This is what I like

[whs]

All my memory is being used - and be it only for caching. And zero page faults. Could not be better.

 

[seekermeister]

On one hand, I understand your perspective....unused memory is wasted memory, but having free memory also increases performance...except in terms of programs that might already be cached. Still, I feel comfortable having a certain amount of free space available:

 

[logicearth]

...but having free memory also increases performance....

RAM used as cache is free memory. There is zero overhead over writing cached memory. Available tells you how much memory is available to programs. Available memory is the combined total of standby memory and free memory

 

[whs]

...but having free memory also increases performance....

RAM used as cache is free memory. There is zero overhead over writing cached memory. Available tells you how much memory is available to programs. Available memory is the combined total of standby memory and free memory

Exactly. The more you have in memory, the faster it goes. The free memory (light blue) is just a waste. And the cached part (dark blue) is the same as free in case more is needed for programs.

 

[seekermeister]

Perhaps both of you are correct, but I'm curious how you would respond to this statement:

Even with the latest hardware, the processing of digital pictures, videos, or computer games can often lead to longer answering times or "frozen" programs. In fact, it’s often not the lack of main memory capacity that’s at fault, but the file cache management of your Windows operating system. O&O CleverCache makes sure that the file cache is reset while the computer’s running: something that otherwise usually requires a restart of the computer. O&O CleverCache will let you continuously maintain maximum levels of performance on your computer!

O&O Software - O&O CleverCache Professional File Cache Management

This seems to imply that the performance factor doesn't have to do with the RAM itself, but with the way that Windows deals with it. Is this entirely wrong? Is it merely a sales pitch?

 

[whs]

Perhaps both of you are correct, but I'm curious how you would respond to this statement:

Even with the latest hardware, the processing of digital pictures, videos, or computer games can often lead to longer answering times or "frozen" programs. In fact, it’s often not the lack of main memory capacity that’s at fault, but the file cache management of your Windows operating system. O&O CleverCache makes sure that the file cache is reset while the computer’s running: something that otherwise usually requires a restart of the computer. O&O CleverCache will let you continuously maintain maximum levels of performance on your computer!

O&O Software - O&O CleverCache Professional File Cache Management

This seems to imply that the performance factor doesn't have to do with the RAM itself, but with the way that Windows deals with it. Is this entirely wrong? Is it merely a sales pitch?

In all due respect, that is a lot of baloney. Never mess with the OS - see my logo on the bottom, LOL.

 

[logicearth]

Perhaps both of you are correct, but I'm curious how you would respond to this statement:.....Is it merely a sales pitch?

Yes. (See bold text) Reseting the file cache does nothing, once the file is written to disk. Nor is the cache held on indefinably. Pulling information off of a product page that is designed to sell a product is not trustworthy information. You should not use that to build your argument.

 

[win7clutz]

Is hardware reserved the swap file?

 

[whs]

Is hardware reserved the swap file?

No, not at all. That is usually reserved for the BIOS. But could also be for e.g. an on-board graphics. The "swap file" (I assume you mean the paging file) is a lot bigger (size of your RAM or more) and figures as part of the OS. Run WinDirStat, then you will see it as the biggest single colored area.

 

[win7clutz]

OK thanks, it just seems like 9MB is an awful lot to reserve for the bios and the board doesn't have on-board graphics...

 

[whs]

Here is a discussion of the various possibilities. Maybe you find the one that applies to you: Hardware reserved memory? - Memory - Motherboards-Memory

 

[seekermeister]

Perhaps both of you are correct, but I'm curious how you would respond to this statement:.....Is it merely a sales pitch?

Yes. (See bold text) Reseting the file cache does nothing, once the file is written to disk. Nor is the cache held on indefinably. Pulling information off of a product page that is designed to sell a product is not trustworthy information. You should not use that to build your argument.

Since when is asking for an opinion is an argument? If I wanted to argue, I would ask you for something to support your opinion, but I will accept it as is.

 

[seekermeister]

One thought that I have been batting around, is whether it is always a good idea to eliminate hardware reserved memory? As can be see in my previous post, I have eliminated it by memory remapping, but it would seem that this would have an adverse effect on some aspect of operation...yes/no?

I have noticed that some aspects of the OS's performance on my rig is not up to par, such as something simple, like expanding the Start Menu. The menu itself pops up right away, but when going to something like the Control Panel or Games, there is a noticeable delay, both in the last pane opening and it's contents appearing. Is this because of a time factor in writing to the RAM?