9 replies to this topic

[The Liberator]

Hey guys,

The iMac that you will all see in my signature (at the bottom) has been playing up a bit. The HDD  has been slowly worsening in performance, especially when moving large amounts of data. It has also been producing louder noises over time. A few (extended) Apple Hardware Tests have been run, and the iMac has passed them all. Other tests and things have also been done, and there has been no hardware fault found. All of this has been done by certified techs and Apple Support help.

The technician has said that the problem arising has been of a large fragmentation, and so suggests a re-install and move/copy of files from (Time Machine) backup. He has also suggested using defragmentation software with/without the re-install.

I have corresponded with AMG on this issue. All and any input will be greatly appreciated.

Thank you, Liberator.

[Thain Esh Kelch]

Mac OS X automatically defrags files under 20 MB, and for files over that size, it is not worth it - You won't get any speed boost anyway.

I just assume you have a faulty HDD, and not much you can do about it. One suggestion would be to wipe the drive and reinstall the system as he also suggests, but given your description I din't think it will help.

[Janichsan]

I agree with Thain. Fragmentation isn't that much of a problem as it was in the past. The actual speed-up after reformatting and reinstalling your hard disc that you'd still get has more to do with a reorganisation of the data on the disc and – to some extent – with getting rid of old and forgotten junk.

If you really want to try and defragment your drive, apps like TechTools Pro can do that. But really: it's not worth it. I just checked the fragmentation status of the HDD in my MBP, which is in heavy use since late 2009 and never has been reformatted or (actively) defragmented, and TT6 found 694 fragmented files – of 1.2 million.

[the Battle Cat]

"Louder noises over time" is a "not good thing".  Do you mean thrashing and doing a lot of work or do you mean the work it is doing sounds louder than it should?  If it's trashing then run Diskwarrior on it, otherwise it might be a good idea to start pricing a new hard drive before this one bellies up.

[The Liberator]

Thain Esh Kelch, on 23 January 2012 - 03:08 AM, said:

...wipe the drive and reinstall the system...

Janichsan, on 23 January 2012 - 03:42 AM, said:

If you really want to try and defragment your drive, apps like TechTools Pro can do that. But really: it's not worth it.

Okay, thanks guys. It appears that I shall go for the re-install and move.

the Battle Cat, on 23 January 2012 - 09:11 AM, said:

...Do you mean thrashing and doing a lot of work or do you mean the work it is doing sounds louder than it should?

It is that, but I shall still watch, to observe anything different. I will still wait to read what others might post.

Thanks, Lib.

[the Battle Cat]

NO!  THERE ARE METEORS HEADING TOWARDS EARTH!!  DO IT NOW!!!

[Matt Diamond]

I'd order a new drive now, or be willing to lost a couple of days when it finally goes. If nothing else you'll get some more space, which itself will keep fragmentation down. (If you aren't short of space then fragmentation isn't likely to be a problem, in which case it's even more likely that your drive is sick.)

FYI reinstalling from Time Machine is a delight, I've had to do it a couple times recently and it went very smoothly.

[The Liberator]

An update to everything that has happened:

I talked with Apple tech support twice. The first time was when I was trying to erase and reinstall OSX. The second phone call was when I was trying to get help with booting from the Install DVD (at all). They sent out a technician who brought spares for the HDD, optical drive and logic board. All three parts did not make a difference in the ability for the iMac to boot from the Install DVD, as it turned out I was supplied with a non-useable one; I was given a 10.6 Install DVD and needed a 10.6.2. I have called Apple again, to order a 10.6.2 DVD, that should arrive within a week (or so).

Liberator.

P.S. On the up side, if there was any hardware fault, it is bound to be gone now.

[Thain Esh Kelch]

Nice service!

But as always, backup, backup, backup. Also, make sure to have at least 15 Gb free space on your main drive for cache. That can result in quite a speed dump.

[The Liberator]

Thain Esh Kelch, on 31 January 2012 - 02:03 AM, said:

Nice service!

But as always, backup, backup, backup. Also, make sure to have at least 15 Gb free space on your main drive for cache. That can result in quite a speed dump.

Yeah, I always keep a backup, at least of the most important stuff, my docuements pron and the like. Thanks for the advice anyway.

Lib.