Tweaking xp for optimum performance.

[ace18]

I have been reading alot about how XP will only use a total of 4GB of memory, wich includes RAM, Pagefile, and Graphics card memory. My system is a little overkill and i want to know how to configure it to maximize my performance. Let me also say that I DO NOT play video games on my computer, I just mainly use it for internet and for photos, but I want my system to be as fast as possible anyways. Here is what I have:

MSI motherboard
Intel Core 2 Duo E7400 2.8GHZ
Nvidia Geforce 9400GT video card (Nvidia website says 512MB. System Info says 1GB)
4 GB Ram
Windows XP Pro (32 bit)

How can I configure my system to work the best with this memory?
What should I set my Page File at?
Is the video card a waste of memory since i dont play video games? ( I do watch HD videos on youtube though.)

Thanks for your thoughts .

 

[aford10]

There's not much you can do to increase the amount of memory the system uses. If you want to increase performance, there are a couple things you can do.

You can set the CPU affinity to assign specific programs to CPU core 1, 2, or both.
You can assign a higher priority to certain system processes.
You can overclock the CPU.
You can remove unwanted programs from the startup folder.
You can disable unwanted processes from starting with msconfig.

 

[ace18]

What should my page file be set at?

 

[ace18]

There's not much you can do to increase the amount of memory the system uses. If you want to increase performance, there are a couple things you can do.

You can set the CPU affinity to assign specific programs to CPU core 1, 2, or both.
You can assign a higher priority to certain system processes.
You can overclock the CPU.
You can remove unwanted programs from the startup folder.
You can disable unwanted processes from starting with msconfig.

How do i overclock?

There is nothing in the startup folder.

I have already disabled several services. Only 22 things show up in Task Manager under processes, and 4 of those are Anti-virus.

 

[aford10]

The recommended size is 1.5 * your RAM.

Personally, I use a custom size of 3000MB initial and 4989MB max.

 

[aford10]

The easiest way to do a slight OC, is to bump up the FSB and multiplier in the BIOS. If you do this, do it in small increments. Overclocking will increase the heat and put more stress on the CPU.

What AV's do you have installed?

 

[ace18]

The recommended size is 1.5 * your RAM.

Personally, I use a custom size of 3000MB initial and 4989MB max.

4096 is the max mine will allow. Right now it is set to 4096 for both initial and max.

 

[ace18]

The easiest way to do a slight OC, is to bump up the FSB and multiplier in the BIOS. If you do this, do it in small increments. Overclocking will increase the heat and put more stress on the CPU.

What AV's do you have installed?

Avast is the AV I use. I also have SuperAntiSpyware, but i only run it every once in a while, it does not start up automatically.

 

[ace18]

I have a CD with about 30-40 pictures on it. When I open the CD it shows the photos in list view. when i change the view to thumbnails it takes quite a while for all of them to show up. Is this normal even with the amount of memory i have?

 

[aford10]

It's not abnormal for there to be 10 seconds or so. If it's taking longer, watch the task manager/performance tab to see if the CPU or RAM is being maxed.

 

[ace18]

It's not abnormal for there to be 10 seconds or so. If it's taking longer, watch the task manager/performance tab to see if the CPU or RAM is being maxed.

Ok it took about 3 minutes. CPU never got above 3% PF usage never got above 250MB.


BUT,,,,,,i was way off on the amount pictures on the cd. It has 427 files, 27 folders for a total of 576MB. All 427 files are pictures...LOL

 

[aford10]

:lol: That would make sense then.

 

[pat mcgroin]

Here a good site to see tge different things that can be changed and how they interact with each other.

http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm
http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/supertweaks.htm

 

[ace18]

I get an error message every now and then that says "Referenced memory could not be read" what does this mean. Do i have a problem with my memory?

 

[pat mcgroin]

What are you doing when this occurs?

 

[ace18]

using a program called "Red eye remover" I happens when I try to save the new picture.

 

[pat mcgroin]

It sounds like an issue with the program that is being used.