Hi Brad,
Changing the status from Desktop to Network server gives more caching
throughout, thereby increasing performance.
The Virtual Memory settings control the Windows swap file size--a file that
basically provides a portion of your hard drive as a place for storing items
temporarily while the system is doing another memory-based task. That is an
over-simplification, but you get the general idea.
Sometimes you'll need to set these items yourself, rather than letting
Windows decide the swap file's size and location. One reason I had to
change the management was when using a CD burner; the continual re-sizing of
the swap file during a "burn" would cause the burner's buffers to empty
faster than it could fill, causing what is known as a "underrun"--a fancy
term that means you've just made yourself a useless CD Frisbee!
The default size of your Virtual Memory swap file is set to "0" minimum, and
"the remaining empty space on your hd" as maximum. With these settings,
every time a process writes to the hd, your swap file's maximum size just
changed, since the empty space size on the hd changed, thereby causing your
system to re-size that file in mid-stride.
If you don't want that intermittent activity, you can set the minimum to a
set value, and the maximum to half the size of remaining hd space. For
example, if you have 600mb of free space on drive C:, then your minimum will
be 0, and your maximum will be 600mb. To keep the hd from getting activated
every time the swap file wants to resize, you can set the minimum to around
75mb, and the maximum to 300mb, and the file wouldn't need to change unless
it needed more than 75mb, and, since the maximum is set to only half the
available space, you lessen the chance of getting those nasty little "Out of
memory" error messages.
One thing worth mentioning here is that whatever the minimum size is set to,
it will create a swap file that size--so in this example, you'll always have
a file named win386.swp that is 75mb.
Since I have an 8gb drive, I have my minimum set to 256mb, (double the
amount of memory on this 400mhz machine), and the maximum set to the same
256mb size. Now, I have a 256mb file, but I don't get any more swap file
re-sizing in the middle of a CD burn!
It also helps if you can put the swap file on a secondary hd, if the system
has more than a single drive.
A 95 guru once told me to open up to 20 applications at one time, (lots more
than I'd normally have running), then drop into a DOS box and check the size
of the file "win386.swp, then make the minimum swap file size to double that
amount.
To change your swap file size, follow these steps:
1) Select Start Menu/Settings/Control Panel/System.
2) Control+Tab to the Performance tab and hit the Tab key until you get to
the Virtual Memory option, and whack Enter.
3) Select "Let me handle my own Virtual Memory..." and whack Enter.
At this point, you'll be given a message that in a polite way tells you that
you're are really too stupid to handle your own Virtual Memory, and that you
really should let Windows handle it for you!<g> Whack Enter on Yes, I do
want to.
4) Use the up/down arrows to select which hd you want the swap file placed
on, then tab to "Minimum".
5) Type in the amount of hd space you want the minimum size to be, then Tab
to "Maximum".
6) Type in the maximum amount of hd space you want to use for a swap file,
then Tab to Ok and whack Enter.
7) Again, you'll have to confirm that you do indeed want to handle it
yourself, and once you affirm that, you'll be told that the system will need
to be restarted.
8) Whack Enter and let it restart.
That is all there is to it!
If you ever want to set it back to the default settings, do steps 1 and 2
above, and then select "I want Windows to handle my Virtual Memory..." and
select Ok.
Hope this helps!
Thanks,
Dennis Brown, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Visit the Blind Programming site at http://www.mindspring.com/~brown99/
----- Original Message -----
From: Brad Trainham <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Sent: Tuesday, June 08, 1999 3:21 PM
Subject: Re: jfw 3.3 and memory allocations problems
> I have had a similar situation develop since upgrading to 3.3 .
> I had made several system changes to wit, the addition of the sblive card
with
> its Creative Launcher bar, and we have a virus protection program running
in the background also.
> I was getting a real slow response with a 200 mh machine with 32 megs of
memory and
> 4 gigs of hard drive.
> I ran a couple of diagnostic programs on the system and they both
> recommended I change the file system setting in the control pannel
performance tab
> from desktop (which my computer is) to network server which of course it
isn't.
> I did that, and have indeed noticed a little better performance.
> They suggest another change that I don't have the guts to implement
because I don't understand it fully.
> This one involves changing the memory management box from letting Windows
manage your memory
> to managing it manually. When you do this (once again from the performance
tab advanced memory setting in
> control pannel) you get a set of minimum and maximum values. I don't know
what should go there, so I've been afraid to
> try it.
> It is supposed to further increase performance, but I don't know.
> And yes, to keep this one on topic, JFW certainly does load faster since I
> changed the file system setting.
> Brad TRainham
>
>
> -
> Visit the jfw ml web page: http://jfw.cjb.net
-
Visit the jfw ml web page: http://jfw.cjb.net
