You can easily increase virtual memory by following the steps below. Before going into the details, let us understand what is Virtual Memory.
What is Virtual Memory?
Virtual memory is simulated RAM. When you have used up all your RAM, your computer will shift data to an empty space on the hard drive. The computer swaps data to the hard disk and back to your RAM as needed. When you increase your virtual memory you are increasing the empty space that is reserved for your RAM overflow.
Option 1:
In Windows XP
1.Click Start, and then click
Control Panel.
2.Click
Performance and Maintenance, and then click System.
3.On the Advanced tab, under Performance, click
Settings.
4.On the Advanced tab, under
Virtual memory, click Change.
5.Under
Drive [Volume Label], click the drive that contains the paging file that you want to change.
6.Under
Paging file size for selected drive, click to
Custom size check box. You can enter the amount of memory you would like to reserve for Virtual memory by entering the initial and maximum size.
7.Click
Set
When you are prompted to restart the computer, click Yes.
Special Note: You should choose the same amount for the initial size and maximum size. This will Stop your CPU from constantly changing the paging file.
TIP: To stop your CPU from constantly changing the paging file, set the initial and maximum size to the same value. Ideally the value should be at least 1.5 times more than your physical RAM. If your computer has 512MB of RAM increase the virtual memory paging file to 1.5*512= 768
In Vista
1. Click
Start button Picture of the Start button
2. Click
Control Panel
3. Choose
System and Maintenance and then click
System.
4. In the left pane, click
Advanced system settings.
5.On the Advanced tab, under Performance, click
Settings.
6. Click the Advanced tab, and then, under Virtual memory, choose
Change.
7. Click
Custom to change the Initial size (MB) and Maximum size. See the hot tip above.
Remember to choose the drive you would like to use to increase the virtual memory. In most cases it usually your C: Drive. You can set the initial size and maximum size after clicking the Custom size check box.Remember its better to keep the Virtual memory values the same.
Also having enough available space is absolutely necessary for your virtual memory and RAM to function properly.
