Modern PCs need plenty of RAM to deliver decent performance,
especially if they're running 32-bit Windows Vista. A system with 2GB of
RAM can easily run short if it's configured poorly, for instance. So
you might install 4GB of RAM, only to discover the PC can only access
about 3GB. Where's the memory gone, and are there any ways in which you
can get some of it back? Installing 64-bit Windows Vista can make a real
difference if your hardware is also up to the task (see the Microsoft help and support page), but if that's too drastic a step then there are other tweaks that can help. Here's what you need to know.
1. Control Startup programs
The path to memory mastery starts by taking greater control over the programs you're running.
Browse the Start > All Programs menu and uninstall any software you don't use, then launch MSCONFIG.EXE and click the Startup tab to see what's configured to run when Windows starts. If you see something you no longer need, then uninstall the program or change its settings so it doesn't load automatically when you log on.
Application add-ons for browsers, Microsoft Office and so on can also consume surprising amounts of RAM. Check your current browser add-ons (Tools > Manage Add-ons in IE, Tools > Add-ons in Firefox) and disable (or ideally uninstall) any that you don't use any more.
2. Disable unwanted services
To speed up Windows some people recommend you disable unnecessary Windows Services, but in most cases this doesn't offer significant gains. The exception is Windows Defender, which consumes a chunky 20MB (or more if you leave it running in the background). If you have another antivirus or antispyware tool then turn Defender off (in Vista, launch Windows Defender, click Tools > Options, scroll down and clear 'Use Windows Defender') and recover the RAM for yourself.
If you're determined to try disabling other services, then click Start, launch Services.msc and scroll down the list to see what's available. On our test Windows Vista Ultimate Edition PC we could safely disable the following by double-clicking and setting its Startup type to Disabled.
3. Reduce hardware requirements
If your PC has 4GB of memory you'll probably find you can only access 3 to 3.5GB of that, because your BIOS has allocated the rest of the address space to your video adapter, network card and so on.
To see what's allocated to hardware on your PC, launch Device Manager (click Start and enter devmgmt.msc), click View > Resources by type and expand the Memory section. The real resource hog will probably be your video adapter. If you've a high-end 512MB graphics card, say, then that's going to grab 512MB (and more, actually) of your address space. This probably won't matter if you've 2GB of RAM as there's no memory there to be blocked, but if you've 4GB then it'll prevent you using it all.
You can't make this problem go away entirely, but there are ways to reduce its impact. Have you installed an expansion card you no longer need, for instance? Remove it. If you don't make use of a high-end video card then consider a downgrade to one with less RAM (128MB is enough to run Vista). And explore your BIOS setup program to turn off features you don't need. There's generally a menu called something like 'Onboard Device Configuration' or 'Integrated Peripherals' where you can disable onboard graphics, integrated sound, unused network adapters or IDE channels and so on. Use this to turn off surplus hardware, your BIOS won't allocate it any resources, and more of your 4GB RAM will be left for you.
4. Turn features off
Don't enable Windows functionality unless you actually need it - there's almost always a performance penalty.
To speed up Windows Vista, for instance, turn off the Aero interface if you can do without it (right-click the desktop, select Personalise > Theme and choose Windows Classic). Your desktop won't look nearly as pretty, but as compensation you'll save close to 40MB of RAM.
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1. Control Startup programs
The path to memory mastery starts by taking greater control over the programs you're running.
Browse the Start > All Programs menu and uninstall any software you don't use, then launch MSCONFIG.EXE and click the Startup tab to see what's configured to run when Windows starts. If you see something you no longer need, then uninstall the program or change its settings so it doesn't load automatically when you log on.
Application add-ons for browsers, Microsoft Office and so on can also consume surprising amounts of RAM. Check your current browser add-ons (Tools > Manage Add-ons in IE, Tools > Add-ons in Firefox) and disable (or ideally uninstall) any that you don't use any more.
2. Disable unwanted services
To speed up Windows some people recommend you disable unnecessary Windows Services, but in most cases this doesn't offer significant gains. The exception is Windows Defender, which consumes a chunky 20MB (or more if you leave it running in the background). If you have another antivirus or antispyware tool then turn Defender off (in Vista, launch Windows Defender, click Tools > Options, scroll down and clear 'Use Windows Defender') and recover the RAM for yourself.
If you're determined to try disabling other services, then click Start, launch Services.msc and scroll down the list to see what's available. On our test Windows Vista Ultimate Edition PC we could safely disable the following by double-clicking and setting its Startup type to Disabled.
- Apple Mobile Device: Comes with iTunes, unnecessary if you don't actually have an Apple device to connect.
- Distributed Link Tracking Client: Maintains links between files across a network domain, not a feature that we use.
- Nero BackItUp Scheduler 3: Provided with Nero Burning ROM, but unnecessary if you don't use the back-up tool.
- Offline Files: Useful if you synchronise files between computers, but we don't.
- Tablet PC Input Service: This isn't a tablet PC.
3. Reduce hardware requirements
If your PC has 4GB of memory you'll probably find you can only access 3 to 3.5GB of that, because your BIOS has allocated the rest of the address space to your video adapter, network card and so on.
To see what's allocated to hardware on your PC, launch Device Manager (click Start and enter devmgmt.msc), click View > Resources by type and expand the Memory section. The real resource hog will probably be your video adapter. If you've a high-end 512MB graphics card, say, then that's going to grab 512MB (and more, actually) of your address space. This probably won't matter if you've 2GB of RAM as there's no memory there to be blocked, but if you've 4GB then it'll prevent you using it all.
You can't make this problem go away entirely, but there are ways to reduce its impact. Have you installed an expansion card you no longer need, for instance? Remove it. If you don't make use of a high-end video card then consider a downgrade to one with less RAM (128MB is enough to run Vista). And explore your BIOS setup program to turn off features you don't need. There's generally a menu called something like 'Onboard Device Configuration' or 'Integrated Peripherals' where you can disable onboard graphics, integrated sound, unused network adapters or IDE channels and so on. Use this to turn off surplus hardware, your BIOS won't allocate it any resources, and more of your 4GB RAM will be left for you.
4. Turn features off
Don't enable Windows functionality unless you actually need it - there's almost always a performance penalty.
To speed up Windows Vista, for instance, turn off the Aero interface if you can do without it (right-click the desktop, select Personalise > Theme and choose Windows Classic). Your desktop won't look nearly as pretty, but as compensation you'll save close to 40MB of RAM.
you can comment and share to your friends here!
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