drive in several Early Core Duo's using both 320GB and 500GB WD Cavair Blue's.
5. WD Caviar Blue or WD Caviar Green, they run cooler and quieter than the WD Black or Seagate's.
6. I'm very happy with the WD Caviar Blue that replaced my factory installed 160GB Seagate HD a few months ago.
i've found some good DIY tutorials for install
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShY8zuT-wPg&feature=player_embedded
http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/iMac+Intel+20-Inch+EMC+2105+and+2118+Hard+Drive+Repl acement/1092/1
any help will be appreciated,
sean k
<Edited by Host>

thanks for the quick reply kappy,
i plan to purchase a new imac when they are actually shipped, in stores, and i know all my handicap assisted devises will work on it
you say "Do not buy a drive designed for SATA 3 6 Gb/s interfaces as some may not work on the controller in your iMac"
at frys it breaks the groups like this:
Interface (32)
SATA/300 (17)
SATA/600 (9)
PATA/100 (6)
could you take a look at this link to frys and recommend a hard drive
http://www.frys.com/search?cat=-69564&pType=pDisplay&fq=100413%203.5-100415%2072 00
or bestbuy internal hard drives
like you said it's got a limited life and just need something to get by till the new imacs arrive

I need to move the iTunes library to an External Hard Drive to free up space on iMac. Need suggestions on type of External Hard Drive to use. A Multimedia Hard Drive like LaCie LaCinema Classic HD Multimedia Hard Drive OR a Large Desktop Hard Drive?

I need to move an iTunes library to an External Hard Drive to free up space on iMac. I Need suggestions on type of External Hard Drive to use. Should you use a Multimedia Hard Drive like LaCie LaCinema Classic HD Multimedia Hard Drive OR a standard Large Desktop Hard Drive like Western Digital/Seagate/LaCie?

There is no benefit to the multi-media feature on the first drive you mentioned. If you are going to look at differences between certain drives, I'd look at the differences in reliability first.

Need to reinstall Photoshop elements on my iMac - hard drive crash and do not have a back-up copy. How do I get another copy?

Need to reinstall Photoshop elements on my iMac - hard drive crash and do not have a back-up copy. How do I get another copy?

Unfortunately, you're in the wrong forum. This is not the Elements forum.
Here's the link to the forum you want:
https://forums.adobe.com/community/photoshop_elements/content

Do I need to defragment my iMac?

Hi Guys,
I have a question - do I need to defragment my iMac? I have noticed it is getting slower.
blueheron11

