Diskeeper 2008

The beauty of Diskeeper is its simplicity. It runs in the background and when your machine is idle it automatically defrags, so that manually defragmentation becomes as necessary as a dial-up modem. The application is tremendously efficient.

There's scheduler, although the app contains a manual defragger so you can force a systems check. Other options will appeal to advanced users. Boot Time Defragging defrags your hard drive at start up, but also slows down the boot process. I-FAAST defragging sequences files in conjunction with the automatic defragger. Frag Shield keeps critical system files from fragmenting. Diskeeper keeps your swap file at the front of the disk, which makes transferring information considerably faster.

Obtaining Diskeeper isn't as simple as using it, and you must register for the trial at the publisher's Web site before downloading. The boot-time defragger adds the long defrag process to your start-up, so it may not be worthwhile to all users.

Still, the performance and functionality are superior to those of similar programs, and the user interface is intuitive. Diskeeper is well suited to users seeking better system performance and willing to pay a bit extra for the experience.