page file help

[Wicca]

i disabled the pagefile on C AND D drive and restarted my computer but in task manager it says my commit memory is 3 Gb which is the pagefile
but how can i disable all of the pagefile

 

[whs]

Do you happen to have 3GBs of RAM - I think that's what the right bottom number shows.

 

[Wicca]

yes is commit memory does that include ram and pagefile

 

[CarlTR6]

There is really no reason to disable the pagefile in Win 7. It is not XP and Win 7 manages memory and the page file very efficiently.

 

[Wicca]

would 5 Gb be enought ram also in system mechanics optimize window pagefile and what this does
is keep windows core element of OS in memory rather then storing in often used items in page file

 

[Wicca]

should i check the option SM has and is 5GB enought

 

[CarlTR6]

5Gb is plenty of RAM. I am running with 2.5 Gb (32 bit) with no problems at all and I have an old machine.

Yes, you are correct, Win 7 keeps higher priority items in RAM. It writes lower priority items to the page only when and if it needs to. I routinely have Outlook running and six to ten tab running in Firefox. Even when I open Word and/or Excel, there is little pagefile activity. With your amount of RAM, Windows will not use the pagefile very much.

The programmers really got memory management right in Win 7.

 

[Wicca]

but should i check system mechanics to optimize window pagefile and what this does
is keep windows core element of OS in memory rather then storing in often used items in page file

 

[CarlTR6]

I am not familiar with System Mechanics specifically. But the third party memory management programs we used for Win 98 and XP are not needed at all for Win 7. There are no memory tweaks or memory management programs out there that can or will improve Windows built in memory management. This may not be the case in the future; someone may well come up with something. At best these system management programs are useless snake oil; at worst the can actually make your system less efficient and slow it down. Optimizing the pagefile is pure snake oil.

I have researched this fairly thoroughly and have done some experimenting on my system. Nothing I did had increased the speed of Win 7 and some actually slowed my system down and caused the system to hang. I tried disabling services, using memory management tools, and registry tweaks. After all that, I restored my system and I let Windows manage the memory and the pagefile. I did disable a few services for security purposes.

 

[whs]

yes is commit memory does that include ram and pagefile

yes, and if you want my advice: Leave it up to the system to manage.

 

[Wishmaster]

There is really no reason to disable the pagefile in Win 7. It is not XP and Win 7 manages memory and the page file very efficiently.

+1 This.

I have 8GB physical RAM and still have a PF.
Although it is rare 7 actually uses it, some apps. want one and do not like not finding one.

There simply is nothing to gain by disabling it.

 

[Tepid]

There are so many threads on this it is really not funny.

There is not one single solitary good reason to disable the pagefile on any modern PC.

The recommended sizes by Microsoft for a Windows Page File are as follows..... and should not be changed for any reason. Other than allowing the system to manage it.

Min = 1.5 x RAM installed
Max = 3 x RAM installed

Does not really need to exceed 4096M.

If you have 4G or more of RAM.. then it should be set as..... Windows Managed


This whole page file thing goes WAYYYYYYYyyyyyy Back. It's not new.
There has never been one "single true shred of evidence in the reality" of every day practical use to have ever disabled the Pagefile.

The only thing you should do,,, if you really really feel the need to,,, and you have more than one or 2 hdd's,,, is to move it to the fastest drive, or the least used non-OS drive.

Persoanlly,, mine is on the C drive of every system I own and I do not have any problems using any of them.

I have never seen a performance gain of any significance at all, in any software, game or anything else that I use my systems for when disabling the pagefile. I have tested it over weeks at a time off and on since 2000 and have come to the conclusion that it is a wives tale.

In the end, if you install something that actually needs a pagefile, the app will either create one anyway, or it won't work, or it will work poorly.

Just leave the pagefile as is and let it do what it needs to.

P.S. Now, if you want to get into Static vs. Dynamic vs. Sizes of Min Max and going with a minimal page file etc. well,, that could be discussed. Personally, the MS Recommended Min/Max should be used, up to a point then allow windows to manage it after you are using more than 4G of RAM.

Pagefile Fragmentation can easily be fixed with a simple reg hack used every so often,, and does not have to be used daily,, although it can be if you are worried about security.

Look up "Delete Page File on Shutdown"

This will delete the pagefile, effectively Defragging it, and force all apps to re-aquire swap space eliminating any potential conflicts or problems.

