Virtual Memory

[hardy49]

I have been getting a message saying my virtual memory is too low.I went to the Microsoft site and followed instructions to raise the figure there,although I have to admit I did not really know what I was doing !!

What is Virtual Memory and how can I help to make more space for it ?

[ll_billym]

Virtual memory is space on your hard disk that is reserved as a temporary store for system and application data.

By default Windoes manages this automatically for you so there is normally no need to change the figures.

The most likely cause in your case is that your hard disk is almost full and therefore Windows has had to decrease the virtual memory space.

In Windows Explorer, right click on your C: drive -> Properties and check how much free space you have, if it's under 3GB then you will need to delete some of your data/music/video files (or copy them to CD/DVD/Flash drive) to free up space.

[ll_billym]

Should have said "Move" them to CD, etc.

Copying them will leave the original file in place and not free up disk space.

[hardy49]

Many thanks

[rojash]

The best way of getting rid of virtual memory problems is to increase the size of your real memory. This will also give you a faster and more responsive machine.

Go to http://crucial.com/ and click the "Scan my system" button. That will tell you what kind of memory you have, and what your upgrade options are.

[fo3nix]

Just to explain a touch more:

All your programs and documents and everything else is stored on the hard drive in your machine. It's a physical device with spinning discs, similar to an old record player.

The issue is that it's very slow (in computer terms). So, you have extra memory in your machine, called RAM, which is electronic, and works far faster.

The next issue is that as things (like Windows, or your programs) are loaded from your hard drive to RAM when you start and use your computer, your RAM fills up. Often, you'll have enough RAM to use and keep bits of it free to load extra programs into memory --- you might want to use a music player while typing a letter, for example.

To make sure you can always do things with your computer, most operating systems like Windows keep a bit of your hard drive locked up so that if you run out of RAM, it can fall back on this space. This is called virtual memory. It's slower than RAM, but it might help you if you're using lots of RAM.

So usually, people come on here and say that they've had a low virtual memory warning. This is usually indicative of not having quite enough RAM to store all your data and programs in at any one time, which is why rojash suggests buying more RAM (it's cheap right now), and it's quite easy to fit.

As a quick fix, you can increase the amount of virtual memory you have (i.e., increase the amount of your hard drive that's locked away to be used in case of low RAM emergencies). This is what the Microsoft site instructed you to do. It's just better to get more RAM, and let Windows manage your virtual memory like it did before.

[smith134]

Generally this type of message comes due to low amount of system RAM. You need to increase your RAM.
However you can to get rid of this error, you would have to increased you virtual memory.

> Open the System Properties Window
> Go to the Advanced tab
> Open the Performance settings
> Go to the Advanced tab
> In the Virtual Memory area, select Change
> See here: http://stevestechguide.com/pictures/Virtual-Me mory-Paging-File.jpg

[hardy49]

Thank you all very much - you have been very helpful