General Question

cdwccrn's avatar

On a computer, what is "virtual memory" and is it the same as "% free space"?

Asked by cdwccrn (3610points) December 2nd, 2008 from iPhone

Trying to figure out how much space I have AND trying to speed up a slow processor.

Observing members: 0 Composing members: 0

4 Answers

b's avatar

Virtual memory is stored on your hard drive. It works as additional memory space, allowing your computer to run better. You need to make sure that you always have enough free space on your HD. If you are low on space then your computer will run slowly. To see how much virtual memory is being used, right click on My Computer and go to Properties. Click on the advanced tab. Select Settings under Performance and then click on the advanced tab. Look under virtual memory to see how much space is allocated to VM. Make sure you always have that much space free on your hard drive.

iwamoto's avatar

pretty simple, when you’re machine runs out of RAM space, it’ll use memory on your HD, so make sure you keep some free space to keep it running !

cdwccrn's avatar

I don’t understand what RAM space is. Does the %free space include the virtual memory?
How do I increase the virtual memory?

gailcalled's avatar

How would you check on an iMac?

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