Low memory error. Most of the Page File needs to be on C:?

[mb1280]

I have two 160 GB drives, C: and D:, and 2 GB of RAM

Win 8 is on C:

I read that if you put most of the Page File on another drive, like D:, that frees up C: to just use it for the OS, and your system will be faster.

I don't know if there is any difference, but I didn't notice anything at all by doing this in Win XP. I had it set at:

C: . . . Initial size (MB) . . . 247 - 247
D: . . . Maximum size (MB) . . . 1800 - 1800

When I upgraded to Win 8, I tried this also, and was getting a low memory error. Occasionally, it would close a program I was using without asking.

In Win 8, the Page File settings are located at:

Control Panel / System / Advanced system settings / Advanced tab - Performance - Settings / Advance tab - Virtual memory - Change /

Recommended: 2047 MB

. . . initially I had it the same as in XP, and was getting the low memory error with:

C: . . . Initial size (MB) . . . 247 - 247
D: . . . Maximum size (MB) . . . 1800 - 1800

So I changed it so that most is on C: now, and I haven't noticed the error:

C: . . . Initial size (MB) . . . 1700 - 1700
D: . . . Maximum size (MB) . . . 347 - 347

Does Win 8 need to have most of the Page File on C:? How do you know? Is this indicated somewhere?

 

[cluberti]

If Windows 8 is recommending 2GB, that would mean you have 2GB of RAM installed?

 

[mb1280]

Yes, 2 GB of DDR2 is installed.

The Page File is 2047 MB, which is another 2 GB.

 

[cluberti]

As long as the paging file is on a physical disk attached to the system, Windows will use it without issue. However, the "faster" bit is a bit blown out of proportion, unless you have a really slow physical disk. Also, if both C:\ and D:\ are on the same physical disk, it will make very little difference where you put it as well. Unless you have a very small disk, or the first physical disk is very slow, it would be best to leave your paging file settings to "System managed".

 

[mb1280]

They're two separate physical drives.

What's considered to be a really slow physical disk?

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

What I have . . .

C: is
SAMSUNG HD160JJ ATA Device
Manufacturer SAMSUNG
Business Unit/Brand Desktop
Heads 16
Cylinders 16,383
SATA type SATA-II 3.0Gb/s
Device type Fixed
ATA Standard ATA/ATAPI-7
Features S.M.A.R.T.
Transfer Mode SATA II
Interface SATA
Capacity 149GB

D: is
ST3160815AS ATA Device
Manufacturer Seagate
Form Factor 3.5"
Heads 16
Cylinders 16,383
SATA type SATA-II 3.0Gb/s
Device type Fixed
ATA Standard ATA/ATAPI-7
Features S.M.A.R.T., NCQ
Transfer Mode SATA II
Interface SATA
Capacity 149GB

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

I thought I read that it's good to make it a static size page file, that increases speed.

Seems like it would be faster utilizing one drive for the OS and the other for the page file, guess I should have looked to see if there was a study done on this or not, and what the results were.

 

[cluberti]

There are lots of "tweaks" that can improve performance, but again, most of those are relics of the long past when a 7200RPM hard disk with decent performance was for the rich an famous. Most accesses to the paging file by Windows are reads versus writes, especially during heavy disk access times (like boot/logon), so again, I'd recommend using the system managed option. Windows will create the right size paging file depending on your system's usage patterns, and on the most logical disk. Tweaking the paging file nowadays is best left to people with 16+GB RAM who need to reduce disk space usage, versus any performance-related reasons.

As to disk speed/performance, both of those disks you are showing should be plenty fast enough to leave the paging file alone.

 

[mb1280]

System managed page file / auto / static

Three choices that I see, please see screenshots:

page file 1.jpg
Both C: and D: System managed
. . . It recommends a 2 GB page file on both drives, variable size
. . . Why does it say 2047 instead of 2048?

page file 2.jpg
[check] Automatically manage paging file size for all drives
. . . It recommends only a 2 GB page file on C:, variable size
. . . It removes any page file on D:
. . . I think I noticed a slow down in performance with this setting, the mouse disappeared for 10 sec while it was doing something

page file 3.jpg
I set a static 2 GB page file on both C: and D:
. . . It seems fast - I'm going to try it on this settings for a while.