Well, I'm going to put a contrary view to others you have received here, blueheron.
Most users, as long as they leave plenty of free space available , and don't work regularly in situations where very large files are written and rewritten, are unlikely to notice the effects of fragmentation on either their files or on the drives free space much.
As the drive fills the situations becomes progressively more significant, however.
Some people will tell you that "OSX defrags your files anyway". This is only partly true. It defrags files that are less than 20 MB in size. It doesn't defrag larger files and it doesn't defrag the free space on the drive. In fact the method it uses to defrag the smaller files actually increases the extent of free space fragmentation. Eventually, in fact, once the largest free space fragments are down to less than 20 MB (not uncommon on a drive that has , say only 10% free space left) it begins to give up trying to defrag altogether. Despite this, the system copes very well without defragging as long as you have plenty of room.
Again, this doesn't matter much when the drive is half empty or better, but it does when it gets fullish, and it does especially when it gets fullish if you are regularly dealing with large files , like video or serious audio stuff.
If you look through this discussion board you will see quite a few complaints from people who find that their drive gets "slow". Often you will see that say that "still have 10 or 20 gigs free" or the like. On modern large drives by this stage they are usually in fact down to the point where the internal defragmentation routines can no longer operate , where their drives are working like navvies to keep up with finding space for any larger files, together with room for "scratch files", virtual memory, directories etc etc etc. Such users are operating in a zone where they put a lot more stress on their drives as a result, often start complaining of increased "heat", etc etc. Most obviously, though, the computer slows down to a speed not much better than that of molasses. Eventually the directories and other related files may collapse altogether and they find themselves with a next to unrecoverable disk problems.
By this time, of course, defragging itself has already become just about impossible. The amount of work required to shift the data into contiguous blocks is immense, puts additional stress on the drive, takes forever, etc etc. The extent of fragmentation of free space at this stage can be simply staggering, and any large files you subsequently write are likely to be divided into many , many tens of thousands of fragments scattered across the drive. Not only this, but things like the "extents files", which record where all the bits are located, will begin to grow astronomically as a result, putting even more pressure on your already stressed drive, and increasing the risk of major failures.
Ultimately this adds up to a situation where you can identify maybe three "phases" of mac life when it comes to the need for defragmentation.
In the "first phase" (with your drive less than half full), it doesn't matter much at all - probably not enough to even make it worth doing.
In the "second phase" (between , say 50% free space and 20% free space remaining) it becomes progressively more useful, but , depending on the use you put your computer to you won't see much difference at the higher levels of free space unless you are serious video buff who needs to keep their drives operating as efficiently and fast as possible - chances are they will be using fast external drives over FW800 or eSata to compliment their internal HD anyway.
At the lower end though (when boot drives get down around the 20% mark on , say, a 250 or 500 Gig drive) I certainly begin to see an impact on performance and stability when working with large image files, mapping software, and the like, especially those which rely on the use of their own "scratch" files, and especially in situations where I am using multiple applications simultaneously, if I haven't defragmented the drive for a while. For me, defragmenting (I use iDefrag too - it is the only third party app I trust for this after seeing people with problems using TechToolPro and Drive Genius for such things) gives a substantial performance boost in this sort of situation and improves operational stability. I usually try to get in first these days and defrag more regularly (about once a month) when the drive is down to 30% free space or lower.
Between 20% and 10% free space is a bit of a "doubtful region". Most people will still be able to defrag successfully in this sort of area, though the time taken and the risks associated increase as the free space declines. My own advice to people in this sort of area is that they start choosing their new , bigger HD, because they obviously are going to need one very soon, and try to "clear the decks" so that they maintain that 20% free buffer until they do. Defragging regularly (perhaps even once a fortnight) will actually benefit them substantially during this "phase", but maybe doing so will lull them into a false sense of security and keep them from seriously recognising that they need to be moving to a bigger HD!
Once they are down to that last ten per cent of free space, though, they are treading on glass. Free space fragmentation at least will already be a serious issue on their computers but if they try to defrag with a utility without first making substantially more space available then they may find it runs into problems or is so slow that they give up half way through and do the damage themselves, especially if they are using one of the less "forgiving" utilities!
In this case I think the best way to proceed is to clone the internal drive to a larger external with SuperDuper, replace the internal drive with a larger one and then clone back to it. No-one down to the last ten percent of their drive really has enough room to move. Defragging it will certainly speed it up, and may even save them from major problems briefly, but we all know that before too long they are going to be in the same situation again. Better to deal with the matter properly and replace the drive with something more akin to their real needs once this point is reached. Heck, big HDs are as cheap as chips these days! It is mad to struggle on with sluggish performance, instability, and the possible risk of losing the lot, in such a situation.
Cheers
Rod

Do i need to buy the same hard driver for my iMac or i can buy any hard driver 3.5?

Do i need to buy the same hard driver for my iMac or i can buy any hard driver 3.5?

You can buy any 3'5" SATA hard drive for the iMac. You can buy a hard drive at OWC.
Note that Late 2009 and newer iMacs have the temperature sensor inside the hard drive, so it's important to get one with that sensor. In this case, I recommend you to take your computer to an Apple Store or reseller and get your hard disk replaced

I need to move my old hard drive files to our new computer, how?

Hey I need to move my old hard drive files to our new computer. It is a SATA 3.5. Is it as simple as putting it in an enclosure and plugging it to new computer.
Can I do this at the start with the IMAC? I don't have the old computer, just the drive.

*Hi thresherman, Welcome* to Apple's Users Help Users Forums.
To go from PPC to intel the use of migration assistant is not the recommendation. The definitive solution is here from Kappy and a brody.
http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?threadID=435350
Good Luck, JP

Hi. My iMac hard drive is running Mavericks. I have an old version of Quark Xpress (3.32) which won't run in Mavericks. Can I partition my hard drive and run an older system on one partition, so I can access my Quark? Is that possible?

