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Hello, I'm Ben Bond, and this is Disk Defragmenter.

Another helpful tool is the Disk Defragmenter. The Disk Defragmenter helps your computer run faster by consolidating the bits and bytes of files on your hard drive. This means that when your computer needs to access a specific file, it can go to only one place on the disk to access it, rather than jump around to many locations. Again, this is more important to perform for frequent computer users and for older computers. It is important that you take these precautions before running the Disk Defragmenter.

1. Make sure that your notebook’s power supply is plugged in. You do not want the battery running out in the middle of the defragmenting process.

2. Ensure that your notebook is configured to not power down after a certain time of inactivity. You can change this by going to the Control Panel, making sure you are in Classic View, and choosing Power Settings.

These are both important because you do not want your computer to turn off during the defragmenting process. Defragmenting moves the bits and bytes of your hard drive around. If your computer shuts down in this process, it may lead to data loss.

To start the Disk Defragmenter in Windows XP, go to the Start menu, then All Programs, then Accessories, then System Tools, and then Disk Defragmenter. Click the Analyze Button to first analyze your hard drive. This can take a few seconds to a few minutes. It is important to note that you will need at least 10% of your hard drive to be free. However, 20% is recommended. Once the analysis completes, you should see a recommendation to either defragment the drive or not defragment the drive. Regardless of the recommendation, you can continue to defragment if you wish. To continue, press the Defragment button. Once the process starts, you can see the status of your hard drive in the Reporting window. This process may take up to several hours, depending on the size of the hard drive and the amount of files you have on it.