Ok. I will cover every part that is incorrect.
This is incorrect. Virtual Memory is the virtualization of memory addresses. Each process sees it's own set of memory addresses, on a 32-bit system there's 4G worth. 2G is reserved by the NT kernel and the other 2G is available for the process to use.
However the pagefile is a backing store for data so memory can be freed for other uses. Anything that is altered needs to be paged to the paging file. However most things can be paged back to their original files, which is executables, sahred libraries etc..
RAM + PF does not = amount of Virtual Memory. There is always 4GB worth of Virtual memory adress space for each process.
You are partly correct, but the pagefile is NOT the only file involved in paging. Executable's and shared library data are aslo involved with paging.
As I said above RAM+PF is NOT the amount OF Virtual Memory. Each 32-bit process has 4GB of virtual memory.
The pagefile should be left System managed. Windows manages it very well.
Setting the mininum and max th same is also not reccomended as the pageing file has no room to grow. If you are worried about pagefile fragmentation just set the min high enough that the pagefile will not need to resize itself. This gives you the saem benefit you speak of for a fixed pagefile, but the pageingfile has room to grow if needed.
Also the only thing I see that a fragmented pagefile would cause degraded performance is because since the pagingfile cannot be moved it may cause fragmentation of other files. However fragmentatiopn of the pagefile will not decrese performance when paging to and from the paging file as the paging file is not read as one whole file (from one end to another) instead it is read a few tens of a KB here, a few tens of a KB there etc.
This is incorrect. NT was designed with the assumtion that there is a backing store on disk. As I said before the pagingfile is NOt the only file involved with paging. So most things will be paged back to what it was paged from. However when it comes to things that have no original file NT has to have a place to put it if it needs the extra memory. This place has to be the pagingfile. So anything modified in memmory needs a backign store and this has to be the pagingfile since there is no where else to put it.
NT needs the pagefile that even if you disable it NT will create a 20MB pageing file without yo8u knowing.
Incorrect use of the term Virtual Memory and as I said above NT was designed with the assumption everything has a backign store which is the pagefile. Also as I alreadfy said a 20B pagefile will be created and the paging file is not the only file involved with paging. To minimize PF activity the best you can do is get more RAM. If you have enough RAM that you think you can disable the pgaefile anyway the pagefile is most likley not used much anyway, but many apps create what are called "pagefile backed sections" and will therefore fail miserably if you don't have a pagefile.
No because the paging file is not the only file involved in paging and NT creates a 20MB paging file if one is not alreadfy created.
From what I satted above you should be able to come to the conclusion that there is a reason there was no affect.
The PF should never be disabled, but setting it to a small size is not a bad idea. I would reccomend leaving it System managed, but the min size should be high enough that the the amount of PF actually being used does not excede the mininum.
If you have enough RAM pagefile activity will be minimal, so position of the pagefile is kind of useless, but putting the pagefile ona seperate drive an controller is not a bad idea as thereretically it should help. Many people here however do have plenty of RAm and in there case it is best left on the same HDD.
I also have heard many people reccomend to put the pagefile to the front of the drive if you only have 1. Well from th other info I told you you know that th pagefile is not the onyl file involved with paging. These other files most likley are not in the front of the drive so the head will be jumping all over the place.
I think I let you know everything that was incorrect
A full memory dump is NOT needed as already said.
Sorry if you thought I was being a jerk about it.
Then you should remove parts abou8 disabling the pagefile, unless you say do NOT diable it.
There is a memory subsystem called Virtual Memory Management (VMM). Virtual Memory (VM) size=RAM+PF
This is incorrect. Virtual Memory is the virtualization of memory addresses. Each process sees it's own set of memory addresses, on a 32-bit system there's 4G worth. 2G is reserved by the NT kernel and the other 2G is available for the process to use.
However the pagefile is a backing store for data so memory can be freed for other uses. Anything that is altered needs to be paged to the paging file. However most things can be paged back to their original files, which is executables, sahred libraries etc..
RAM + PF does not = amount of Virtual Memory. There is always 4GB worth of Virtual memory adress space for each process.
Paging is when data is being transferred between RAM and the PF
You are partly correct, but the pagefile is NOT the only file involved in paging. Executable's and shared library data are aslo involved with paging.
To measure your VM usage, give your system a workout; play some games, open large files, whatever you would do in a normal day. In fact this is probably better measured after your system has run for a day or so. Then open Task Manager and go to the Performance Tab and look at the Commit Charge (K) box. Total is the total amount of VM your using. Peak is the maximum VM usage since you booted the computer. Limit is your VM limit.
As I said above RAM+PF is NOT the amount OF Virtual Memory. Each 32-bit process has 4GB of virtual memory.
To size the PF, take your Peak and subtract your Physical Memory Total (RAM). For example, on my work laptop, I have a Peak of ~650MB and 512MB (~500) RAM, so that's ~150MB. In order to run everything I have loaded at once, I would need a minimum of 150MB PF. However, I want room to breath. If I loaded just one more thing, I would receive an out of memory error message, and would have to close something to open something new. So you should increase your Peak by about 25% first, this will account for your breathing room. OK, so (650*1.25)-500=~300. I should have a 300MB PF on this system.
The pagefile should be left System managed. Windows manages it very well.