Hi. My iMac hard drive is running Mavericks. I have an old version of Quark Xpress (3.32) which won't run in Mavericks. Can I partition my hard drive and run an older system on one partition, so I can access my Quark? Is that possible?

Hi ancelau,
QuarkXPress 3 is a Classic Mac OS application, so you need a version of OS X that still supports Classic. I believe 10.4 was the last one.
So if you have an iMac that boots with 10.4, then yes that is possible. I doubt though that newer Macs boot with OS X 10.4.
So why don't you upgrade QuarkXPress 3 to a newer version? I am not just asking that because I want you to spend money with us.
Typically using software that was released almost 20 years ago is just feasible when you keep an environment that was current at the time of release or a few years after, so an older Mac with a operating system present at that time. 20 years in IT is a lot.
So my opinion is that on a new Mac with a brand new operating system you need to use something a bit more current.
How about QuarkXPress 9 (released 3 years ago) or QuarkXPress 10? You are better off with v9, as QuarkXPress 10 only opens v7 and higher (whereas QuarkXPress 9 opens v3.1 and higher).
Or - I am even happy to make an exception - upgrade to 9 and we give you 10 for free? Let me know please.
Thanks
Matthias

Please help RE retrieval/transfer of imac hard drive to imac Part 2

Absolutely any assistance would be gratefully appreciated thank you. I am computer illiterate and I need assistance retrieving data from a imac hard drive (rest of computer isn't working) to a newer imac. Previously had received help from the forum and found out I needed an external casing (thank you again to all those that helped), but no shops near me sell them, sales person told me Sata HDD Docking (OTB) would be able to do a similar thing. I really suck with technology, so I humbly ask if any patient persons more intelligent than me could help me with some basic questions to help me retrieve/transfer data. Let me know if I need to give details. Any links to guides or tutorials welcome as well, but I tend to second guess myself and fail at basic terms often, there are probably 6 year olds with better computer skills and knowledge than me, so yeah, pity welcome, help even more so. Oh first question am I still suppose to use Migration Assistent or do I just turn on computer with old HD in dock connected?

Okay, I apologize for throwing you the following curveball - it appears the shop assistent I was talking to may not have been as knowledgeable as I had hoped, because I don't think my imac is compatible with USB 3.0? I tried putting it into the dock but nothing happened - it gave me four options, transfer from another Mac, transfer from a PC, transfer from a Time Machine (and something else) and forth option was not to transfer now.
I attempted to transfer from Mac and Time Machine options, but with both the loading dial spun for 10 mins with each with no change. So I decided to try and set up the computer anyway. The internet set up part came up but at the time I didn't know how to set it up, and now with retrospect I assume I have to set that up before I "register this computer" as no hard drive is showing onmy computer at the moment? Sorry for the sudden and strange switch in problems but now that I have set up the internet - could you or anyone else please tell me how I can register the computer details (or why the hard drive icon is not appearing assuming those things are connected - when I did fill those details out before it told me it couldn't send them now and would have to be done later?)
Sorry for being so clueless - any help appreciated.
I am looking up my imacs specs now to see if it actually can access this dock. (thank you once again)

