What are virtual memory settings?    

Unlimited Virtual Memory with Paging File Modifications

Optimize Speed and Performance Clean-up junk files Improve PC Security Monitor Active Processes for threats Reclaim loads of memory from duplicate files (Windows® 7, Windows Vista and Windows XP compatibility with 32-bit and 64-bit Operating System)

Virtual memory is a great tool that a Windows operating system uses to give you almost unlimited memory on your computer without having to go and buy lots of RAM. The downside to this is that using too much virtual memory can cause serious performance problems and slow down the system. You can minimize this effect by getting into virtual memory and adjusting the settings to optimize performance.

Virtual Memory

Virtual memory is basically a collection of RAM images that are stored on the hard drive in order to free up RAM space. Many users don’t have enough RAM to run all of the applications they want at the same time. Running several programs at once can quickly eat up most of the RAM your computer has available – if there were no virtual memory, you would have to close one application in order to be able to open up another.

With virtual memory, the computer looks for parts of RAM that haven’t been used recently and then copies that information onto the hard drive. This frees up RAM space so that you can use it to run programs. As it copies RAM to the hard drive, it allows your system to operate as if it has an unlimited amount of memory, and is much cheaper than adding RAM.

The virtual memory stores the RAM images on the hard drive in a file called a page file. In Windows systems, page files have a .SWP extension. The operating system moves back and forth from the page file on the hard drive and the RAM. Because of this back and forth and the fact that the speed of the read/write on the hard drive is slower than RAM, using virtual memory too often will slow down your performance.

Virtual memory works best when you have enough RAM to run the applications you use most often, and then use the virtual memory as a backup solution.

Virtual Memory Settings

Because the computer is always adding to and removing information from the page files in virtual memory, they are constantly growing and shrinking. This movement can cause files to become fragmented and slow down the machine. By getting into the virtual memory settings, there are many ways you can optimize performance of the computer and allow you to use RAM and virtual memory in the most efficient way.

Virtual memory settings allow you to set the minimum and maximum size for the page files. Windows sets the page file size by default at 1.5 times the installed RAM, but depending on your situation, changing those defaults may improve your system performance. You may also get a message saying that your computer is running low on virtual memory.

You can get into the virtual memory by following these steps:

1.    Go to Start and then choose Control Panel.

2.    Choose System and then Advanced.

3.    Choose Performance and then Settings.