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Check out this article:

Manage Virtual Memory in Windows 8
Maximum size of the page file that administrators can manually configure can be expanded up to four times of physical memory (RAM).
Manage Virtual Memory in Windows 8 | Technology Blog - How to Guides,Tips and News

Four times my physical memory = 4 x 2 GB = 8 GB . . . I have it set at 2 x 2047 MB = 2 x 1.999023 = 3.998 GB . . . which is less than 8 GB - I will go with what Win 8 recommends at this point.

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This page says the tweak works, to put the page file on the non-OS drive, Published 10/11/12
HTG Explains: What is the Windows Page File and Should You Disable It?

From the comments:

docBrian
The paging.sys file is used by the Windows implementation of virtual memory. It’s similar to the “swapfile” used by UNIX/LINUX systems to implement virtual memory. You DO NOT want to disable the paging file.

Here’s what you should do to maximize performance:

1. Add a high speed second non-system drive to your system. Ideally, this should be an SSD drive. Alternatively, this could be a multi-spindle RAID 0 array.
2. Format the drive.
3. Create a contiguous paging file on the second non-system drive.
4. Use the “Custom size” option to set the initial size and maximum size of the paging file to the same values. Start with the size recommended by Windows. You may find that a smaller size works for you without sacrificing performance. Or you may may need a larger size, especially if you are working with programs that benefit from lots of RAM, such as Adobe Photoshop. Empirical tuning of the swap file (pagefile.sys) requires minimizing the “page faults” generated by the OS during memory-intensive operations.
5. Restart the system and experiment with different pagefile sizes.

You can never have too large a pagefile; the OS will simply use what it needs. But if your pagefile is too small, performance will suffer, and you may experience kernel panics (BSOD).

I’m a professional engineer, and have worked as a kernel engineer on SMP UNIX workstations. So I know what I’m talking about.

 

[mb1280]

Screenshots

Screenshots of my page file settings

I have 2 GB of RAM, and two physical drives.

I have it set for a static 2 GB page file on C: . . . and another static 2 GB page file on D:

Supposedly, I could have a page file of up to 4 times the amount of my physical RAM - 8 GB . . . but the dialogue box recommends only up to 4 GB max.

 

[slurp812]

More memory would be the best answer. I doubt there would be much if any performance difference between manual and system managed. Might eliminate errors, but the best bet in a 2 gig machine is to add ram. My $280 laptop has 3 gigs.

 

[Narayan]

I would recommend you to change your Page file size to 4096 MB For both C:\ and D:\ drive........
If that also doesn't work then you should upgrade your RAM to 4GB and reinstall Windows to 64-bit....
Here is one:-
Corsair Memory

Hope it will work..........

 

[mikiep]

I read a lot about page files at Microsoft. Win 8 should have minimum of 400mb on C for mini dumps. It should complain if less. Windows 8 will use the page file on the least busy drive and/or the fastest drive automatically with some best guess math analytical decision.

You might want to search and download the sysinternals/Microsoft 'Process Explorer'. With it you can see what your peak total memory usage has been for your login session. That might enlighten you to if you need additional ram and how much. Vew / System Information ,,, memory tab... Commit Change Peak = the first column, the first peak number.

PS; Microsoft pages say max setting on paging is 3 x ram. Probably if set 4x, its limited automatically to 3x max.

I'm old and forget things but I seem to be able to remember that dang file takes up too much room when you have too much ram.

 

[OldMX]

Old and slow disks are old and slow, try using some more recent drives and let windows manage the paging.

 

[mb1280]

System managed put it on a Custom size by itself?

I put both hard drives on "System managed size," and have not had the Low Memory error since that.

I just looked, and see that it changed it to a Custom size by itself, 1/2 and 1/2 on each drive! Fine.

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I'm using Win 8 Pro 32-bit, with 2 GB of memory.

