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Problems running ScanDisk and Defrag

Many people have problems running ScanDisk and/or Defrag, with the program running 10% or 30% and then stalling. Often with a message that Windows is trying to write to the drive. To run ScanDisk/Defrag successfully:

  1. Go to Start > Run and type msconfig in the Open: box
  2. On the General tab, uncheck all items listed under Selective startup (make sure that Selective startup is selected)
  3. Hit apply and OK and restart Windows
  4. This starts Windows with only the basics running; Insures nothing will interfere with ScanDisk and Defrag
  5. Run ScanDisk and Defrag, when ready go into msconfig and select Normal startup and restart Windows

Or restart Windows in Safe Mode. You can start Windows in Safe Mode by holding down the [Ctrl] key while your computer starts (before Windows appears). You will then be presented with a menu. Choose Safe Mode and run ScanDisk and/or Defrag from Windows running in Safe mode.

Defrag Error Message: ID No:DEFRAG009

If you get an error message: 


Your computer does not have enough free memory to defrag the drive.
Quit one or more programs.
ID# Defrag009

or: 


ScanDisk could not continue because your computer does not
have enough available memory.

See Microsoft Knowledge Base Article 258838 for a solution.

Defrag Error Message: ID No:DEFRAG00205

This error can occur if the Applog file in the hidden \Windows\Applog folder is damaged.

To fix this:

  1. First make sure that you are able to see hidden files on your system. See Show all files to see how to show hidden files/folders.
  2. Select Start > Find, and then click Files or Folders
  3. In the Named box, type applog, select C: in the Look in box, click to select the Include sub folders check box, and then click Find Now
  4. Double-click the Applog folder to open it
  5. On the Edit menu, click Select all
  6. On the File menu, click Delete, and then click Yes when you are prompted to confirm the deletion.

ScanDisk may run on restart, although Windows may seem to shut down correctly

This can be caused by the fact that during the shutdown process, the contents of the virtual cache are written to the destination device. If the destination device is an IDE hard disk, data may be written to the hard disk's onboard cache but not to the disk itself. When this occurs, the data is lost from the cache when the computer turns off.

To resolve this issue, you need to obtain the necessary update:

  • Select Start, and then click Windows Update
  • When the page displays, click Product Updates to create the catalogue of available updates for your computer
  • Select the box next to Window IDE Hard Drive Cache Package, after the catalogue is created, to select this package to download
  • Select all of the items you want to obtain for your computer, click Download, and then follow the rest of the directions to complete the download process

Note: For the updated Ifsmgr.vxd driver to add the necessary delay during shutdown, it may be necessary to update the registry key. The CacheWriteDelay value specifies the number of milliseconds of required delay.

  1. Start the Registry Editor
  2. Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ Microsoft \ Windows \ CurrentVersion
  3. On the Edit menu, click Add Value, and then add the following registry value:

    Value Name: CacheWriteDelay
    Data Type: REG_DWORD
    Radix: Decimal
    Value: 2000

  4. Exit RegEdit and restart Windows


Last Updated: March 8, 2001