Windows 10: Is it time to ditch the swapfile

For those that weren't around "in the day", Windows ME and earlier had the swapfile while Windows NT4 and later have the pagingfile.

I have seen both scenarios in use, a paging file and no paging file. Only issue with no paging file was with some programs that wouldn't install if the paging file wasn't present. My presumption is that programmers will need to modify their programs to work with no virtual memory if it's done away with and most everyone knows how quickly that will happen with some cost to the users involved. Used to be some graphics programs needed a 'scratch' file or drive while working in them, don't use those anymore so can't comment on the newer versions.

 

I have also disabled the swap file/page file (call it what you want) and never had a problem. I believe that MS is smart enough that with out the page file they could come up with a another place to put the dump files. So I agree that the page file is as obsolete as a crank on a car.

 

I just leave the settings be ... I don't know more than MS so I bet it's best not to change them.

 

Choosing "automatically manage paging file size for all drives" is the simplest option. I have an SSD (OS) and mechanical hard drive (data) though and prefer to manually assign most of the page file space to the mechanical disk. I follow the OSs recommended size for the main file and create just a small file on "C:" to allow for a small memory dump. Are you aware of any disadvantages to this arrangement? TIA *Nerd

 

Me too. Just have never seen any point in saving a gig or so of disk.

 

Not so much a disadvantage as a trade-off. While on one hand you are moving unnecessary write cycles away from the SSD and preserving the long term integrity of the SSD, on the other hand you are moving your page file to a slower medium and introducing unnecessary lag into your pc routine whenever your system resorts to the page file. However, if you have a lot of RAM, and you don't use huge applications that exceed the available memory, then you may rarely utilize the page file anyway.

 

There is no 1 answer to cover all here, it depends completely on your system. Generally speaking...

If you have an older or slower system with less than 4GB of RAM, especially with a HDD, and also including tablet PC's, then you would likely benefit from having a page/swap file. For the most benefit you can create a separate partition to set your page file into. It makes the page file easier to defragment, keeps the OS less fragmented, and makes it easy to format the partition every once in a while and start a fresh page file with no errors or fragmentation. Additionally, if you have a 2nd harddrive, you might gain a slight speed boost by putting the page file on a partition on the 2nd harddrive. That way it can pull user data from the OS HDD and the 2nd HDD nearly simultaneously.

If you have a faster or newer system with 4GB or more RAM, especially with an SSD, then you will likely gain performance and system integrity by removing the page file completely (or almost completely if you need to restore crash files: see above post).

 

I'm confused! (nothing new there)
It appears that the 'Swapfile' and the "Pagefile" are being transposed as if they were the same thing......they are NOT.
Nor do they serve the same function. Both are required for the smooth and efficient operation of Windows.

If you want to get rid of the 800# gorilla in the room, then turn off Hibernation and that will get rid of the monstrous Hiberfil.sys file in your root directory. I've not turned off Hibernation yet, on this new install of 10135 and my Hiberfil.sys file is 1.66GB LARGE.

The need for a Pagefile comes up in some forum at least once every month and my personal favorite and the most authoritative answer is "Leave it Alone". Just as soon as you get rid of it, some program that needs it will crash. Since it amounts to a HD replacing RAM, having a nice fast HD is important for best efficiency.

Happy Computing!
*Cool

 

I would guess we are nowhere near being able to do away with the page file. On the hardware side of it, there are too many people around the world that still have sub-standard PC's and HDD's that could benefit from it. On the Application side there are millions of users with Metro apps or software that has programming that requires it, as well as the IT departments and developers needing crash logs.

What would be REALLY nice is if Microsoft kindly implemented a new tool that helped manage the virtual memory better based on individual needs, instead of just leaving it to default "auto" settings for all consumers. Maybe even a re-write of the virtual memory management system?...well, ok, just wishful thinking there? *chuckle

 

Doesn't ProcMon need to use the virtual memory for its trace?

 

This may be because swapfile.sys does not exist in Windows 7. It was introduced (or reintroduced) in Windows 8.

Hiberfil.sys, Pagefile.sys the New Swapfile.sys file in Windows 8

 

Well while following links in this thread I came across a solution to the huge Hiberfil.sys file. If you only have 8 gb of RAM you Hiberfil.sys will be only 8GB! So no mater how much RAM you have like my case 16GB half of that is wasted space. this runs in advance CMD system32 powercfg.exe /hibernate /size 50 will cut the Hiberfil.sys to 8GB. that is a significant savings of space while still being covered for total loss of power.*Cool

 

Necrothreading...

My computer has 32GB of ram, and I'm about to double that. Just because. *Smile Anyway, using a 500GB SSD, that means my pagefile is at 32GB. That's about to double...just like my ram. That's NOT what I want. The assumption in a LOT of these recommendations is that ram is a small percentage of the hard drive size (whether it's a spinner or ssd).

Once I find out where W10 hides the pagefile settings, I'll be dropping it to 4GB.

Ken

 

Go to your System's folder, Advanced system settings, Performance, Click settings, then click Advanced tab. *Smile

 

These settings are in exactly the same place as they've always been in NT based windows.

4GB is fine. You do not need to have a swapfile as large as memory. You just need a swapfile, or certain apps won't work and certain functions (like memory dumps) won't function correctly.