512 MB of RAM question

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

On the webpage
www.theosfiles.com/os_windows/ospg_w98.htm
it says:
For system with more than 512 MB of RAM, to avoid instabilities it is
necessary to use run MSCONFIG, select Advanced, and set the option "Limit
memory to" on, with a value of 512.

Can this be done safely after putting
[386Enh]
ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
into my system.ini file?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

There is no need to do anything for 512 MB of RAM, only for amounts
*greater_than* 512 MB.

For what purpose are you using ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm

"Abraham" <Abraham@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:C012F022-D949-46BE-8D45-1B6950968F3C@microsoft.com...
> On the webpage
> www.theosfiles.com/os_windows/ospg_w98.htm
> it says:
> For system with more than 512 MB of RAM, to avoid instabilities it is
> necessary to use run MSCONFIG, select Advanced, and set the option
> "Limit
> memory to" on, with a value of 512.
>
> Can this be done safely after putting
> [386Enh]
> ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
> into my system.ini file?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

The first suggestion is nonsense in my view--many machines run just fine
with 1 gb or more of memory. There are only a few unique situations where
that swap file setting might be helpful--for normal computing, it is not.
When you have tons of ram installed, a swap file is built but normally is
not used.

Here's some info on ram you might find helpful:

768 mb or more of ram:

"Out of Memory" Errors with Large Amounts of RAM Installed [Q253912]
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;Q253912

This article contains instructions which basically say: add this line in
system.ini, under [vcache]: MaxFileCache=512000
***************************

1 gb or more of ram:

Error Message: Insufficient Memory to Initialize Windows [Q184447]
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;Q184447
***************************

1.5 gb or more of ram:

Computer May Reboot Continuously with More Than 1.5 GB of RAM [Q304943]
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;EN-US;Q304943


--
Regards


Ron Badour, MS MVP for W98
Tips: http://home.satx.rr.com/badour
Knowledge Base Info:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?pr=kbinfo



"Abraham" <Abraham@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:C012F022-D949-46BE-8D45-1B6950968F3C@microsoft.com...
> On the webpage
> www.theosfiles.com/os_windows/ospg_w98.htm
> it says:
> For system with more than 512 MB of RAM, to avoid instabilities it is
> necessary to use run MSCONFIG, select Advanced, and set the option "Limit
> memory to" on, with a value of 512.
>
> Can this be done safely after putting
> [386Enh]
> ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
> into my system.ini file?

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

"Abraham" <Abraham@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote:

>On the webpage
>www.theosfiles.com/os_windows/ospg_w98.htm
>it says:
>For system with more than 512 MB of RAM, to avoid instabilities it is
>necessary to use run MSCONFIG, select Advanced, and set the option "Limit
>memory to" on, with a value of 512.


That advice is totally incorrect and it only serves to prove that the
author of the website is woefully ignorant when it comes to memory
management in Windows 98.

What that setting does is to restrict Windows 98 to using only 512 mb
of RAM. In other words, it is the same as physically removing the
additional RAM, except that if you physically remove the additional
RAM you at least have the opportunity of selling it or of using it in
another computer that takes that type of RAM.

There is a configuration setting that is needed when there is more
than 512 mb of RAM in Windows 98, but it is not the one described and
you do not enter it by using MSCONFIG.

What is actually needed with more than 512 mb of RAM is to edit the
System.ini file by inserting the following line immediately below the
existing [vcache] section header line in the file:

MaxFileCache=512000

That line prevents Windows from mapping an excessively large amount of
RAM for use as disk cache. If it is not present then it is possible
for Windows to produce false "out of memory" type errors because of
the large disk cache. It still allows Windows 98 to use the full
amount of the installed RAM for user data files, application programs,
and/or Windows components.

