1. Evaluating System Performance
Tutorial 10

2. RAM and Virtual Memory Computer performance most affected by
Performance of the processor
Amount of installed RAM
Storage capacity of the hard disk
Virtual Memory—created to supplement RAM

3. XP swaps from RAM into the paging file—Pagefile.sys.
If XP does not have enough RAM to open applications (multitasking), a special system file is created on the hard disk called a paging file or swap file.
XP swaps from RAM into the paging file—Pagefile.sys.
Page is usually 4 KB
Pagefile.sys stored in the top-level folder of the volume where Windows is installed.
Default size is 1.5 times the amount of RAM on your machine. Size increased/decreased depending upon need.
Paging file automatically created at bootup.

4. Virtual Memory Slows down computer performance
Must have sufficient space available on the hard disk
Keep at least 1.5 times the installed RAM of free space on hard disk drive for use by Windows XP as virtual memory
Also need additional space for temp files, spool files, and Internet cache

5. Windows Task Manager WTM can be used to
Monitor changes to allocated memory and to the sized of the paging file
View changes in the activity of the processor
Useful tool for monitoring basic processes within your computer—esp memory use

6. Work Tut pp
Right-click taskbar/Task Manager/ Performance tab
View
CPU Usage/Memory Usage
Physical Memory
Commit Charge
Limit