Memory Limits for Windows Releases
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa366778(VS.85).aspx

I'm not sure it's a good idea to say, "Just add more memory." Reason - I read:

When using PC2-4200 the maximum is 4GB.
The video card is 512MB, and that is included in the total your computer can handle. More than 4GB can lead to corrupt data.

But I have also read:

Upon startup, your system calculates the amount of memory needed for these devices; if you haven't maxxed out the memory in your system, it's invisible to you, and all your physical memory (the installed RAM) is available for use. However if you've maxxed out the DRAM in your system, this amount will be deducted from your physical memory, so you can't use 100% of your DRAM.
http://www.crucial.com/support/recognize_memory.aspx

So what's the truth? I risk getting corrupt data, or, Windows will figure it out?

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Below is all the other info I've looked at, to figure out if it would be a good idea or not to add more memory.

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Add more memory to your computer
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/setup/addmemory.aspx

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http://www.ec.kingston.com/ecom/configurator_new/modelsinfo.asp?id=1&SysID=23722&mfr=HP%2FCompaq&model=Business+Desktop+dc7600+SFF%2FMinitower&search_type=&root=us&LinkBack=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.kingston.com&Sys=23722-HP%2FCompaq-Business+Desktop+dc7600+SFF%2FMinitower&distributor=0&submit1=Search

This system supports both DDR2-533 (KTH-XW4200AN/xx) and DDR2-667 (KTH-XW4300/xx) memory. These can be mixed, however when mixed they will default to DDR2-533.

If 4GB is installed, the recognized memory may be reduced to 3.5GB or less (depending on system configuration and memory allocation).
The video card is 512MB, and that is included in the total your computer can handle. More than 4GB can lead to corrupt data.

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http://www.crucial.com/store/listparts.aspx?model=dc7600%20Series%20Convertible%20Minitower&pl=HP%20-%20Compaq&cat=RAM

Number of Slots:
Slot 1 Slot 2 Slot 3 Slot 4
Each memory slot can hold DDR2 PC2-5300 with a maximum of 1GB per slot.*

*Not to exceed manufacturer supported memory.

Graphics Support: PCI Express x16
Maximum Memory: 4096MB
Slots: 4 (2 banks of 2)
Standard Memory: 128, 256, or 512MB removable
USB Support: 2.x Compliant

Although the memory can be installed one module at a time, the best performance comes from using matched pairs of modules.

When using PC2-5300 parts the maximum memory is 2GB.
I have 2GB

When using PC2-4200 the maximum is 4GB.
The video card is 512MB, and that is included in the total your computer can handle. More than 4GB can lead to corrupt data.

Q: Will my system recognize the maximum upgrade?
A: Possibly
How much memory your Windows OS will recognize depends on which version of Windows you are running.
32-bit versions of Windows will see (and utilize) only 3GB or 3.5GB.
To utilize more memory, install a 64-bit version of your OS.
More information about OS memory maximums can be found at . . . http://www.crucial.com/support/recognize_memory.aspx

Q: What memory goes into my computer, and will a faster speed be backward-compatible?
A: DDR2 memory with support for DDR2 PC2-5300 speeds.

Q: How much memory can my computer handle?
A: 4096MB.
Adding the maximum amount of memory will improve performance and help extend the useful life of your system as you run increasingly demanding software applications in the future.

Q: Do I have to install matching pairs?
A: No.
No, you can install modules one at a time, and you can mix different densities of modules in your computer.
But if your computer supports dual-channel memory configurations (it does), you should install in identical pairs (preferably in kits) for optimal performance.

Q: Does my computer support dual-channel memory?
A: Yes.
To benefit from the performance advantages offered by dual-channel systems, you should install memory in identical pairs.
Installing a kitted pair is the best way to ensure that your modules are identical, right down to the chip count.

Everything You Need to Know About Dual Channel
http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/133

Q: Does my computer support ECC memory?
A: No.
Your system does not support ECC.
Because ECC and non-ECC modules should not be mixed within a system, install the same type of modules that are already in your system.