There is sometimes a need to use the "Limit memory to" setting with
Windows 98. This usually occurs where the computer is being used to
run more than one operating system, such as Windows XP and Windows 98,
and there is a large amount of RAM installed for use by Windows XP.
In these instances it may be necessary to limit the RAM available to
Windows 98, but in my experience it is never necessary to use a limit
lower than 1024 mb."

>
>Can this be done safely after putting
>[386Enh]
>ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
>into my system.ini file?

Why would you want to set Windows 98 back to the less efficient memory
management process used in Windows 95? Because that is what that
setting actually does.

It has some slight value on a system with a huge amount of RAM,
sufficient to ensure that there is no actual usage of the swap file.
Under these circumstances the pre-emptive writing of eligible memory
pages to the swap file when the system is otherwise idle can produce
some slight disruptions in the motion of high-speed video such as is
found in certain games.

But other that that circumstance the setting will actually reduce the
overall performance of your computer.

Hope this explains the situation.

Good luck


Ron Martell Duncan B.C. Canada
--
Microsoft MVP
On-Line Help Computer Service
http://onlinehelp.bc.ca

In memory of a dear friend Alex Nichol MVP
http://aumha.org/alex.htm

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

Though Ron Martell has already answered my question, I will indulge your
curiosity.
At
http://www.kisser.net.au/tontodan/tips98.html#009
it says that doing this tweak shrinks the swap file and makes Win98 faster
by forcing it to actually use the 512MB of RAM that I bought.
Why the hell would Microsoft rig Win98 to use the hard drive as RAM on
occasions of which it is not absolutely necessary? My guess is that Microsoft
hates me. Oh well.

On another note, Gary, you are often the one who answers my questions; and
very well, I might add. Please take a look at the answer that Ron left for me.
Ron, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but Gary is bound to pull an old DOS
trick out of his hat. It’s bound to be interesting.

Talking of DOS tricks, Gary, is it possible to rig a computer to think that
a chuck of the RAM is a small hard drive? How can this be done?


"Gary S. Terhune" wrote:

> There is no need to do anything for 512 MB of RAM, only for amounts
> *greater_than* 512 MB.
>
> For what purpose are you using ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1?
>
> --
> Gary S. Terhune
> MS MVP Shell/User
> http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
> http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm
>
> "Abraham" <Abraham@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:C012F022-D949-46BE-8D45-1B6950968F3C@microsoft.com...
> > On the webpage
> > www.theosfiles.com/os_windows/ospg_w98.htm
> > it says:
> > For system with more than 512 MB of RAM, to avoid instabilities it is
> > necessary to use run MSCONFIG, select Advanced, and set the option
> > "Limit
> > memory to" on, with a value of 512.
> >
> > Can this be done safely after putting
> > [386Enh]
> > ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
> > into my system.ini file?
>
>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

I defer to Ron on the specific pros and cons of Virtual Memory settings.
He was a major contributor to my own education on the subject.

There are a few very specific reasons I've even heard of for using
ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1. That's why I asked what reason you thought
you needed it for.

Windows 98 Memory Management is best left alone by most people. More to
the point in this discussion, the Win98 paradigm says to create
sufficient swap file capacity to handle everything in Memory that is
*potentially* swappable. Thus, if you're in the habit of maintaining
many programs open and also engage in memory intensive operations, you
should expect a sizable swap file, *even_though_it_isn't_being_used*.

If you have concerns about the amount of disk space you have available,
the answer is not to restrict the swap file, nor is it to delve into
radical disk cleanup--the answer is to get yourself more disk space. For
a Windows 98 system, I can't consider anything less than ~1GB of free
space to be sufficient. If that's all you have left, you need more disk
space. No ifs, ands or buts.

