New user from PC.. how do I defragment my hard drive?

Not really sure how to defrag my hard drive as someone normally would with a PC..

I would go the empirical way. If at some point you think that performance is degrading, you could install some application with a defragmentation tool (such as Drive Genius or SpeedTools Utilities) and try them out (not all have demo possibilities). I don't know any free alternative, but a poor man's solution is to copy as much data as possible to another disk, delete it and copy them back in so that files get laid out in the best way possible (or do a full restore of the drive for maximal performance).
Appl'es view on fragmentation is usually optimistic, though sometimes they estimate that it might be a workaround to applications such as the one you suggest. Keeping a lot of free disk space seems the way to avoid fragmentation for as much as possible, but I imagine that only experience will tell.
Cheers.

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How do you defragment a hard drive

HOw do you defragment hard drives in a macpro running mountain lion.

You don't need to. But if you feel you must:
You will have to backup your OS X partition to an external drive, boot from the external drive, use Disk Utility to repartition and reformat your hard drive back to a single volume, then restore your backup to the internal hard drive.
Get an empty external hard drive and clone your internal drive to the external one.
Boot from the external hard drive.
Erase the internal hard drive.
Restore the external clone to the internal hard drive.
Clone the internal drive to the external drive
Open Disk Utility from the Utilities folder.
Select the destination volume from the left side list.
Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
Check the box labeled Erase destination.
Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
Destination means the external backup drive. Source means the internal startup drive.
Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager appears. Select the icon for the external drive and click on the downward pointing arrow button.
After startup do the following:
Erase internal hard drive
Open Disk Utility in your Utilities folder.
After DU loads select your internal hard drive (this is the entry with the mfgr.'s ID and size) from the left side list. Note the SMART status of the drive in DU's status area. If it does not say "Verified" then the drive is failing or has failed and will need replacing. SMART info will not be reported on external drives. Otherwise, click on the Partition tab in the DU main window.
Under the Volume Scheme heading set the number of partitions from the drop down menu to one. Set the format type to Mac OS Extended (Journaled.) Click on the Options button, set the partition scheme to GUID then click on the OK button. Click on the Partition button and wait until the process has completed. Do not quit Disk Utility.
Restore the clone to the internal hard drive
Select the destination volume from the left side list.
Click on the Restore tab in the DU main window.
Check the box labeled Erase destination.
Select the destination volume from the left side list and drag it to the Destination entry field.
Select the source volume from the left side list and drag it to the Source entry field.
Double-check you got it right, then click on the Restore button.
Destination means the internal hard drive. Source means the external startup drive.
Note that the Source and Destination drives are swapped for this last procedure.

How do you defrag a hard drive

I am wondering how the best way is to defragment my second internal hard drive. I am trying to set up a partition for boot camp, but it isnt partioning. I am wondering if it is because it needs to be defragged.
Please let me know how to solve this.
Thanks

Caleb,
It is more likely that the drive is not using the correct partition mapping than it is that fragmentation is causing the problem.
The easiest way to "defrag" a drive, in this particular case, would be to simply copy whatever data is on it now to another volume, delete it from the original (or erase the original volume), then copy it back. This process copies whatever data you are handling sequentially in both directions, thereby eliminating all fragmentation. The other methods given so far in this thread will all work, but seem a bit overkill in your situation.
But as I stated, it is more likely that the drive in question isn't using the proper partition mapping. Select the drive in Disk Utility (the drive, not a named volume), then look at the bottom of the window to determine what partition map is being used ("APM," "MBR," or "GUID"). Only drives that are using the "GUID" partition map will support Bootcamp.
You can change the partition map by partitioning the drive and choosing the GUID scheme from the "Options..." dialogue sheet. In order to use Bootcamp to install Windows, the drive must contain only a single HFS+ partition.
I'll repeat those important points above: In order to use Bootcamp to install Windows, the drive in question must be partitioned with a single HFS+ volume, and it must also be using the GUID partition map.
Scott

How do i defragment my hard drive

Im new to Macs and i'm just wondering how you go about cleaning your computer up and defragging etc.

Hello Thought Harvest
DiskWarrior http://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/ - it's saved me many times in the past - I also use Cocktail for weekly routine maintenance ie: cleaning out caches, run cron scripts, repairing permissions etc. http://www.maintain.se/cocktail/download.html
Good luck!
G5 1.8gz twr sp 500&250gb/dr 3gb/r & G4 PB 1gz 60g dr 1g ram Mac OS X (10.4.7)

New user...how do you drag or move or copy a file or folder from the desktop to an external drive? I have tried dragging and copy/pasting.

new user...how do you drag or move or copy a file or folder from the desktop to an external drive? I have tried dragging and copy/pasting.

My guess the problem you are running into is the drive is formatted for a PC as NTFS. OS X can read files from NTFS however it cannot write to it. Check the formatting on the drive, if it's NTFS then it should be reformatted to Mac OS Extended (Journaled), you can use Disk Utility to do this.
If you still have a PC and want to share the EHD with the PC and Mac please read MacWorld's Share an external drive between a Mac and a PC article.

I have an old ipod touch, and have just purchased a new 4th Gen one. How do I get my Apps from the old one to the new one. I've had to wipe the hard drive on my Pc so they aren't in my I tunes.

I have an old ipod touch, and have just purchased a new 4th Gen one. How do I get my Apps from the old one to the new one. I've had to wipe the hard drive on my Pc so they aren't in my I tunes.

- Transfer your iTunes' purchases to the new computer by:
iTunes Store: Transferring purchases from your iPhone, iPad, or iPod to a computer
- Try making a backup of the iPod by right clicking on the iPod under Devices in iTunes and selecting Backup.
- Connect your new iPod and restore the iPod from that backup if you wish.

