Virtural Memory Issues

[SRFlanigan]

To begin with, I am familiar with Paging Files, etc.,
butttt. . .

When I attempted to wipe my recycle bin yesterday, I got
an error message stating that I was out of Virtual Memory
and that I needed to increase my Paging files and my
Registry Paging files. (I have gotten this message when I
was doing extensive work in Photoshop before, but never
when I was wiping my Recycle Bin.) I hit OK, and then the
whole machine becomes very sluggish, (like a slug on valium!) I had to reboot to get it back up to optimal speed.

The first time I got this message while trying to wipe my
Recycle Bin, I thought it was a fluke, but after the
second and third time, I started to become increasingly
annoyed. I ended up increasing my Paging files to 1500
MB, and my Registry Paging Files to 40 MB.

This ended the problem. The question is, what could have
started this chain of events?

Other facts regarding the above: 1) this message NEVER
came up before while processing this particular task. 2)
I have a 20 Gig HD with 12 Gigs free. 3) I have 512 RAM.
4) I have installed one program from the time of Zero
Error Message, to the present, but cannot see how this
program, (which is not even running in the BG) could
affect the running program. 5) The HD is scanned &
defragged on a weekly basis along with the automatic /
manual removal of unneeded files / programs. 6) Norton
runs a COMPLETE virus scan nightly. 7) Zone Alarm has not
reported any suspicious activity. 8) My system is kept up
to date, i.e.: current service packs / critical updates
downloaded.

I read somewhere that if you start getting the Registry
Page File warnings that a possible re-install of the OS
may be needed.

Any suggestions?

Home: SRFlanigan@cox.net

 

[bgauntt]

You could also try using a program called Cacheman from this website:

http://www.outertech.com/downloads.php

 

[Tourist]

We've had some W2K machines that constantly showed virtual memory errors. This is the fix one of my colleagues came up with:

"Click Start, point to Settings, click Control Panel, and then double-click System.
Click the Advanced tab, click Performance Options, click Change, set the "Initial Size" and the "Maximum Size" values for the paging file to 0 (zero), and then restart your computer.
Click Start, point to Settings, click Control Panel, and then double-click System.
Click the Advanced tab, click Performance Options, click Change, reset the "Initial Size" and the "Maximum Size" values to the recommended values for Windows 2000, and then restart your computer. (384MB and 768MB)

After you configure the paging file to an appropriate size, the temporary paging file is deleted and virtual memory errors no longer occur."

This stopped the error from occuring on all our affected PC's. I hope this helps. In a world without walls and fences, who needs Windows and Gates?