Subject: Re: RAM & Briefcase


[log in to unmask] wrote:

> I can't determine where 24mg of RAM is being used.

Eddie Apostol wrote:

> I have 64 MB of RAM and my system says that 61 MB are used!!! Just
> what the heck is going on, eh?

  Let's divide the system RAM into four categories:

>1.  RAM in use by core OS components.
>2.  RAM in use by applications.
>3.  RAM being used as disk cache (VCACHE, replacing the old
SMARTDRV).  By default, this will be practically all RAM that isn't
in categories 1 or 2.

>4.  RAM, if any is left,  that is in none of the above categories.


>If you set a maximum size for VCACHE, you may be able to have a fair bit of
memory in this category. [Under 3.x, SMARTDRV was
outside of Windows, and I think MS just overlooked that in replacing
it with VCACHE.]


Alright then, I just popped up sysedit in Win95 and checked my autoexec.bat
and sure enough I see the following line:

LoadHigh D:\WIN96\SMARTDRV.EXE

Is loading this up a waste of memory for the system (if I am interpreting
what you say correctly,  then loading both SmartDrive when Windows 95 loads
up VCACHE is redundant)...should I remove this item from the autoexec file,
or are their parameters to add after this statement?


  When the OS or application needs more RAM, it will get it first
from category 4 and second from category 3.  If it needs to steal
from category 2, it will try first to discard code memory since that
can be reloaded from the application .EXE/.DLL file, and finally data
memory which it will save to the swap file.

>You can use the VCACHE settings in WIN.INI to set the maximum and minimum
sizes for category 3.

Hey...I could not find the VCACHE settings in my SYSTEM.INI file...I did
locate it in my SYSTEM.INI file. Is that the correct location, or has it
been in the wrong place all these years? (actually, only three, since Win
'95 came out)

Here are the settings...are there optimal values for a 64 MEG Ram system?

[vcache]
MaxFileCache=6144
MinFileCache=1024


I am eager to set this right once and for all, so that I don't need to
encounter that occasional GPF...


regards,

Eddie Apostol
multimedia applications developer and instructor


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