Solved XP Mode Memory Usage - How does it all work?

[brandon22]

I recently purchased a new Dell Optiplex 780 64 bit machine running Windows 7 and I’m required to use XP Mode for a few older programs that I have. In the past week I created 2 new XP Mode Virtual’s, playing with the Memory Allocation, and then deleting those XP Mode VM’s. So with those Virtual Machines being deleted now, is some of that memory still allocated to them? I swear some of my memory is being used somewhere that I can’t explain, so I’m worried that my Windows 7 OS is still tying that memory to them even though I deleted the files. The way I deleted them was going to my Virtual Machines folder and deleting the one file in there and then the following 3 files where the Virtual Machine resided. I did this twice for the two previous XP Mode VM’s I deleted. Please, someone explain to me how the Memory Usage works for these XP Mode machines. Does it only use the memory when they’re up and running?

 

[Brink]

Hello Brandon, and welcome to Seven Forums.

Yes, the memory that you allocate for a virtual machine is only actually allocated and used when the virtual machine is running.

You can look in the Memory tab in Resource Monitor to help see what is using your memory.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

 

[brandon22]

Hello Brandon, and welcome to Seven Forums.

Yes, the memory that you allocate for a virtual machine is only actually allocated and used when the virtual machine is running.

You can look in the Memory tab in Resource Monitor to help see what is using your memory.

Hope this helps,
Shawn

Awesome, thanks Brink! That’s a big sigh of relief! Did I delete the virtual machines correctly?

 

[Brink]

You're most welcome Brandon.

Although, Windows XP Mode is normally deleted by selecting it in Programs and Features instead, if the VHD and VMCX files were deleted, then yes you deleted the virtual machine.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/17380-windows-virtual-pc-delete-virtual-machine.html

 

[brandon22]

You're most welcome Brandon.

Although, Windows XP Mode is normally deleted by selecting it in Programs and Features instead, if the VHD and VMCX files were deleted, then yes you deleted the virtual machine.

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/17380-windows-virtual-pc-delete-virtual-machine.html

Okay, after looking through that link you posted, it looks like the steps I took were pretty much the same, just in a different order. =)