Last Updated on August 2, 2017 by Dave Farquhar
I had a question come in the other day about how to defrag Android. Since Android devices use solid-state storage, you don’t want to defrag it. I directed him to Lagfix, an Android app that forces the underlying Linux kernel to issue a TRIM command to perform garbage collection on the internal storage.
It’s not quite like defragging, but the concept is very similar. Most Android devices do this automatically. But if things start lagging too much, forcing TRIM can pep things up a bit.
Defragmenting solid state storage traditionally had limited benefit. In the long run it can damage it. TRIM has similar benefits and actually works somewhat similarly, although it works at a lower level. But unlike defrag, TRIM can extend the life expectancy of the device. But besides that, the Linux filesystems Android uses are much less prone to fragmentation than Windows filesystems. Windows systems do benefit from defragmenting.
This is a typical case of asking for the wrong thing. But there’s no shame in that. If you know what the person is trying to accomplish, you can still help by directing them to the help they need.
David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.
Dave,
Don’t think I ever thanked you for the sugesstion.
Problem is, the phone needs to be ‘rooted”; in addition to which it can not have a certain chipset which will brick the damn thing if you attempt LagFix.
One can use a software to determine if your phone will be bricked. see:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1693704
My Samsung phone is till under warranty, and is not subject to repair unless in virgin (unbricked) state.state.