Kittani

This is my first attempt at a guide so please don't me.

Windows Virtual Memory Guide
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Ok first thing's first... What is the Windows Virtual Memory (page file) and what does it do?
The Windows Virtual memory is a place allocated on your hard drive (usually somewhere in the middle of the free space) that windows stores extra data from your RAM banks when that data isn;t being immediately used but may be needed in the near future. By default this file is not static and can grow or shrink within certain system-set limits. On most systems this is absolutely critical to system performance, but on higher end machiens with large memory banks it can actually slow the system up. Below I will list several general settings for this pagefile and offer some tweaks to get it to perform at it's best.

1) The BEST setting
If you have 1gb of memory or more on your system you can shut it off completely. This will prevent it from makign hits to the hard drive (which can cause a sudden drop in FPS when playing a game or whatnot.) and see how your system performs. If it hangs occasionally or you have a TON of processes running all of the time refer to the next setting. Also it's important to keep tabs on your system's security as some spyware and adware can eat up your physical memory really fast. This is only good system maintenance anyways... Rule of thumb is that if you have more than 30 processes running OR your ram reads more than 75% full when working your system the hardest... you should keep some sort of virtual memory.. If you run light (Like I do with 80% available 99.9% of the time.) just shut it off and save the wear on your hard drive... this can actually lower some temps on HDD's and increase the efficiency of your PCI bus in general.

2) Next BEST setting
If you have problems with hangs using no page file or have less than 1gb of ram you can still get a boost to system performance. Move the pagefile to a separate hard drive... preferrably a separate controller as well. This will allow your system to access the pagefile even when it's trying to read system files. Normally it has to jump back and forth from the page file area to the system file area when doing things... this can slow a computer down drastically. putting it on a separate drive on a separate controller gives your system a sort of RAID-like performance boost without the need of actual RAID. The majority of performance you get out of a dual drive configuration in RAID Striping is lost anyways if you have the page file within the array. get it out.. isolate it... and get some access time back. (not to mention that by default pagefiles constantly get shifted around and re-arranged on the disk. If you ever need to recover lost data it may be impossible if the page file has moved over that portion of the disk.)

3) FOR ANYONE
No matter where you put the pagefile the one thing EVERYONE should do is make it a static size. A general rule of thumb for best performance is your system RAM x 1.5 (so if you have 512mb of ram you should make your page file 768) There are some people that hold to other values like 2 or 2.5 times... but if you are using up all of 1.5x your system ram in paging then you need more main memory anyways. If you need a paging file at 1gb or more just set it to whatever you have for main memory. The key here is to select manual configuration and set both values the SAME. This will lock it into place and prevent the system from constantly re-sizing it whenever it wants to. Again this will save alot of time in the system and will keep the pagefile from getting accessed as much.

OK this is all wonderful but where do I actually change the settings, you ask?

First... you need to be administrator or have admin privelages on your system.
Second... Decide what you are going to do BEFORE you do it. You'll need to reboot if you remove the one from the system drive (usually your C drive)
Third... If you can.... shut down as many extra apps as possible first.

Now... Right click on My Computer and select properties.

In the Window that appears you need to select the Advanced Tab. In there you will see a box labeled Performance with a button labeled Settings... this is where you want to be. Click it and go on to the next section.

Now there is a tweak here other than the Virtual memory that can give you a little bit more boost in your performance. The first window you will see is
Visual effects. Unless you really crave all those nifty effects set it to "Adjust for best performance".

Now you'll want to select apply and wait for it all to shift around...

from that same window where the effects were you need to select the second tab over labeled Advanced. Near the bottom is the goal of this guide... Virtual Memory. It will show you your current size for paging files on all drives. Click the Change button and look at the next window.

The settigns here are fairly straightforward but they can be quirky. You need to hit the SET button after every change you make or it won;t actually make the changes when you click OK.

If you decided to go with no paging file select the drive that shows one in the second column and then click the option button "No Paging File", click set and ok and you're done after a re-boot.

If you need a paging file figure out how much you need and select the destined drive (according to what's available to you in the above settings lists) and then select custom size. Enter in the same value for both boxes in MB's and then click Set. clcik on OK and it will tell you it needs to reset... go ahead and do it and you're done.

Now... Weather or not you are putting it on a separate drive on a separate controller or not, make sure they are the same size. ALOT of read/writes are done on the controller just resizing and moving the file and it can add up in the long run.

No matter if your drives are on a separate controller or not... putting it on a separate HDD will help period. Even a separate partition can help a little.

I hope this guide helped you learn to manage your Virtual Memory and helps your system performance out. If you need more info feel free to ask me anytime.

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blob

stick this sucker up on the top!

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Chipmonk010

very nice! well writen good info what more could u ask for!

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blair

i agree very nice work Kittani rep for you bud

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PROBN4LYFE

refreshed my memory...i forgot i put a fresh gig in this rig ....i gotta check it out...
waaayy thorough on the FAQ...gotta give ...gotta give

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iwannaplaygames

it's all so clear now great post . i tryed puttin the pagefile on a septet partion a wile back and i think it slowed things down more than with out a partion said f-it and went back to defalt.

Pauli

Just a passing note, some games get *****y when I shut off my page file. I have 2 gb of ram so I generally have it off. I've had games refuse to let me in quoting memory problems unless I put TWICE my ram as page file.

johndoe

its not a good idea to put a paging file on the same physical drive as the os but just in a different partition

Remonster

TeeHee, I have 4000MB of pagefile, i mean I do have 280GB of HDD so why not, will switching this to 1.5x my RAM size give me a performance boost? (1536MB)

Lostnhell

Having a paging file that large will cause problems.

Your computer will try to send temp data to the slowere HDD rather than waiting to move to the accelerated transfer speed of the RAM.

The general method is to make it 1.5 - 3 times the size of your RAM.