IMac hard drive failing; external TM will restore but won't then back up

It appears my early 2009 (OS X 10.9.5) hard drive is failing as it crashed 6 months ago, in November and again this week. SMART Utility says it has re-allocated 6 bad sectors and there has been 1 re-allocated event. Each Time I have successfully restored from an external hard drive with TM on it. Prior to the November fail, CCC reported an odd (unknown to me system file) corrupt file but, instead of replacing the file as perhaps I should, I decided to re-boot which it wouldn't do and hence the November TM restore.
However, despite restoring successfully the external TM will no longer make back ups. I have tried repairing it but it is greyed out and Verify says 'unable to complete.' Eventually I did get the greyed out button to work but Repair reported:
Verifying volume “Time Machine”
Checking file system
Checking Journaled HFS Plus volume.
Checking extents overflow file.
Checking catalog file.
Keys out of order
Invalid extent entry
Incorrect block count for file iNode785919y8
(It should be 13 instead of 4194317)Invalid extent entry
Missing thread record (id = 82)
Incorrect size for file iNode78591999
(It should be 4096 instead of 274877907467)
Invalid extent entry
File record has hard link chain flag (id = 78591999)
File has incorrect number of links (id = 78591999)
(It should be 1 instead of 17)
Missing thread record (id = 18)
Invalid extent entry
Invalid extent entry
Invalid extent entry
Incorrect block count for file iNo$e78592002
(It should be 4194317 instead of 13)
Missing thread record (id = 82)
Invalid extent entry
Incorrect size for file iN/de7x592003
(It should be 4096 instead of 274877907467)
Invalid extent entry
File record has hard link chain flag (id = 78592067)
File has incorrect number of links (id = 78592067)
(It should be 1 instead of 17)
Missing thread record (id = 4194322)
Invalid extent entry
Invalid extent entry
File record has hard link chain flag (id = 78592004)
File has incorrect number of links (id = 78592004)
(It should be 1 instead of 17)
Missing thread record (id = 18)
Incorrect size for file iNode78592005
(It should be 0 instead of 64)I
nvalid extent entry
Invalid extent entryIncorrect size for file iNode78592006
(It should be 0 instead of 4194304)
Invalid extent entry
Invalid extent entry
Missing thread record (id = 4194322)
Invalid extent entry
Invalid extent entry
File record has hard link chain flag (id = 82786312)
File has incorrect number of links (id = 82786312)
(It should be 1 instead of 17)
Missing thread record (id = 18)
Incorrect block count for file )Nod%78592009
(It should be 65 instead of 1)
Invalid extent entry
Invalid extent entry
Incorrect block count for file iNode78592010
(It should be 0 instead of 4194304)
Invalid extent entry
Incorrect size for file iNode78592011
(It should be 0 instead of 274877906944)
Invalid catalog record type
The volume Time Machine could not be verified completely.
Error: This disk needs to be repaired. Click Repair Disk.
Whilst pondering this, the hard drive crashed again this week. Bizarrely I was able to restore from the very same external TM that will not let me do further back ups nor be repaired.
I wonder if there are any further checks I can do to establish if my iMac hard drive is failing? I will then decide whether to replace the hard drive - I see I can fit a WD 6TB with the jumpers set to reduce the speed to 3GB/s - or buy a new iMac.
I wonder also whether there is anything I can do to preserve my TM back ups. I realise I am being guided to re-format this external drive, but can I do that and then add back the actual existing back ups (which I would transfer to another disk before re-formatting) rather than start again from no history newly formatted?

Omdineen wrote:
It boots up to where its just my background and the Finder bar but then crashes, so I can't click anything. Anything from here or am I just screwed?
There are a few remaining options.
If you have another Mac with a FireWire port, try FireWire Target Disk Mode: http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1661
You need a FireWire cable to connect the two Macs. This will allow you to mount your failing HD on a working Mac and copy files that way.
Try Safe Mode - read about it first:
Safe Mode or "Safe Boot" is a troubleshooting mode that bypasses all third party system extensions and loads only required system components.
Starting up in Safe Mode
This assumes the Finder is crashing due to a third party system extension or optional system component that Safe Mode will prevent from loading. You should still be able to copy files directly to an external device, but file sharing will be disabled.
Lastly boot from the DVD again, repair the disk again, reinstall OS X, and keep your fingers crossed. You're squeezing the last drops of life from the thing.

Imac hard drive replacement

Incredibly my rarely used 2011 Imac Hard Drive is toast. I saw they have a replacement program but even though it is way too soon for a hard drive OF QUALITY to be going out so soon as mine - mine is not included in the replacement program.
Which I have a problem with - how odd it is that they had enough trouble with these computers/hard drives to do a replacement program but mine which did the same thing, expired way too soon isn't covered. I've not had use of the computer for 4 months while I tried to fix the problem so it lasted a little over a year.
Anyway I need to know what to do to try to replace it myself as i haven't the funds to take it to Apple for repair. Plus, Apple Computers and me are history I will never buy another after spending over $1200 for a computer that's nothing more than a very large paperweight right now.
How do I know what size and all that?
I may not be able to afford even that so more than likely this is going to be a very nice looking worthless computer going to the landfill.

