Running Low On Virtual Memory ??

[djm1k0]

recently i notice that when i am downloading, i get a message that says my system is running low on vitual memory. I don't understand what virtual memory is or if it's something i can get more of. I have 1gig of RAM and i have 120gig hard drive. Windows xp home sp1 Can someone explain to me what virtual memory is and what i may do to resolve this memory problem.


thanks.

[Lord_Infamous]

virtual memory is HD space set aside that acts as ram. vitual memory is needed when you dont have enough ram. the setback is that virtual memory runs slow.

You should have enough ram with even 512 mb. something is defiantly wrong...

[Smidley]

Check your virtual memory settings by right-clicking on "My Computer," select "Properties," select the "Advanced" tab, click the "Settings" button under "Performance," select the "Advanced" tab, look at the value for "Total paging file size for all drives:" and report back here.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lord_Infamous

something is defiantly wrong...

Agreed.

[djm1k0]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smidley

Check your virtual memory settings by right-clicking on "My Computer," select "Properties," select the "Advanced" tab, click the "Settings" button under "Performance," select the "Advanced" tab, look at the value for "Total paging file size for all drives:" and report back here.


Agreed.

thanks guys i will check this when i get home and report back my findings. it seems somthing may not be set right because i'm sure i have enough memory.

[djm1k0]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smidley

Check your virtual memory settings by right-clicking on "My Computer," select "Properties," select the "Advanced" tab, click the "Settings" button under "Performance," select the "Advanced" tab, look at the value for "Total paging file size for all drives:" and report back here.


Agreed.

ok so i was mistaken i have 640mb of ram however thats shouyld still be enough, the Total paging file size for all drives says 192mb which i'm sure is not a good sign so what do i do next ?

[Smidley]

Go back to the window where you saw how much the page file size was and click the "Change" button. Select your main hard drive (120 GB) from the list, choose "Custom size," and set both initial and maximum size to 1024 and press set. Click "OK" until all of the settings windows are closed and restart your computer.

Some may disagree with a static 1024 MB page file, but you have plenty of hard drive space, so it doesn't really matter.

[djm1k0]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smidley

Go back to the window where you saw how much the page file size was and click the "Change" button. Select your main hard drive (120 GB) from the list, choose "Custom size," and set both initial and maximum size to 1024 and press set. Click "OK" until all of the settings windows are closed and restart your computer.

Some may disagree with a static 1024 MB page file, but you have plenty of hard drive space, so it doesn't really matter.

thank you. i think this resolve my problem. I appreciate the help !!

[Smidley]

[Adela]

Hello Smidley and Lord_Infamous, since this thread seems to have resolved, may I intrude with a similar problem?

Smidley, I too get rather frequently the "Low virtual memory..." msg. I followed your kind instructions to djm1k0 by going to "Total paging file size for all drives:" and it says 208MB. (Strange because I have only 128MB that came with the computer when I bought it).

Does this mean I have low RAM too? I've been looking for more RAM but because my comp. is 7 years old I'm hoping to spend only around $20 to $30 as I don't know how much longer it will last, although outside of this, it works perfectly!

While at it, could tell me whether the following RAMS, based on configurations I got from ram stores, are good enough?:

This is what was configured and recommended:
PC100 SDRAM DIMM 168 Pin, 32 x 64, CL2, Unbuffered, Non-ECC, 3.3 Volt, Low Density (16x8) 16 chip.

This is my computer:
Dell Dimension XPS T450

These are 2 out of tons of others I had to burn my eyes on to find the proper RAM at an affordable price:

KAHLON Part #: KDEL786, $29 free ship:http://www.kahlon.com/itemdetailpg.asp?itemid=29840


ALLMEMORYUPGRADES.COM (Micron?) $37+5+ $42http://www.allmemoryupgrades.com/pc100sdram.html

Thanks ever so much for any suggestions. Adela

[Smidley]

Virtual memory (page file) resides on your hard drive, and it is fairly independent of your RAM. To avoid the message, simply follow my previous instructions and set your page file to 512 or 1024 MB depending on how much hard drive space you're willing to sacrifice.

128MB of RAM is not very much, and this may also be contributing to the low virtual memory message. If you're looking to add some more, I would definitely stick with Newegg.