Page file not created when using Hard Disk Emulation
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Hi,
I am using RAM Disk 3.4.7 on Windows 7 64-bit with 3GB RAM. I was getting random crashes after I set it up on my PC recently. Until I used the system without RAM Disk, it seemed to be ok. I have set up an initial 200MB page file to be created on this R:\ drive, extendable to 800MB. The page file used to get created on the R: drive. I searched your forums to find if the reason for my crashes is the RAM Disk and found a post saying that using "Hard Disk Emulation" will remove the crashes. The issue I am facing is that the moment I switched ON that option, the page file is not getting created on the RAM Disk.
I had removed the page file from the C: drive and was planning to only use the RAM Disk page file, but I get the message your other users reported: "Windows has made a temporary page file...". Windows creates a page file on the C: drive as the page file on the RAM Disk is not created. I think the issue is the "H" flag - "Hard Disk Emulation" mode. Kindly let me know the solution.
Thanks,
Amal
While it's true that the HDD emulation may fix some crashes, namely when third-party drivers don't expect to encounter a standalone volume without partitions, it's not related to a page file.
Unfortunately storing page file on a RAM disk isn't officially supported and it's generally a bad idea. If you have enough RAM, simply turn off the page file - it's not needed.
As you may know, the idea of page file is to swap out memory pages from RAM to a file when more space is required. In other words, a page file can be seen as a resource's (memory) extension. By placing a page file back into memory, you would attempt to extend the resource using the resource itself - there is no benefit in doing so. A more detailed explanation can be found here.
Thanks for your prompt reply but as @Jeff wrote in the other post about page file on RAM Disk, there are many compelling reasons to have a page file on RAM Disk rather than giving the RAM to OS itself. Primary being the OS wants a page file even if there is enough RAM - if I give all the RAM to OS I can still see it writing to C:\pagefile.sys in Win7 "Resource monitor" which is absurd. It was not only a problem with XP etc, I see this in Windows 7 also. I also find it very useful for keeping temporary databases, cache's etc especially when using a SSD. It loads SSD less.
I have read the article you mentioned and many more articles but I hope you understand that if Win7 was doing its job then I wouldn't need a page file. I thought you could find a solution if you can recreate the problem in your lab. See if you can recreate the issue as I have given you the specific scenario and suggest a solution. The page file does get created if I switch Off "Hardware Emulation" but it makes Windows 7 unstable. Can you think of what software could be interfering - I use Avast Anti Virus, was using AVG earlier. If you want more info to find which software is interfering with your product then I can provide but it would help if you can identify & rectify the issue.
Thanks
Amal