The more recent MG casinos are FORCED to install to c:\microgaming\casinos\whatevercasino and the general game files are stored in a communal cache somewhere in "documents and settings".
The communal cache seems to be filled with THOUSANDS UPON THOUSANDS of tiny files and folders. This is bound to create fragmentation because of the constant casino updates, often more than once a month.
There is some merit in having a general MGS clearout, and starting again. I have noticed that MGS casinos can become permanently corrupted after an update, sometimes a single game, sometimes nearly all of them, or even the entire casino. Individual removal and reinstallation often clears the immediate problem, but I find there have been junk files left behind.
If you are going for the full clearout, and fresh start, it must be done properly. ALL the casinos, and the MGS cache, need to be deleted. Then maybe do the defrag. Install ONE MGS casino COMPLETELY, give it plenty of time, and make it one with all the games, not a cut down version.
This will populate the MGS cache. The rest of the casinos should now reinstall a lot faster, because most of the 2Gig+ size of the average MGS casino is down to common files stored in the cache, with only a few tens of Mbytes being held as "branding variants" in the casino folders.
If you are REALLY after a big clean, delete the registry keys holding "microgaming" (now obsolete it seems), and "MGS" found under the "software" heading. These keys persist even when everything MGS has been cleared from your hard drive, and they hold a memory of your account number, so reinstallation gets greeted with "you already have an account at......". Remove these keys, and you will have to manually reenter your account numbers after reinstallation, so make a note of them. Removal of these keys will also cause favourites to be completely reset, along with other bespoke settings you may have chosen under options (language etc.)
Remove the wrong keys, and you could b****r something else up
It won't last, MGS casinos will keep on updating, leaving junk behind, fragmenting your drive, and you may have to do it again.
It is worth trying to get some sense of before and after, to decide whether it was worth the time and effort.
Adding RAM is often seen as the best first option for increasing performance, with 4Gig being the max for Windows XP. Getting the fastest memory supported by the motherboard is best, although this might mean replacing what you already have, rather than just adding more. Having all 4, or 2, sticks of identical specification is supposed to work best.
The C: drive could be replaced with a high performance model, with data on a larger D: drive. Sadly, MGS no longer lends itself to users directing installation to other than the root directory of the C: drive, and this may NOT necessarily be the best place for highly fragmented and ever changing cache data, nor program installations.
Other odd tweaks I have heard of include explicitly specifying a fixed contiguous paging file (rather than the MS "recommended" option of letting Windows handle it), creating the paging file in it's own segment, or even alone on a high performance drive (or even solid state drive). Having enough RAM to do away altogether with a paging file (would be a problem though for some applications). OS on solid state (or other high performance) C: drive - and nothing else. RAID array (stripe) configuration - downside is if one drive fails, you lose the lot, not just what's on that failed drive.
Much of this is down to trial and error. Those who like to tinker, tinker, and then post their results. What may work on one PC may not on another, it may even make things worse.
I have done a bit of "tinkering" myself
My PC was bought specifically with the MGS casino problems in mind, as well as my desire to have a way to access online TV catch-up content.
My next obvious step is RAM, complete new set, slightly faster, and full 4Gigs. Old 2Gigs will hopefully work in other PC at my Mum's place, where only 1Gigs currently reside (cheap PC
) Current 1Gigs at Mum's place, well, in a cardboard box, like the old 64Mb from my old Windows 98 PC, and it's old 9Gigs hard drive. Windows 98 PC? Still alive (but can no longer handle MGS).
After RAM, maybe a look at upgrading the graphics card. I have a full HD monitor, and I suspect the card is struggling to handle it. I may be limited by the motherboard to what graphics card options will work best, but the aim would be to have ALL graphics handled by the card, with no load overflow into the general RAM or processor.
After that, it's more complicated, a matter of tuning the OS, getting rid of "crapware" that has sneaked it's way in, and making sure that only what I need runs in the background whilst playing.
Upgrading to Windows 7 may bring an improvement, but it's expensive. PCs have moved on, and it may even be worth while getting a new PC, relegating this one to streaming media, and the old Windows 98 one to being a paperweight