HFS+ Compression: How long should it take to compress a folder?

IMHO, you're wasting your time. Compression slows things down, since files have to be decompressed before they can be used. Further, using HFS+ compression on every file in your user folder seems uniquely un-useful, since every file you change will become uncompressed again, requiring you to use HDCleanup to compress it again. And keep in mind that some of the larger files, like any .jpeg files and many .pdf files, will already be compressed and compressing them again may actually cause them to become larger! With disk space dirt cheap these days, is it really that big a deal to squeeze maybe a GB or two out of that 148 GB?

Also, note that many of the other functions of HDCleanup are unnecessary (see [Five Mac Maintenance Myths|http://www.macworld.com/article/133684/2008/06/maintenance_intro.html]) or even outright dangerous (in the case of slimming universal apps). This is not an app that needs a place on your hard drive.

Compression slows things down, since files have to be decompressed before they can be used.

That is more a function of available CPU horsepower vs disk throughput (and whether a fragmented compressed file has fewer fragments than a fragmented uncompressed file; relates to how often the disk needs to seek in order to completely read the file).

And decompression takes less effort than compression.

Now if the storage device is a screaming SSD drive, then the balance may shift the other way.

Then again, files on a NAS that you access over WiFi would really benefit when transferred in compressed from, and decompressed on the system.

As the transfer medium gets faster, the benefit of compression with respect to speed goes down.

PS. In my day job, I am a Unix file system developer. I worry about disk access professionally 🙂

ColRay wrote:
Well... Thanks for the unsolicited opinion.

Unsolicited? May I remind you that you asked:

In other words, should I stop this process? Is it a waste of time for a user folder?

Those are good questions. Have you considered asking me (the developer) your questions? Or posting them to the HDCleanUp Google discussion group ? It always surprises and puzzles me that people using the software don't bother to ask me their questions about the product.