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Ultra slow file copy

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maestralien:
Hello,

I had the same problem today copying from my external hard drive eSATA connected on the laptop's ExpressCard. I needed to copy huge folder with thousand of files (Documents) to my new laptop's internal hard drive. I just started copying and it was ultra ultra ultra slow!! Then I found this topic and I solved in the same way. It just needs to set the NORMAL-SAME DISK profile and it works.

Why make things complicate with such Profiles and permissions if, for example, Windows Explorer works with only one profile and, except for the poor features it has, the speed is always perfect without needed to choose any profiles?

Also, I tried different way to copy files, from external to internal hard drives, internal to internal (different disks) and internal to internal (same disk), I noticed that the better method is ALWAYS the Normal. So, again, why so many different profiles available?! Is there a reason which we cannot figure?

I think MC developer must fix this profiles issue! If Profiles are there to use, they MUST work, Otherwise, better remove them and that's it! Thanks.

Mathias (Author):
Copying is not so easy if you want maximum speed, Because different copy scenarios require different settings if you want maximum speed. unfortunately some hardware does not like it. And sometimes it is a problem to identify different hardware from each other. like USB attach harddrive and USB Attach memory sticks sometimes would need different settings to maximize the speed but the program sees them as the same type of device.

Windows Explorer does not use aggressive tricks to maximize speed and it can also find out if hardware support of the option or not. while 3de party developers can not. (Windows 8 will use even more different strategy to maximize the speed )

For example if source and target is one two different physical drives, you want to be be able to read / write at the same time. you do not was drive 1 to read some data then wait until drive 2 has written it, when drive 2 has written some data you want the data from drive 1 to already be read and ready to be written. However if you copy to/from the same physical drive you do not want this  (with the exception of SSD drives )

Normally when you copy a large amount of data you want to bypass the filesystem caches because letting the OS cache data is just taking to much extra time and if the data you are copying are more then the OS ever would be able to keep in cache it is spending time putting data in/out of caches for no good reason. and if OS write cache is used when copying large files you will get a freeze in the copy progress when it needs to flushes the cache and this is also annoying, problem is that some hardware. mostly older USB ram sticks, but also other hardware. does not like that and performance will suffer since the OS is handling the problem.

maestralien:
Hello,

thanks for answering and all info! I understand everything you mean and I agree, sure, everything can speed up the copy process is welcome. Now the problem is that, as you confirmed, that for the OS itself is hard to recognize different hardware scenario and apply different profiles.

So, this is the question. Theorically your explanation is perfect, but I experimented that practically it does not work as it should! This is the main problem. So, right now, I see that only the NORMAL profile works fine for different scenario, as I tested on different computers (laptop and desktop) and different hardware connected (hard drives of different specifications such as SATA, eSATA, FireWire, etc.).

Many things work correctly and perfectly in theory, but then the reality shows different results. So, which is your solution to this PRACTICAL problem? I don't argue your Profile method (which I'd love to use if they would work), but I can argue that right now (maybe for a OS difficult) they do not do the job they should.

NORMAL profile works fine, other Profiles don't. Solution?

Thanks, all the best.

Mathias (Author):
Exact what is best for you is hard to tell without the hardware and test. I only had real issue with USB Memory strick. never drives.
But since Normal work and Power does not.. enable all cache for power (or that ever profile it autoselects )

or set the same settings that you have under normal for the profile that is autoselected that drive.
A Normal Profile with the same settings as Power Profile will make the Power Profile act the the Normal profile

maestralien:
Ok thanks. Where is a direct link to open the Profile configurations and set the preferences for each Profile?

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