Speed zones and placement rules
Speed zones group files by purpose so a zone-aware method can place and optimize each group. They are intended for HDD layout management and are not recommended for SSDs.
Enable or disable zone filing
- Open Settings from the ribbon.
- Under General → Advanced options, review File into zones (not recommended to use with SSDs).
- Enable or clear the option and confirm the dialog.
- Review the zone settings for the target drives and any scheduled task that has its own configuration.
Check the saved state rather than assuming zones are already enabled. A three-zone rule set can exist while zone filing is disabled.
The three file groups
| Zone | Typical contents | Typical strategy for OPTIMIZE/Complete |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Windows and installed programs | Sort by name. |
| 2 | User data, profiles, and frequently changed files | Sort by access date where useful. |
| 3 | Rarely used or large files | Consolidate files and free space. |
These are starting points. Inspect the installed defaults before changing them. Selecting OPTIMIZE/Complete uses each zone's chosen strategy; OPTIMIZE and OPTIMIZE/Quick have their own behavior.
Add drive-specific rules
- Open Start → Zone filing, enable Customize Zone filing if prompted, and select All Drives in the zone configuration.
- Choose Add New and select the system drive, other data drives, or individual drives as offered.
- Confirm the selection, then select the new drive or group in the list.
- Select a zone and add a rule under Custom rules.
- Set each zone's optimization strategy, then save the configuration.
Rules on All Drives provide the global classification. Specific drive rules take precedence over global rules. Path rules can override the large-file placement option, so review both when a file goes to an unexpected zone.
Rule examples
| Path or filename mask | Matches |
|---|---|
*.docx | Word document filenames. |
report_*.pdf | PDF filenames beginning with report_. |
C:\Windows\* | Paths below the Windows folder. |
C:\Users\*\Documents\* | Paths in user Documents folders. |
*\Downloads\* | Paths containing a Downloads folder. |
file?.txt | A filename with one character between file and .txt. |
The wildcard * matches a character sequence; ? matches one character. Use the separate Always move to Zone 3 size option for large files. Set a size such as 500 MB in that control; do not enter >500MB as a path mask.
After saving, run a suitable zone-aware task and inspect the result. Keep rules specific enough to understand which rule wins. For general selection of files to optimize, use exclusions and inclusions.