RAM disk becomes unformatted

Started by Marian

Marian

RAM disk becomes unformatted   22 January 2024, 16:19

Dear Support,

In the past, we occasionally some RAM disks in "unformatted" state. It was easily fixed with unmount/mount state with admin rights.

But this week we see that more often, even on Win10 with old 4.0.4 version, and also on Win11 with old 4.0.4 version, and on Win11 with 4.4 version.

Do you have some tips, what can cause this? Or are there any option to turn on RAM Disk debug logs?

Configuration file: ramdisk.xml

Best Regards
SoftPerfect Support forum - Ann avatar image
Ann

Re: RAM disk becomes unformatted   22 January 2024, 16:23

According to your XML configuration file, you have Hard Disk Emulation enabled. This is likely the cause, as the RAM Disk driver undergoes a complex initialisation procedure to integrate the disk into the Windows storage stack. The success of RAM disk initialisation can vary depending on whether other system disks are ready in time.

My advice would be to disable Hard Disk Emulation. It is unnecessary in most cases, and typically only required for tools that need direct access to drive partitions.
Marian

Re: RAM disk becomes unformatted   23 January 2024, 16:22

I had the same idea, thank you for your advice, we will test this configuration.
But for future debugging, are there any options to enable debug logs?

Also, it would be nice to have an option to mount/unmount the volume without admin rights, but at the same time to not have the option to change the RAMDisk configuration...for corporate use and in this case the user will be able to fix this kind of problems themselves without rebooting or logging off/on.
SoftPerfect Support forum - Ann avatar image
Ann

Re: RAM disk becomes unformatted   23 January 2024, 16:36

There are no debug logs that can be activated, I'm afraid. RAM disks are managed by a kernel-level driver with limited logging capabilities. We can produce debug builds upon request; however, this is usually unnecessary. The product has undergone extensive testing in numerous customer systems and is considered highly reliable, with only a few edge cases.

Generally, mounting and dismounting a volume does not require admin rights, unless the 'Allow non-privileged users to modify settings' option is unchecked. When this option is enabled, anyone can add, remove, and mount/unmount disks.
When it is disabled, then any changes, including mounting/unmounting, require admin rights. Unfortunately, it is currently impossible to set separate permissions for each operation.

If you wish to hide the RAM Disk UI from end-users, you can simply remove the RAM Disk app from automatic startup. In this scenario, any disks mounted at startup will continue to function as usual because this is managed by the kernel driver and does not require the GUI.

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