HT1339 i saved my itunes from my old laptop to an external hard drive but i cant figure out how to put the library on my new laptop so it can bew added to my new library

i saved my itunes library from my old lap top to an external hard drive but i cannot figure out how to import it onto my new laptop

i have an itunes folder on the external hard drive and there is a folder with the name of every artist. i copied the itunes folder and pasted it in my current folder

How do I share a hard drive with the new iMac to load a disk from macbook pro

How do I share a hard drive with the new iMac to load a disk from macbook pro. I want to install office for Mac from a disk but dont know how to share har drive from macpro
thanks

The new iMac's don' t have DVD drives however almost all have a disk drive. The easiest method of installing MS Office for Mac on your new iMac is to download it from Microsoft and then input the code you received when you purchased your original license. Otherwise you can use the DVD drive on your MBP to install on your iMac, that feature is called Remote Disc. Instructions for Remote Disc can be found at:http://support.apple.com/kb/ht5287

TS1702 When I try to update an App I am getting my old email address (which no longer works) and when I put in its password it says password or username is wrong. but it does not give me an option to put in my new user name. How can I correct this.

When I try to update an App I am getting my old email address (which no longer works) and when I put in its password it says password or username is wrong. but it does not give me an option to put in my new user name. How can I correct this.

What you are getting is the AppleID (AppleID can be an email adress) used at the time of the purchase of this app. It is an identifiant allowing Apple to link your purchase to your account.
If you want to manage associated email, you can go at https://appleid.apple.com but the AppleID could never be modified.
I do not know if in your case, it is just that you no longer use your old email address or that you actually a 2 AppleID. In any case, you will have to remember the password related to the account used for your purchase. If you don't, just use the link above to try to retreive your password.

How can i know iphone users from contacts, how can i know iphone users from contacts

how can i know iphone users from contacts, how can i know iphone users from contacts

You could open that contact in messages, and your iPhone should say "iMessage" instead of "Message" in the text field. However, this depends wether the contact has iMessage enabled, but it could also mean the contact is using an iPad or iPod touch.
Make sure that their mobile number is in iMessage, and if the text field says "iMessage", then they are using an iPhone (if they've enabled it).

How do you put your hard drive from an old computer to your new mac?

how do you put your hard drive from an old computer to your new mac?
i want to get the pictures, etc off of my old mac onto my new mac desktop. how can i do this?

You don't.
How to use Migration Assistant:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4889?viewlocale=en_US
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT4413?viewlocale=en_US
http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1963
Troubleshooting Firewire target disk mode:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1661

I just bought a iMac G5 iSight from my school, how do I clean the hard drive and set it up as a new iMac, I just bought a iMac G5 iSight from my school, how do I clean the hard drive and set it up as a new iMac

I just bought an iMac G5 with iSight. How do I wipe the hard drive and set it up as a new iMac

Boot from your Mac OS X installer DVD. After selecting a language, choose "Disk Utility" from the menu bar.
When Disk Utility launches, use the "Zero Out Data" option under the Erase tab. Erase the entire disk, not only the free space.
One pass of zeros is secure enough for normal use. One pass will take a couple of hours, so plan some time.
Message was edited by: EZ Jim

HT1338 I am a new user...how can I permanently (not have to go to view and zoom every time I go to a new page) increase type size

I am a new user...how can I permanently (not have to go to view and zoom every time I go to a new page) increase type size

In the System Preferences, you can change the display resolution.
 Cheers, Tom

How to defragement a hard drive

Just upgraded my iMac 27" purchased in August 2012 to Yosemite. I move a lot of video files and my machine is running slow (nothing to do with the Yosemite upgrade). I used iDfrag in the past but it has not been updated for Yosemite. My questions is: What is the easiest way to defrag my hard drive?
Thank you
VPH

You don't defrag a drive running Apple OS X.
Defragmentation in OS X:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1375 which states:
You probably won't need to optimize at all if you use Mac OS X. Here's why:
Hard disk capacity is generally much greater now than a few years ago. With more free space available, the file system doesn't need to fill up every "nook and cranny." Mac OS Extended formatting (HFS Plus) avoids reusing space from deleted files as much as possible, to avoid prematurely filling small areas of recently-freed space.
Mac OS X 10.2 and later includes delayed allocation for Mac OS X Extended-formatted volumes. This allows a number of small allocations to be combined into a single large allocation in one area of the disk.
Fragmentation was often caused by continually appending data to existing files, especially with resource forks. With faster hard drives and better caching, as well as the new application packaging format, many applications simply rewrite the entire file each time. Mac OS X 10.3 onwards can also automatically defragment such slow-growing files. This process is sometimes known as "Hot-File-Adaptive-Clustering."
Aggressive read-ahead and write-behind caching means that minor fragmentation has less effect on perceived system performance.
Whilst 'defragging' OS X is rarely necessary, Rod Hagen has produced this excellent analysis of the situation which is worth reading:
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.

New MacBook pro how do I add external hard drive which has my entire iTunes library on it. Do I just drag external drive icon into iTunes preference box that shows where new itunes library is now located ie. On the MacBook pro.

how do I add external hard drive which contains my entire iTunes library to new MacBook Pro. i want to keep iTunes library on external hard drive. But I want all my iTunes information: artist, songs, albums, playlists on my new MacBook Pro. I know about going to iTunes preferences- advanced-itunes media folder location. At this point I don't know what to do Do I drag external icon into iTunes media folder location box. I want to keep music files on external hard drive. I don't want to use macbook pro memory for my very large music files.

I will request that your query be relocated to the iPhoto forum where knowledgeable iPhoto users will be able to assist you.
Ciao.

New user from PC.. how do I defragment my hard drive?

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