File system fragmentation: Difference between revisions

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[[File:FragmentationDefragmentation.gif|thumb|Visualization of fragmentation and then of defragmentation]]In [[computing]], '''file system fragmentation''', sometimes called '''file system aging''', is the tendency of a [[file system]] to lay out the contents of [[Computer file|files]] non-continuously to allow in-place modification of their contents. It is a special case of [[fragmentation (computer)#Data fragmentation|data fragmentation]]. File system fragmentation increases disk head movement or [[seek time]] (where it applies), which are known to hinder [[throughput (disk drive)|throughput]]. In addition, file systems cannot sustain unlimited fragmentation. The correction to existing fragmentation is to reorganize files and free space back into contiguous areas, a process called [[defragmentation]].

In modern computers, with [[SSDsolid-state drives]] "disks" that do not rotate and are not really discs in the conventional sense, file system fragmentation is notmuch as muchless of a performance problem (that should be "fixed"), as there is no movement of heads or discs. In fact, overly defragmenting such drives can slowly shorten their lifespan.

==Causes==