If you hope the computer can always work like new, you are supposed not to be too lazy to maintain your computer. As the storage of the computer, the hard disk like other computer parts also needs your careful maintenance. In this article, I would like to tell you how to protect hard disk in order to optimize PC performance.

In the first place, you should try to prevent bad tracks in the hard disk.
When starting up computer, it is impossible to pilot the hard disk even you use floppy disk or CD to start up computer, you can see those driver letter but cannot do any operations to this partition. If so, you should be aware that bad track is in it probably. Any bad track can damage hard disk, even it is just a cluster. On such condition, you should distinguish what kind of the bad track is and solve them respectively—run Scandisk program or replace and maintain it with retailer or manufacturer.

Secondly, you should pay close attention to guard against virus and Trojan programs. It is known to all that they are quite disaster for every part of computer. What is more, hard disk is the main objective of computer attacking virus. So, you should make use of anti-virus software to get rid of those viruses and maintain and back up important data and update such protecting programs in time. It is advisable for you not to use any unknown applications and to check virus and Trojan ahead of running them. The viruses are really headache for computer. You should prevent them from attacking the disks.

Thirdly, defragmentation is a good choice.
After using computer for a lot of time, due to the restoring and deleting of files, the files and available space have to become scattered in the hard disk. If you do not defragment them, the disk may reduce its restoring efficiency. And disk defragmenting program can put the files into continuous space and make the disk available space tidy and clean without taken up by fragments disorderly. You can start up the defragmenting program in the Windows or turn to third-party tools, such as “Advanced Defrag”.

Besides, you can let hard disk brainpower at rest.
If you can keep such function closed, it can do great help to facilitate hard disk working and expand using time. You can click “Control Panel” and choose “Power Management”. It is OK for you to set the time as fifteen minutes in the “Close down hard disk” column. It is better for you to protect the hard disk.

And for you, you should form a good habit of closing down computer correctly. The improper power shutdown can lead to violent attrition between disk head and disk surface. You should follow the normal computer closing down procedure. Any mistake or error in this regard may do harm to disk.

All in all, you should give your attention to daily hard disk maintenance. You can learn more ways to optimize PC performance.