Why does fragmentation take place? How does defragmenting improve how a system performs?

Systems Architecture
7th Edition
ISBN:9781305080195
Author:Stephen D. Burd
Publisher:Stephen D. Burd
Chapter11: Operating Systems
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  • Why does fragmentation take place? How does defragmenting improve how a system performs?
  • A system fails to boot, displaying an Operating System Not Found error message. What could be causing this issue?
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INTRODUCTION:

  • When data isn't written tightly enough physically on a hard disc, memory module, or other media, fragmentation develops.
  • Defragmentation is the act of un-fragmenting or piecing together broken files such that they are physically closer to each other on the drive or other media, potentially speeding up the drive's ability to access the file.
  • When the file system permits gaps to form between the distinct sections of a file, fragments occur.
  • When a file is first created, the file system may reserve too much space for it, leaving free spaces around it, resulting in fragmentation.
  • When a file is deleted, the space it previously filled becomes available for new files to be saved.
  • Because some components of a file are in one location and others are in another, the hard drive will have to search through gaps or spaces held by other files before it can gather all of the essential pieces to assemble the file for you.
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