now, I'm going to use this oportunity to prove to one and all without any doubt that is counterproductive to have a pagefile below the amount of ram.
and this is so simple, I'm surprised I didn't think to invoke this proof before today;
if you open taskmanager, and go to performance;
you will notice on the left, a gragh which tells pagefile useage.
now, by this time everyone knows that this gragh is potential useage, and not actual useage...there is never hardrive used before ram...it's the amount of pagefile that has a potential to be used.
ok
now, pick one of your larger programs that is launched and close it down while watching the pagefile useage gragh\
at the same time, watch the mbs of ram useage.
in most cases, you will notice that the pagefile useage will lower when you close the program down a similar figure to the ram that you are no longer using for the program....
ha...sometimes, the pagefile useage will actually lower even more then the amount of ram you are using for the program!!! this will be for the working set which in sophisticated programs will be larger then the ram being used, (and thus, you need a bigger pagefile then ram, not a lower pagefile then ram)
and there it is
simple proof that anyone can see for themselfs, without theory...actual pracitcal application and implications involved with a proper running vm os
xp wants to create a pagefile address for every bit of ram that you are using.(at least 1 address area, and possibly more for the rest of the working set, and if you manage to use the majority of ram installed)
if you plan on using all of your ram, xp needs to create an address for every bit of ram in use
one gig of ram being used, one gig or more of pagefile useage
too simple isn't it
if you don't plan on using all of your ram, you have worthless ram, and you don't need a proper pagelfile...same thing as having 80 gig harddrive, and not using all of it...same thing
right in your face proof that you should never have a smaller pagefile then you have an amount of ram....1.5 at least is prudent
if there is not enough address area for ram, the excellant memory management that everybody says xp has is circumvented...very simple isn't it
the more ram you need, the bigger the pagefile you need, not the smaller the pagefile you need...if you want your ram used as efficiently as possible
ta dahhh