I do recommend doing this from time to time. maybe every 4th or more System Maintenance.

 

[whs]

Tepid, I think the page file discussion is having a certain Renaissance since more and more people use SSDs for their OS. Space on a SSD is at a premium and especially when installed in a laptop there are no options to offload it to a larger HDD.
Fortunately though, most recent systems seem to come with 4GB or even more RAM where page faults will be a rare occurance under normal use. In that sense a smaller page file may make sense.
I have, however, observed that some programs (MSE is an example) generate a rare page fault here and there even when there is ample available RAM. For those cases, the required minimum (which I believe is 16MBs) may suffice.

 

[jcgriff2]

There is not one single solitary good reason to disable the pagefile on any modern PC.

Agree 100%.

In times of system trouble, BSODs in particular, no page file on the OS drive = no kernel memory dump for analysis.

Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) is perhaps the best gauge of virtual memory usage, if that is the actual concern here. Check it out for yourself.

Download the EXE file - save to Documents. RIGHT-click on the EXE file, select "Run as Administrator".


WMIC_Recoveros_Pagefile_04-2010_jcgriff2_html.exe


An IE8 screen will open with the contents of the HTML output file (located in \Documents\1.html). It also contains system crash setting information.

Look for "CurrentUsage" & "Peak Usage". The figures are in MB.

Also, keep in mind that some apps write to the page file, such as SysInternals Process Monitor, part of the SysInternals Suite, available free from Microsoft TechNet.

Regards. . .

jcgriff2

.

 

[CarlTR6]

Very interesting, J.C. the most my pagefile has ever stored is only 508 Mb. That confirms what I have been saying - Windows 7 manages RAM and the pagefile very well.

 

[Tepid]

I would also like to point out that.....

I have seen many times an XP machine run poorly without a proper Min/Max size settings for the page file.
They have a page file, but it's either set with minimal sizes, or the min max are not the 1.5 and 3 times ram that it should be. Set it proper and XP runs great. However, it could possibly be said this may be due to page file fragmentation, or corruption. But,.....

I would also like to say that,,,

Yes, Page File usage on SSD's might be of concern for the longevity of the SSD itself, but I am not familiar enough with them as they are too expensive for me to own one right now.


Also,, running the app that jcgriff2 provided on an XP system that I have been using for well over a year now without a reload, which has 1.5G of ram and a Proper PageFile set of

Min = 2304M and Max = 4096M

I have done many many things to push this system to the brink of exploding, from running major apps to many many apps with Virtual Machines,

and my Peak Usage is only 306M.
Current is 206M.

 

[whs]

Yes, Page File usage on SSD's might be of concern for the longevity of the SSD itself

I would not worry about the longevity problem. That is being blown far out of proportion. But the space problem is real - especially on a laptop.

 

[tw33k]

I would not worry about the longevity problem. That is being blown far out of proportion. But the space problem is real - especially on a laptop.

Absolutely blown out of proportion. I thought this myth was well and truly debunked but I guess some people still don't get it.

 

[Tepid]

It's not that I don't get it, it is that I have not looked at it as I don't have the money to buy one, so am uninformed on it. There is a difference. And I thought it was clear by the statements in my post.

Yes, Page File usage on SSD's might be of concern for the longevity of the SSD itself, but I am not familiar enough with them as they are too expensive for me to own one right now.

Yep,, thought I did, and I did.

As far as the space usage, again, I stick by my earlier post of pagefile sizes etc. Even on a small drive. Off Load data to an external drive as needed to keep enough space. Or spend a bit more on a larger SSD. It is what I recommend because it is what actually works on an overall basis. Individuals, may (MIght) get away with doing things outside the norm. But as an overall recommendation that prevents the largest majority of issues? I stand by what I have said.

 

[whs]

It's not that I don't get it, it is that I have not looked at it as I don't have the money to buy one, so am uninformed on it. There is a difference. And I thought it was clear by the statements in my post.

Yes, Page File usage on SSD's might be of concern for the longevity of the SSD itself, but I am not familiar enough with them as they are too expensive for me to own one right now.

Yep,, thought I did, and I did.

I was not trying to argue against your view - just voicing my opinion. I am using 3 SSDs right now. But I am sure they will be replaced in the next 3 years. They are guarenteed for 10 years, but who keeps such gear that long.