I Am leaning more toward Kappy's comments, based on your attitude and comments, but I will ask some questions and add some useful comments as I am in a somewhat charitable mood.
Do you still have AppleCare on this iMac?
From your rather blunt comments I assume no, but have to ask anyhow.
This is why I recommend purchasing and registering for 3- year extended AppleCare.
Because of the nature of the newer iMac designs, hardware failure seems more likely or commonplace occurrence. I believe it's more of a excessive heat related issue than anything else despite what Apple has qualified as "normal" operating temps for these iMac models.
Check out the iFixit home site and search for iMac disassembly or tear/take down. Or search for iMac hard drive replacement on the site.
Another option is for you to purchase an external FireWire 400/800 drive as your new boot drive.
Running your iMac from a FW800 drive will be about as fast as running it from the iMac's Internal drive.
If you can afford it get as large a drive as you can afford.
And just for your info, while hard drives can last for years without issue they will go bad, eventually.
Some drives crash and burn faster than others. Especiallly true of the notebook style drives that Apple installs into the newer design iMac. With hard drives, the question is not if they will fail, but when will they fail.
If you had all of your data backed up to an extra, external drive or optical discs to begin with, you wouldn't be so upset about your internal drive dying as your data still would've been intact on another drive or discs in the first place.
I Always advocate for having some sort of backup strategy for your important data in the event of hardware or hard drive storage failure.

Mac OS X v10.8.2 Mountain Lion - constant chatter on my iMac hard drive on start-up and no applications running.

When I log in, there is constant loud chatter on my iMac hard drive, before I open any applications, and Time Machine is not doing a backup. It continues sometimes for 10 to 15 minutes. What is running and why is it making so much noise?

This procedure is a diagnostic test. It will make no changes to your system, and therefore will not, in itself, solve your problem.
If you have more than one user account, you must be logged in as an administrator to carry out these instructions.
Triple-click anywhere in the line below to select it:
sudo iosnoop | sed '50q'
Copy the selected text to the Clipboard (command-C).
Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways:
☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)
☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.
☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the page that opens.
Paste into the Terminal window (command-V). You'll be prompted for your login password, which won't be displayed when you type it. You may get a one-time warning not to screw up. You don't need to post the warning. If you don’t have a login password, you’ll need to set one before you can run the command. If you see a message that your username "is not in the sudoers file," then you're not logged in as an administrator.
Text will begin to scroll in the Terminal window. When it stops, copy the text output — not a screenshot — from the Terminal window into a reply to this message. Please don't post more than requested.
If any personal information, such as your name, appears in the output, edit before posting, but don’t remove the context.
You can then quit Terminal.
Important: There seems to be an obscure bug in OS X that sometimes causes input devices to lag or stutter after running iosnoop. If you notice this behavior, simply reboot to clear it.

Use time machine to save both the iMac hard drive data & an external one

Can i program time machine to save both the iMac hard drive data & an external one

Yes, but it's not advised because it's placing too many backups into one hardware basket, also it will greatly shorted your TimeMachine states where you can go back in time to undelete a file.
It's better to have two backups, each on seperate hardware of each drive.
So if you have a boot drive and a external drive, you should have a clone drive and TimeMachine drive of the boot drive, and a backup drive of the external drive. (or two depending how valuable the data is)
If you drop a drive, or knock it over while it's running, all the data could be lost.
With only TimeMachine as your backup, if you drop or lose it, or if it gets stolen, it takes two backups with it.
A clone and a backp of the external drive stored safely off site is ideal, update it once a week or bi weekly as needed.
A clone is bootable, and is exactly like your boot drive, up in seconds.
A TimeMachine can only boot to restore to a new drive if your boot drive dies for some reason.
read more here
Most commonly used backup methods

Do I need to defrag my iMac hard drive like I do on a PC?

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