fsx-ms New laptop, ONE internal hard drive. Where to install FSX?

[Ray Proudfoot 8,947]

Actually Wobbie if the OP has the PC under his sole control and feels he is competent I would advocate turning UAC off. Those confirmation messages are an absolute pain designed to protect the novice but not seasoned computer users.

 

Regarding Admin your own account should be setup as an Administrator so there's no need to run programs as an Administrator. They'll run that way by default.

 

PS. I see some have quoted me with +1. There's a green Vote Up arrow for that very purpose for those who didn't notice it. :wink:

[ubersu 78]

Install under the root drive - especially in Win10.

 

DJ

[Wobbie 938]

Thanks Ray. That explains better.

 

Cheers,

Robin

[Jimm 437]

Install under the root drive - especially in Win10.

 

DJ

This benefits how?  A statement like that sounds more like a requirement than a suggestion.  It can be argued that the install drive and path have certain impacts, both positive and negative.  If the OP has only one drive, the question has been beaten to death here at AVSIM on where to install.  AVSIM has a comprehensive manual outlining where to install the sim so then it begs the question of whether everyone follows that line of thinking.  For me, I have my sims in a separate drive.  Do I see a performance difference? No, not incredibly, by the standard of install paths but as for the type of drive, then yes.

 

Whether it's Windows 7, 8, 9, 10, 12, 200, unless Microsoft changes the way UAC works, it is good practice to stay away from the root drive.  Consider that many people have quite a bit of content and never look forward to reinstalling everything if there is a drive failure, and yes, before other people tear up my post with misquotes, backups are always prudent, but then you get some folks who don't do backups.  Circular conversations abound.

 

-Jim

[ubersu 78]

I'm not going to argue about it - it's my recommendation. I do support and find that, many times, what is mucking up the works is MS security features coupled with user ignorance. Installing outside the so-called 'protected areas' of the file system bypasses those issues and has no other impact. The user in question has one drive - therefore the  root is the best place to install. You may do as you like.  If you don't do backups you will get burned no matter where you install your files.

 

DJ

[n4gix 4,947]

The user in question has one drive - therefore the  root is the best place to install. You may do as you like.  If you don't do backups you will get burned no matter where you install your files.

If by "root" you mean in a unique folder relative to the "root" then we are on the same page:

 

eg, x:\FSX (where x is whatever letter to which the root drive is assigned*)

 

* Nota bene: I've seen laptops with some strange drive letters assigned to the hard drive, such as "G"... I've no idea why the OEM decided that was a good idea.

[W2DR 1,860]

If by "root" you mean in a unique folder relative to the "root" then we are on the same page:

 

eg, x:\FSX (where x is whatever letter to which the root drive is assigned*)

 

* Nota bene: I've seen laptops with some strange drive letters assigned to the hard drive, such as "G"... I've no idea why the OEM decided that was a good idea.

 

I was given an old Acer desktop that my wife uses for email. Only one drive. It shows as "D". Go figure.....

 

Doug

[ubersu 78]

Hi, Fr. Bill

 

That is exactly what I meant by root... I've seen some odd drive letters too; I can't remember if it was Sony or Toshiba that did that.

 

DJ

[mgh 89]

My laptop has one physical drive but:

 

Local Disk (C:)

Recovery (D:)

HP_Tools (E:)

 

Use only C: for applications.

 

C:\FSX never causes any problems: using C:Program files(x86) can. Why take the risk?

[bofhlusr 453]

Ok, installed in C:. Can someone explain why installing it in D: Is not advised (technical explanation if possible please).

[Ray Proudfoot 8,947]

I have two SSDs and have installed FSX into D:\FSX. No problems whatsoever.

 

If you have a single hard drive or SSD and it's identified as D that would be odd. But since that doesn't apply to you I wouldn't worry. Just install your addons and enjoy FSX.

[n4gix 4,947]

Ok, installed in C:. Can someone explain why installing it in D: Is not advised (technical explanation if possible please).

That is pretty simple actually. Most systems with only one hard drive are labeled as the C: drive.

 

However, the manufacturer creates a small partition on the C: drive and gives it the name D: where the recovery files are stored in case they are needed for a "Restore to Factory Configuration" is required.

Local Disk (C:)

Recovery (D:)

Since this partitioned D: drive is kept very small, you should not ever try to use it for any other purpose!

[bofhlusr 453]

I am the OP (original poster). I did as told and installed it in C:\FSX using Windows 10.  Now I am wondering if it was a mistake.   My C: is a 250 GB drive. My D: is about 750 GB (total drive size for the LAPTOP is 1 TB at 5400 rpm).

 

C: is half full so there's lots of space. Here's the problem.  I defragged using OO Defrag v18 (OO Defrag was recommended by NickN back when I used Windows 7).  The first defrag was a SPACE defrag. Second and subsequent defrags were COMPLETE/NAME.  COMPLETE/NAME defrag takes all night so I leave it overnight. When I wake up I see that I have only 2 fragmented files. Cool!  A few hours letter, I checked the drive again and now I have 1000+ fragmented files again. Whaaat???  Defragging that again takes overnight too. This happens every night.

 

My theory about what is happening is that Windows 10 creates temporary files. After a couple of hours of use these have to be re-arranged alphabetically by OO Defrag again with the files in C:\FSX and all the files in C: have to be moved again which takes all night long.

 

Now, if I created a special separate partition and installed FSX there (eg. E:\FSX) then the files in the entire partition changes very little. So maybe it is better to install FSX in a separate partition in a ONE drive laptop is the better solution.

[Ray Proudfoot 8,947]

oneleg,

 

The biggest improvement I made to my laptop was swapping the HDD for a SSD. Lightning fast load times and no defragging required. How much of that 1Tb space do you actually need? I'm guessing less than half and that includes FSX.

 

Here's what I suggest you do. Find a suitably sized SSD for your needs and follow the guidance on this link to clone your existing drive. http://www.lifehacker.co.uk/2014/06/02/migrate-solid-state-drive-without-reinstalling-windows

 

I did it in around an hour and it's incredibly simple. You can use free software for the cloning. I use Aomei Backupper which is brilliant. http://www.backup-utility.com/free-backup-software.html

 

Initially you would clone the existing drive but afterwards look to merge any partitions into a single C. This would of course exclude any hidden recovery partitions but those don't usually have a drive letter assigned to them. There's no need for separate partitions with a SSD anyway. Well none I can think of.

 

Have a think and ask if you need any help. You will also need a SATA-USB cable.

[JWNoctis 4]

If there ever is a reason not to install significant amount of other software into system partition and use a SSD as system drive, that is one. Many OS files are written and rewritten on the run and that tend to generate fragments.

 

EDIT: Yep, partitioning a SSD could actually cause trouble with wear-leveling or over-provision mechanism on some of them and provide no performance benefit.