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I've got a 486 running wfw 3.11 with 40 meg ram. I want to delete the swap file. I go to control panel and change virtual memory settings to "none" then exit into dos and run DEFRAG. It still shows about 20 meg of unmovable file space. How do you delete the swap file?
Another nifty trick is to use a command line switch on your DEFRAG program run the following (X is whatever drive you're defragging):
DEFRAG X: /f /h
This should allow it to move your swap file around -- and any other hidden files for that matter.
Jason
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OK, I tried getting rid of win386.swp but defrag still shows alot of unmovable file space. I don't want to defrag it, I want to recover the disk space (although that is something good to know for future reference). Is their anything else I can do other then format and reinstall?
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Certain files in your O/S cannot be moved. They have to be in a specific spot or area on the disk. Can you tell what is in the unmovable space? Norton Utilities 6.0 (16 bit for DOS) had some apps that you could click on the sector and it would give you the file name.
"I don't want to defrag it, I want to recover the disk space"
The only way to recover unmovable file space is by deletion of the files occupying that space, and if they are system files, your O/S won't work properly.
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I don't think DOS needs 20 megs of operating files! My swap swap file in windows was about 20 megs in size. When I disabled the virtual memory in windows, the 20 meg block of unmovable files at the end of my hard drive stayed their. I'm assuming that was my swap file. I don't know of anything else that would make a continuous block of unmovable files that large. Are you sure their is no way of recovering that disk space without reformatting?
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Do a dir/w/a:h from a DOS c:\ prompt. That'll show you all the hidden files. If you have any, do this: attrib filex.exe -r -a -s -h
That'll make it where it can be moved. Try the same in your windows and windows\system folders.
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Is their any other name that the swap file may be called? I have looked in just about every directory for the file listed above (with and without using the file type attribute switches). I can't find win386.swp or any variation thereof. Any more suggestions? If not, it's time for "format c:"
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I just had a thought. If I had a permanent swap file then later changed it to a temp swap file would that cause what I'm seeing? I know when I installed WFW over win 3.1 it said I had another OS with a swap file and asked if I wanted to delete it? I didn't have virtual memory enabled then either.
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386SPART.PAR is the WFW swap file, sorry, been a long time. If you use the deltree command you needn't bother with the attrib command as deltree over rides attributes.
DELTREE/Y C:\windows\386SPART.PAR
(It may be in the root of C:, can't remember that either, but that ~IS~ the filename.)
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