Page File Question

Ded Morozh

I don't DISlike you...
Joined
16 Feb 2004
Messages
125
Just curious, is anyone on the boards running with no page file? If I had a gig of ram I probably would, but even at 512Megs I'm thinking about trying it. I haven't peaked over 300megs used in a long time.
 
What do you expect to gain? A little bit of harddisk space?
Some programs will not even start if there isn't a pagefile and you will decrease performance if Windows is forced to remove executable code from memory that you do use, instead of paging out modified pages you don't use at the moment.
 
you cannot turn the page file off, even if you disable it, it will still create and use one, it has to, it's the way the kernal is designed, search the forums m8, theres a lot of threads about paging file size's dealer is the man to ask.
 
I have managed to disable the page file, even delete it and it didn't come back, but then strange things did start happening especially when the system had been on for a long time. Well I think anyway, either way everytime I do it, ~I always end up bringing the page file back!
 
Some programs will not start without a page file. Adobe Photoshop (at version 5.0-7.0... havent' tried w/ newer versions) will not start without a 500mg page file. Page files are not bad. They are used to free up memory. If something isn't being accessed, it can be swapped to the hard drive. Your processor works the same way. It has a cache. If something isn't being used, it is swapped to main memory. Its just a multi tierd way to keep things moving smoothly.

Bottom line, Don't Fear The Page File!
 
"What do you expect to gain from deleting the pagefile?"

1). Privacy (whatever you did last is in your pagefile even if you norton erase the actual files)

2). A little faster startup and shutdown. Your pagefile is checked at start and shutdown and if you request it be wiped at shutdown for security then it has to be erased.

Should you keep it. Yes. Because you don't want to have to shutdown or loose what you are working on because your RAM got filled. Windows and apps love to waste your RAM. The more you have the more it wastes. It's designed that way.

How big should it be... We have a heated debate going on in another thread about size.
 
Privacy?

Show me one working program that can read the contents of the pagefile, I've seen older programs that could read the old 9x swap file, but none that actually could read the contents of the NT pagefile.

If you set a 0 size pagefile, memory will paged in the dll's and other space, you just wont be able to monitor it. Setting a 0 pagefile basically disables swapping but still allows for hidden paging to disk. If you do ever use up all your RAM, then what LeeJend says is true, boom, crash.

BTW, unused RAM not used RAM is wasted.
 
From what I know, you will lose performance if there is no pagefile. Also, graphical apps that require a lot of system resources will indeed need the page file so that there is a back up the temporary data passed on from the RAM.

One thing that you might like to think about (and this I got from my Networking course in Uni). Would you rather have high utilisation of bandwidth (or memory usage in this case) or low utilisation (low memory usage)?
By having a low utilisation you are in effect keeping the resources free so that when needed it could be used for other activities. Ever experienced RAM running dangerously low and all your apps take years to budge?
 
not exaclty ming

there's also a standby list, so memory is both loaded with data, and released at the same time...the standby list is one of the best features of the memory manager.

I didn't respond to this thread because yoyos post is exaclty on point, exactly correct.


without a pagefile, the exact same amount of data is paged, but when the pagefile isn't there, the os finds other files to page to...there will always be paging files, though they might not be called pagefiles, they are pagefiles never the less

when nt wants to claim and reclaim memory, it does it, you can't impede the activity...period

there is no way to reduce the amount of paging in this os, all you can do is impede the paging strategy
 
LeeJend said:
"What do you expect to gain from deleting the pagefile?".
1).
Privacy (whatever you did last is in your pagefile even if you norton erase the actual files)
a non issue for every user...you would also need to eliminate the rest of the files on your hardrive if you think there is a privacy issue with what's inside the pagefile

in addition, if anyone can get into your pagefile, and then read it, they can get into the real files that are privacy issues.

2). A little faster startup and shutdown. Your pagefile is checked at start and shutdown and if you request it be wiped at shutdown for security then it has to be erased.
I have noticed no change in start speed with or without a pagefile.
as far as wiping it on shutdown, there is no user that will benefit from wiping the pagefile on shutdown...anyone that can read the pagefile can overcome a simple overwrite of zeros.

Should you keep it. Yes. Because you don't want to have to shutdown or loose what you are working on because your RAM got filed. Windows and apps love to waste your RAM. The more you have the more it wastes. It's designed that way.
what you mean is the more memory you have, the more memory the os uses (it doesn't "waste" memory when it's usung memory)...it's designed this way becasue it's faster this way...ram sitting around doing nothing is ram that sits around and does nothing...

and that is a waste...using ram is not a waste
 
Bah, so really I may as well stay with a rediculous 1.5 gig page file managed by windows?
 
Electronic Punk said:
Bah, so really I may as well stay with a rediculous 1.5 gig page file managed by windows?
ya, that's the best choice for every user

1.5 only sounds rediculous till you understand that for every bit of memory in use, there has to be at least as much hardrive space available for that data

some users should raise it, if a user doesn't have a space issue, there is no user that should lower it

have a read of the file attached
 

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it's yours ep...I wrote it for you

speedy wanted me to clean up the code I messed up and I never got a chance to do it
 
I do remember you starting it.
Been trying to tidy up the guides on the main page.

Some of them are damn poor, with just 3 lines... saying go to Microsoft.com, it was pretty much the only section of the site I ever left to "that" admin and its horrible. Ah well, getting thru them, repairing links and images. Then I will prob decide to delete the worst of them!
 
use this version...I corrected some typose
 

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oops

I uploaded the wrong one...use this one
 

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Ok, it's sat on my desktop, I will have a quick run thru it and then get it posted :)
 
I spelled bladder wrong somewhere on that page

I spelled "blatter"

it's bladder
 

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Also Hi EP and people. I found this place again while looking through a oooollllllldddd backup. I have filled over 10TB and was looking at my collection of antiques. Any bids on the 500Mhz Win 95 fix?
Any of the SP crew still out there?
Xie wrote on Electronic Punk's profile.
Impressed you have kept this alive this long EP! So many sites have come and gone. :(

Just did some crude math and I apparently joined almost 18yrs ago, how is that possible???
hello peeps... is been some time since i last came here.
Electronic Punk wrote on Sazar's profile.
Rest in peace my friend, been trying to find you and finally did in the worst way imaginable.

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