Disktrix UltimateDefrag 3 - The "Respect Layout.ini" Option & Hard Link Files

Discussion in 'backup, imaging & disk mgmt' started by homeless_sapient, Apr 11, 2012.

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  1. homeless_sapient

    homeless_sapient Registered Member

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    Hi!

    I like very much the power of Disktrix UltimateDefrag, but I don't understand something in the operation of the program. (I'm using version 3.0.100.39 on Windows 7 64 bit.)

    When I select the "Respect Layout.ini" option a lot of files from my Layout.ini are not placed in the required place. After a brief surveillance I realized that the missing files are all hard links.

    For example the first 8 entries of Layout.ini looks like this:

    C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\NTOSKRNL.EXE
    C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\PSHED.DLL
    C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\KDCOM.DLL
    C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CLFS.SYS
    C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CI.DLL
    C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\HAL.DLL
    C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SYSTEM
    C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32\CONFIG\SOFTWARE

    But after the optimization process the Cluster Viewer looks like this:

    C:\$Boot
    C:\Windows\System32\config\SYSTEM
    C:\Windows\System32\config\SOFTWARE

    The ntoskrnl.exe, pshed.dll, kdcom.dll, clfs.sys, ci.dll and hal.dll are all missing from the first sectors, and they are all HARD LINKS.

    I have tried two other programs – MyDefrag (with the System Disk Monthly Script) and O&O Defrag – , but they do not miss these files, and the Cluster Viewer looks like this:

    C:\$Boot
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-os-kernel_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7601.17640_none_ca31f809cade8847\ntoskrnl.exe
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-pshed_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7600.16385_none_b7e7d4f746c595bb\PSHED.DLL
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-b..gertransport-serial_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7601.17556_none_6fb25371c3691bc8\kdcom.dll
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-commonlog_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7600.16385_none_da778c54413d0c9c\clfs.sys
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-codeintegrity_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7601.17514_none_fe9df6ad1b5f6e87\ci.dll
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-hal_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7601.17514_none_094ef8137049c196\hal.dll
    C:\Windows\System32\config\SYSTEM
    C:\Windows\System32\config\SOFTWARE

    So the files are lined up there – with differently localized hard links.

    What's the explanation of this strange program behaviour? Or did I misunderstand something?

    Thank you for your time and consideration.
     
  2. Isso

    Isso Developer

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    Hi,

    This is a bug in layout.ini processing module of UltimateDefrag. Unfortunately I no longer work on this project, but I'll forward this information to the manager.
     
  3. homeless_sapient

    homeless_sapient Registered Member

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  4. psi2003

    psi2003 Registered Member

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    Isso,

    DefragExpress uses "Respect Layout.ini" when defrag?
     
  5. Isso

    Isso Developer

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    If you check "Move frequently used files to high performance area", then yes.
    But I guess it will suffer the same problem as UD (I mean hard links processing)
     
  6. psi2003

    psi2003 Registered Member

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    Why? :doubt:
     
  7. Isso

    Isso Developer

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    Because it uses the same codebase as UD, and no one has reported this hard link problem before
     
  8. homeless_sapient

    homeless_sapient Registered Member

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    I sent an email to the DiskTrix office about the observation regarding this hard link issue. See if it will help in any way.
     
  9. homeless_sapient

    homeless_sapient Registered Member

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    I made some additional tests with the program.

    Under certain circumstances the UltraDefrag simply just cannot see a single hard link in Windows 7:

    1) On the one hand it can defragment hard links.
    For example I've used the MyFragmenter.exe from MyDefgrag to split the C:\Windows\System32\ntoskrnl.exe (hard link) into 100 fragments. Than the „Fragmented Files Only” and the „Consolidate” options from the UltraDefrag can defragment the splitted ntoskrnl.exe.

    2) BUT on the other hand includind the C:\Windows\System32 and C:\Windows\SysWOW64 directories into the „High Performance” locations has NO effect on ntoskrnl.exe (and on the other hard links from the included directories). The ntoskrnl.exe remains fragmented and unoptimized.

    Conclusion:
    Apparently the optimizations based on sorting algorithms has no effect on hard links.

    However the situation is a little more complex, because:

    I wrote a script to include in Layout ini every hard link output of „fsutil hardlink list” for every original entry.

    For example:

    INSTEAD OF:

    C:\Windows\System32\ntoskrnl.exe
    C:\Windows\System32\pshed.dll
    C:\Windows\System32\kdcom.dll
    C:\Windows\System32\clfs.sys
    C:\Windows\System32\ci.dll
    C:\Windows\System32\hal.dll

    THIS WILL APPEAR IN LAYOUT.INI:

    C:\Windows\System32\ntoskrnl.exe
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-os-kernel_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7601.17640_none_ca31f809cade8847\ntoskrnl.exe
    C:\Windows\System32\pshed.dll
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-pshed_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7600.16385_none_b7e7d4f746c595bb\pshed.dll
    C:\Windows\System32\kdcom.dll
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-b..gertransport-serial_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7601.17556_none_6fb25371c3691bc8\kdcom.dll
    C:\Windows\System32\clfs.sys
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-commonlog_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7600.16385_none_da778c54413d0c9c\clfs.sys
    C:\Windows\System32\ci.dll
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-codeintegrity_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7601.17514_none_fe9df6ad1b5f6e87\ci.dll
    C:\Windows\System32\hal.dll
    C:\Windows\winsxs\amd64_microsoft-windows-hal_31bf3856ad364e35_6.1.7601.17514_none_094ef8137049c196\hal.dll

    Changing in this way the Layout.ini allows UltimateDefrag to not miss the hard linked items from the „Respect Layout.ini” operation.

    This is weird.
     
  10. Isso

    Isso Developer

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    I was just contacted by the UD developer and he told that he fixed this issue, so the new release should work properly.
     
  11. psi2003

    psi2003 Registered Member

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    And DefragExpress? I love that app :)
     
  12. Isso

    Isso Developer

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    Sorry, I think they don't have plans to update DefragExpress in the near future
     
  13. homeless_sapient

    homeless_sapient Registered Member

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    Thank You! It's a good news :) !

    Also it would be nice if the size of distance (gap) between the High Performance zone and Archive zone would be customizable. It's not always a good idea to put the Archive files to the very end of the partition.
     
  14. Isso

    Isso Developer

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    There will be an option to place Archive right after HP as far as I know. But I guess a gap should be easy to do too, I'll notify them about this feature request
     
  15. psi2003

    psi2003 Registered Member

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    Disktrix has dead again :(
     
  16. neijek

    neijek Registered Member

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    i hope i'm not doing something too bad hijacking this thread but since it's about disktrix ultimatedefrag 3 and it had already part of my question.. i wanted to ask the second part...

    is there a way that i could force it to place "x" amount of space after one of my high priority files? i use it on one hd for organizing strickly by folder 3 games i often use to have the fastest load time i can, but 2 of those games often write just a little bit to it's folder, forcing that data to go after the 3 game folders (40 g later) and fragmenting, causing i would gather mild speed problems till i defrag again. Since I use these hd just for those games i was hoping i could force it to place i dont know 5%-10% extra white space after it places my folders by strict hight priority placment allowing for these little "extra bits" to be written as close as possible to their default folder... (i know austic does this with their defrag but i really dont like it :p )

    the idea in case i didn't explain it too well is ... :xxxxxxxx(hightpriorityfolder)----(whitespace)xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx(nexthighpriotityfolder)--(whitepace)xxxxxxxxxxx(lasthighpriorityfile).
     
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