Windows XP supports FAT, FAT32 and enhanced NTFS file systems. When installing Windows XP, users can choose to use FAT32 file system and NTFS file system. The reason for not choosing NTFS is only One: that is, users also need to use an operating system that cannot read NTFS partitions, such as Win9x, MS-DOS, etc. If you want to fully understand the full functionality of Windows XP, it is strongly recommended that you use the NTFS file system, Windows XP uses the NTFS 5 file system, and the enhanced NTFS file system provides users with updated enhancements. After selecting the NTFS file system, users can also optimize NTFS to improve system performance. First, the size of the cluster depends on the average size and type of files to be stored in the NTFS volume to select the size of the cluster. Ideally, the size of the cluster should be able to divide the file size (the closest value), and the ideal cluster size can be I. /O time is minimized and the disk space is maximized. Note that in any case, using clusters larger than 4KB will have some negative effects, such as the inability to use NTFS file compression and wasted disk space. There are several ways to determine the average size of a file. One way is to select the "Run" command from the "Start" menu, type cmd, and then press Enter to enter the command prompt. At the command prompt, type the command chkdsk. The number of files on this volume and the amount of disk space already used, the number of files is removed to the size of the disk space already used, and the ideal cluster size can be obtained. Another way is to use the Performance Monitor as follows: From the Start menu, choose Settings --> Control Panel --> Management Tools --> Performance Commands, then Depending on the average disk byte/transfer of the trace logical disk object, this method can be used to get a more accurate file sum size and the type of data stored on this volume. Second, NTFS converted from FAT Volumes converted from FAT to NTFS will lose some performance advantages of NTFS, the main file table MFT may be fragmented, and NTFS file access permissions cannot be set on the root volume. To check for fragmentation on the main file table MFT, use the following method: From the Start menu, select Programs-->Accessories-->System Tools-->Disk Defragmentation, analyze a drive, then click View Report to drag the report information to the MFT fragment of the main file to view the total MFT fragment. After converting a FAT to NTFS, the cluster size is 512KB, which increases the possibility of fragmentation and takes more time to defragment, so it is best to select the NTFS file system during initial formatting. Third, defragmentation Even if the above mentioned master file table MFT does not appear fragmentation, defragmentation is also essential, when fragmentation occurs on the disk, access to a file requires the head to do more movement, extended read disk Time, which greatly affects system performance, so maintaining fragmentation on disk to a lower limit is the most important factor in improving NTFS volumes, and frequent defragmentation is necessary. Fourth, the compression function NTFS compression function can compress the entire directory tree on a single file, the entire folder or NTFS volume, this can help us save a certain amount of hard disk space, but the use of compression will cause the performance of NTFS volume to decline The reason is that each time you access a compressed file, you need to decompress it. For example, to copy a compressed file, the process is: first decompress, then copy, and finally compress, greatly increasing the CPU operation. time. Therefore, it is recommended to try not to use the compression function when the hard disk space is large enough. V. Preserving the appropriate space for the main file table MFT MFT plays an important role in the NTFS volume, which has a great impact on system performance. The system frequently accesses the MFT when reading and writing disks, so the MFT has the performance of the NTFS system. Critical impact. By default, the NTFS file system has reserved a specific area near the MFT to reduce fragmentation in the MFT. By default, this area accounts for 12.5% of the entire volume size, although this area enables the MFT. The least fragmentation, but it is not suitable in any case, to manage the MFT space, you can add an item of type REG_DWord NtfsMftZoneReservation under HKEY_LOCAL_MacHINE\\SYSTEM\\CurrentControlSet\\Control\\FileSystem, its default The value is 1 (1 indicates that MFT accounts for 12.5% of the entire volume, 2 indicates that MFT accounts for 25% of the entire volume, 3 indicates that MFT accounts for 37.5% of the entire volume, and 4 indicates that MFT accounts for 50% of the entire volume). Note: The registry must be modified before the NTFS volume is created. That is to say, the modification of the registry only affects the NTFS volume created afterwards, and has no effect on the existing existing volumes. These volumes also retain the original MFT settings. For the MFT space setting, the default 12.5% is sufficient for most users and there is no need to modify it. Six, prohibit the creation of short file names Windows XP NTFS system in order to maintain compatibility with MS-DOS and Windows 3.X, also supports 8.3 format file names, prohibit this feature will improve the performance of NTFS partition, run the registry editor, Locate HKEY_LOCAL_MacHINE\\SYSTEM\\CurrentControlSet\\Control\\FileSystem and change the value of NtfsDisable8dot3NameCreation below it from 0 to 1. 7. Prohibit recent access updates When switching back and forth between directories, NTFS will update the date/time tag of the most recently accessed directory. It will reduce the performance of the NTFS partition. To disable it, follow these steps: Run Registry Edit Then, find HKEY_LOCAL_MacHINE\\SYSTEM\\CurrentControlSet\\Control\\FileSystem, and change the value of NtfsDisableLastAcessUpdate below it from 0 to 1, you can disable the automatic update function. If you can't find the item, you can create a new one.