Virtual memory?

[Shep]

What is virtual memory

My work PC has just anounced that my virtual memory is full and it is increasing its size. Never had this message before? The whole PC seems to have slowed up after I was emailed a number of pieces of artwork just an hour or so back, could this be linked?

What is it, can the space be managed somehow, what gets stored there etc.

Reasonably simple please, cos I am

Shep

 

[shugie]

What is virtual memory

My work PC has just anounced that my virtual memory is full and it is increasing its size. Never had this message before? The whole PC seems to have slowed up after I was emailed a number of pieces of artwork just an hour or so back, could this be linked?

What is it, can the space be managed somehow, what gets stored there etc.

Reasonably simple please, cos I am

Shep

Virtual memory is a chunk of disk space windows sets aside to keep stuff in that won't fit in the physical memory of the computer.

Have you got lots of image files in memory? Solution might be to work on fewer files at one time, Windows swaps from real memory to disk and back a lot and this makes things slow.

Or put more memory in the machine, is it an old machine, I might have some spare you can have?

 

[cookie]

virtual memory uses the Swap File on your hard disc. windows manages this space (though you can do it manually).

it sounds like the pics you acquired were rather large & the RAM physical Memory can't manage them properly.

so...

more RAM or smaller files, i reckon.

 

[Shep]

Virtual memory is a chunk of disk space windows sets aside to keep stuff in that won't fit in the physical memory of the computer.

Have you got lots of image files in memory? Solution might be to work on fewer files at one time, Windows swaps from real memory to disk and back a lot and this makes things slow.

Or put more memory in the machine, is it an old machine, I might have some spare you can have?

Thats starts to make sense, i'm not sure how you can tell how many images I have where? but i guess you are saying my RAM is insufficient os the PC is putting harddisk space aside for me to work on, is ram emptied every time the pc is switched off if it is I can't see how i've filled it. How do I check to see how much I have installed?

Sorry if these are daft questions

Shep

 

[cookie]

is ram emptied every time the pc is switched off if it is I can't see how i've filled it. How do I check to see how much I have installed?

Sorry if these are daft questions

Shep

yes, RAM is cleared when turned off. there are also progs that will do it while the pc is running, but i wouldn't bother with them.


right click on my computer, click Properties, and it should be listed in the box that appears.

when windows is working from RAM it is much faster than when it tries shuttling the info back and forth from your hard disc. you may well be able to hear the disc struggling to keep up.

 

[shugie]

Thats starts to make sense, i'm not sure how you can tell how many images I have where? but i guess you are saying my RAM is insufficient os the PC is putting harddisk space aside for me to work on, is ram emptied every time the pc is switched off if it is I can't see how i've filled it. How do I check to see how much I have installed?

Sorry if these are daft questions

Shep

Which windows version are you using, and what is the make/model number of the machine?

 

[Shep]

It says I have 480mb

Is there anywhere that shows me now much of that i'm using?

Shep

 

[Shep]

Which windows version are you using, and what is the make/model number of the machine?

Windows XP HE, service pack 2

The PC was made at SIMS and Chips in Winklebury so i'm unsure on what memory is fitted

I'll have to give them a ring he's a decent sort

Shep

 

[shugie]

It says I have 480mb

Is there anywhere that shows me now much of that i'm using?

Shep

Press ctrl-alt-del then select task manager, then the performance tab, and you can see what memory is being used for with processes.

Sounds a bit light on memory though, I'd see if the guy who made it can tell you what the RAM is he fitted, and if there is space for some more. It's as cheap as chips, so although I might have some I'm not using, he might sell you it for not a lot anyway. Best option if he supplied the machine. Try a total of 1GB to start.

 

[ianboydsnr]

I use these for memory, they scan your putor and tell you what you need

http://www.crucial.com/uk/

 

[Clive]

It says I have 480mb

That is an odd size

It may be that your PC is quite old and won't take any more RAM. Like shugie I have various chips kicking around from old boxes - let us know the results of the memory scan at http://www.crucial.com/uk/

 

[cookie]

That is an odd size

even if some RAM has been annexed by an onboard video card, that is still an odd size

 

[Shep]

480mb thats what it says, the pc's are 5 or 6 years old I bought a couple at the time.

Shep

 

[Shep]

According to the crucial scan I have 1gb and room for another 1gb.

I wonder if I have a problem with windows accessing the whole 1gb that's why it's saying I only have 480mb?


Shep

 

[shugie]

According to the crucial scan I have 1gb and room for another 1gb.

I wonder if I have a problem with windows accessing the whole 1gb that's why it's saying I only have 480mb?


Shep

Possibly, there used to be some strange setting in the BIOS about memory on some older machines. But if you use the ctrl-alt-del, then task manager, then performance tab should show a box, top right, for "physical memory".

What numbers are in this box?

 

[shugie]

Also in task manger, if you click on processes, then on the mem usage column, it will order the processes according to the amount of memory they use. Then you can see if something new has appeared to hog the memory, although why that should be is not clear.

 

[Shep]

Physical memory

Total 490992
Available 141732
System cache 123852

 

[Deleted account 220427002]

better than the http://www.crucial.com/uk/ one, it makes mistakes

http://www.filehippo.com/download_cpuz/

 

[shugie]

Physical memory

Total 490992
Available 141732
System cache 123852

Rather implies you have 512MB rather than the 1GB suggested by the crucial scan. I'd take the top off the machine and see what's fitted, and what space there is for more memory.

1GB is ok, unless you use large image files, then 2GB might keep things ticking over at a decent speed.