To defrag a merged partition

Recent partition software (AOMEI Partition Assistant, etc.) can merge partitions to a partition as follows.

e.g. Partitions in a HDD


  Partition 1 --- 250GB, 50% filled with files


  Unassigned area --- 250GB


  Partition 3 --- 250GB, 30% filled with files


  Partition 4 --- 250GB, 80% filled with files


A partition software can add "Unassigned area" to "Partition 4" and merge as "Partition 4" of 500GB although "Unassigned area" is not next to "Partition 4".

[Question]

 Can Defraggler defrag the merged "Partition 4" of 500GB above ?

It will not be any problem.

I assume that you are meaning because the merged partition will then span two different physical locations on the HDD?

I also assume that you are talking about 'Consolidation', ie. getting all the files into the least number of clusters possible. (To make the free disc space contiguous)

Rather than 'Defragmentation', ie. getting each file into one set of contiguous clusters. (So that they load slightly faster).


Most defragmenters do a mixture of both. Some like Defraggler do both as default, but <em>can</em> be told to do either one or the other.


TBH with todays bigger drives consolidation isn't realy needed like it used to be when we all had smaller drives.

There is a longer explanation of all that here:

In the case of a split physical location like you envisage then Defraggler will simply:

  1. If Consolidating - split (fragment) a file if needed to fill up the first physical location as much as it can then put the rest of that file on the second physical location.
    	(Although note that some files cannot be moved which is why you will hardly ever (almost never) see all the files in a block at the start of the disk with no empty 'holes').
    </li>
    <li>
    	If file Defragnenting - Not a problem because that can leave empty clusters anyway.
    </li>
    <li>
    	If run as standard and so doing both, whichever of 1 or 2 applies.
    
    
    	(eg. it might fill location 1 as much as it can but leave an empty bit).
    </li>
    

But all of that will happen automatically and you don't need to worry about it.