If, on the other hand, you determine that there really *is* a lot of
swapping happening on your system, then you almost certainly need more
RAM, plain and simple.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm

"Abraham" <Abraham@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:94F1ED6E-9675-4EA3-B87A-CFBAF290C618@microsoft.com...
> Though Ron Martell has already answered my question, I will indulge
> your
> curiosity.
> At
> http://www.kisser.net.au/tontodan/tips98.html#009
> it says that doing this tweak shrinks the swap file and makes Win98
> faster
> by forcing it to actually use the 512MB of RAM that I bought.
> Why the hell would Microsoft rig Win98 to use the hard drive as RAM on
> occasions of which it is not absolutely necessary? My guess is that
> Microsoft
> hates me. Oh well.
>
> On another note, Gary, you are often the one who answers my questions;
> and
> very well, I might add. Please take a look at the answer that Ron left
> for me.
> Ron, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but Gary is bound to pull an
> old DOS
> trick out of his hat. It’s bound to be interesting.
>
> Talking of DOS tricks, Gary, is it possible to rig a computer to think
> that
> a chuck of the RAM is a small hard drive? How can this be done?
>
>
> "Gary S. Terhune" wrote:
>
>> There is no need to do anything for 512 MB of RAM, only for amounts
>> *greater_than* 512 MB.
>>
>> For what purpose are you using ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1?
>>
>> --
>> Gary S. Terhune
>> MS MVP Shell/User
>> http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
>> http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm
>>
>> "Abraham" <Abraham@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
>> news:C012F022-D949-46BE-8D45-1B6950968F3C@microsoft.com...
>> > On the webpage
>> > www.theosfiles.com/os_windows/ospg_w98.htm
>> > it says:
>> > For system with more than 512 MB of RAM, to avoid instabilities it
>> > is
>> > necessary to use run MSCONFIG, select Advanced, and set the option
>> > "Limit
>> > memory to" on, with a value of 512.
>> >
>> > Can this be done safely after putting
>> > [386Enh]
>> > ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
>> > into my system.ini file?
>>
>>

 

[Guest]

Archived from groups: microsoft.public.win98.gen_discussion (More info?)

Oh, and in answer to your other question, you're talking about a RAM
Drive.
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;142546

What do you want/need a RAM Drive for?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm

"Abraham" <Abraham@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:94F1ED6E-9675-4EA3-B87A-CFBAF290C618@microsoft.com...
> Though Ron Martell has already answered my question, I will indulge
> your
> curiosity.
> At
> http://www.kisser.net.au/tontodan/tips98.html#009
> it says that doing this tweak shrinks the swap file and makes Win98
> faster
> by forcing it to actually use the 512MB of RAM that I bought.
> Why the hell would Microsoft rig Win98 to use the hard drive as RAM on
> occasions of which it is not absolutely necessary? My guess is that
> Microsoft
> hates me. Oh well.
>
> On another note, Gary, you are often the one who answers my questions;
> and
> very well, I might add. Please take a look at the answer that Ron left
> for me.
> Ron, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but Gary is bound to pull an
> old DOS
> trick out of his hat. It’s bound to be interesting.
>
> Talking of DOS tricks, Gary, is it possible to rig a computer to think
> that
> a chuck of the RAM is a small hard drive? How can this be done?
>
>
> "Gary S. Terhune" wrote:
>
>> There is no need to do anything for 512 MB of RAM, only for amounts
>> *greater_than* 512 MB.
>>
>> For what purpose are you using ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1?
>>
>> --
>> Gary S. Terhune
>> MS MVP Shell/User
>> http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
>> http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm
>>
>> "Abraham" <Abraham@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
>> news:C012F022-D949-46BE-8D45-1B6950968F3C@microsoft.com...
>> > On the webpage
>> > www.theosfiles.com/os_windows/ospg_w98.htm
>> > it says:
>> > For system with more than 512 MB of RAM, to avoid instabilities it
>> > is
>> > necessary to use run MSCONFIG, select Advanced, and set the option
>> > "Limit
>> > memory to" on, with a value of 512.
>> >
>> > Can this be done safely after putting
>> > [386Enh]
>> > ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1
>> > into my system.ini file?
>>
>>