If you require a PF, you should set the minimum and maximum size to the same value. If you set a range, the PF can grow, but this will cause file fragments in the PF. The built in defragmenter cannot correct fragments in the PF, only 3rd party software can. The more fragments in your PF, the slower it will operate. Also, if you sized it properly, your PF will never need to grow.
Setting the mininum and max th same is also not reccomended as the pageing file has no room to grow. If you are worried about pagefile fragmentation just set the min high enough that the pagefile will not need to resize itself. This gives you the saem benefit you speak of for a fixed pagefile, but the pageingfile has room to grow if needed.
Also the only thing I see that a fragmented pagefile would cause degraded performance is because since the pagingfile cannot be moved it may cause fragmentation of other files. However fragmentatiopn of the pagefile will not decrese performance when paging to and from the paging file as the paging file is not read as one whole file (from one end to another) instead it is read a few tens of a KB here, a few tens of a KB there etc.
Now what if (Peak*1.25)-RAM is negative? Well, that means you don't need a PF, and you disable the PF.
This is incorrect. NT was designed with the assumtion that there is a backing store on disk. As I said before the pagingfile is NOt the only file involved with paging. So most things will be paged back to what it was paged from. However when it comes to things that have no original file NT has to have a place to put it if it needs the extra memory. This place has to be the pagingfile. So anything modified in memmory needs a backign store and this has to be the pagingfile since there is no where else to put it.
NT needs the pagefile that even if you disable it NT will create a 20MB pageing file without yo8u knowing.
What I'm telling you is, if this calculation is negative, the system does not need the extra memory from the PF for VM. There is enough RAM to supply all the VM needs. If new data is loaded, the system with a PF would be paging memory to disk, one without will not. Now, when the system is paging, the HDD is very active, and this slows down your machine. If this happens, say during the middle of a game, your frames/second will likely take a hit. On slower systems (like this laptop I gave in the example above) you can really feel paging because of the slower HDD. Also note, this doesn't mean your disabling VMM, just the size of the memory available to VMM. This means paging will still happen, it just won't be transferred to the HDD.
Incorrect use of the term Virtual Memory and as I said above NT was designed with the assumption everything has a backign store which is the pagefile. Also as I alreadfy said a 20B pagefile will be created and the paging file is not the only file involved with paging. To minimize PF activity the best you can do is get more RAM. If you have enough RAM that you think you can disable the pgaefile anyway the pagefile is most likley not used much anyway, but many apps create what are called "pagefile backed sections" and will therefore fail miserably if you don't have a pagefile.
This may be where some performance gains could be measured. If the system doesn't have to page memory from RAM to the PF (because the PF is disabled), then something like loading a game (or a level in a game) might load faster.
No because the paging file is not the only file involved in paging and NT creates a 20MB paging file if one is not alreadfy created.
It should be noted, while overall system test (like 3Dmark) do not show an increase in performance, they don't show a decrease either. I suspect this has to do with how and when paging happens. These programs aren't doing anything to cause paging while the system is being tested. Well, you can't test a tweak to the page file, when the system isn't paging. As users, however, we do experience paging...
From what I satted above you should be able to come to the conclusion that there is a reason there was no affect.
YMMV with disabling the page file. If you have a negative figure in the calculation of your page file size, and don't feel comfortable with disabling the PF, set it to a small amount like 100MB.
The PF should never be disabled, but setting it to a small size is not a bad idea. I would reccomend leaving it System managed, but the min size should be high enough that the the amount of PF actually being used does not excede the mininum.
Now, the only thing left is the PF's location. Like many things, this can vary a lot depending on the number of drives and controllers in your system. In general you want it on the fastest drive/controller available, if the speed of two drives is similar, put it on the secondary drive. If the secondary drive is slower, it's better to keep it on the same drive as the OS. In multi drive/controller setups it can be very complicated.
If you have enough RAM pagefile activity will be minimal, so position of the pagefile is kind of useless, but putting the pagefile ona seperate drive an controller is not a bad idea as thereretically it should help. Many people here however do have plenty of RAm and in there case it is best left on the same HDD.
I also have heard many people reccomend to put the pagefile to the front of the drive if you only have 1. Well from th other info I told you you know that th pagefile is not the onyl file involved with paging. These other files most likley are not in the front of the drive so the head will be jumping all over the place.
If I left anything out, or your notice anything that's incorrect, let me know.
I think I let you know everything that was incorrect
EDIT: As noted by Ranma_Sao, you cannot obtain a full memory dump if your page file is less that your total RAM. When the system dumps, it creates a file on the HDD with the entire contents of your RAM. The data in the dump files is very usefull when troubleshooting BSODs, with the proper tools. Ranma_Sao has offered many times in the past to diagnose these, so at lease be aware of this. Some BSODs prevent you from booting into windows to make changes to the PF, so this can be important. In other cases, where windows is booting, but still generating a BSOD at a later time, you could increase the PF size to get this information.
A full memory dump is NOT needed as already said.
Please feel free to correct me, I'll update anything that's incorrect. Don't be a jerk about it.
Sorry if you thought I was being a jerk about it.
This article is *NOT* for disabling the PF. I though I made that clear.
Then you should remove parts abou8 disabling the pagefile, unless you say do NOT diable it.