pagefil.sys and hiberfil.sys

G

Guest

I was reading about pagefil.sys and hiberfil.sys in earlier postings and I'm
wondering if my system will run faster if I turn off hibernation. I know
there are all sorts of things that can slow me down (too many applications
open, too many programs installed), but I just wanted to check if that could
be one of them. Would it make noticeable difference?

Also, should I set pagefil.sys to a fixed size of 512 Mb?

- Linda
 
D

db

the hiberfil.sys is used
by your hibernation power feature.
it isn't an active process in memory
and engages only when the pc is
powering down to hibernation
or powering up from hibernation.

in regards to the pagefile, i'm not a
fan of the automatic virtual
memory size feature. if windows
has insufficient resources it will do a
poor job of self adjusting it's virtual memory
or alerting you as such. this feature is
best on a more modern/advanced
pc.

however, some systems handle much better
with a fixed size. so i "always"
suggest a custom size of
min=2 and max=1152. This range
size is not scientific and can be sized
up or down later. In most cases, these
sizes can stay or be lowered a bit
more. basically having too much or too low
of a size will affect a pc, especially
those with an older motherboard.

as you mentioned there are other
issues that can affect speed. here
is some additional information that
can be helpful:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/835606/en-gb


- db
I was reading about pagefil.sys and hiberfil.sys in earlier postings and I'm
wondering if my system will run faster if I turn off hibernation. I know
there are all sorts of things that can slow me down (too many applications
open, too many programs installed), but I just wanted to check if that could
be one of them. Would it make noticeable difference?

Also, should I set pagefil.sys to a fixed size of 512 Mb?

- Linda
 
G

Guest

Thanks for your help, David & db. David, I'm not sure how to set pagfil.sys
to "system manage." What steps would I go through to get to that option?

db, I looked at the link you cited and it seems to be speaking to Windows
98. Does all the stuff on that page apply to XP as well?
 
D

db

yes, it is for win98.

however, most of the
techniques are standards
used by microsoft's subsequent
operating systems. The
exception being Vista, the
newest.

I simply provided it as
a basis for comparing your
own system to some of
the points in the article.

of course we have no
clue if the problem of a slow system
is a result of faulty hardware, low resources,
incompatiable software or drivers or malware,
cluttered file system or system confuration
issues.

one test would be to see
if your system works faster
via safe mode.

- db

Thanks for your help, David & db. David, I'm not sure how to set pagfil.sys
to "system manage." What steps would I go through to get to that option?

db, I looked at the link you cited and it seems to be speaking to Windows
98. Does all the stuff on that page apply to XP as well?
 
M

Microsoft MVP

No, hiberfil only sets aside part of your hard drive for the hibernation
(i.e. memory dump). It wouldn't affect speed if you disabled it.
The Pagefile can affect performance though. If you are really concerned and
have the money, you can purchase (or find) a second hard drive and put the
pagefile on that drive. This way, as the pagefile is being written to on
the second hard drive, it won't interfere with the operations on the main
hard drive.
 
N

Noncompliant

Hibernation - PC won't run faster if disabled. If turned off, there's no
need for the hiberfil.sys file.

Pagefile - For me, I've found the following true. Leave the default size
alone. If wanting the pagefile in another location, putting it on the same
bus system (like ide) does nothing except utilize less space on the C:
drive. The only thing that I've found where there seems a performance boost
is putting the pagefile on a hard drive on a scsi (ultra or faster) hard
drive (if XP is on a ide drive), on a partition devoted for the pagefile
only, at the beginning of the hard drive. 4GB is more than adequate
partition size. Don't bother trying to put the swapfile on an external
enclosure hard drive using USB or Firewire.
 
K

Ken Blake, MVP

Benzmum said:
I was reading about pagefil.sys and hiberfil.sys in earlier postings
and I'm wondering if my system will run faster if I turn off
hibernation.

No.


I know there are all sorts of things that can slow me
down (too many applications open,
Click to expand...


No, ot necessarily that either. It depends on *which* applications they are,
not how many are open.

too many programs installed)
Click to expand...


No. That has *no* effect on performance. What you have installed but not
running only affects your disk space usage.

but I
just wanted to check if that could be one of them. Would it make
noticeable difference?

Also, should I set pagefil.sys to a fixed size of 512 Mb?
Click to expand...


No. For more information on the page file, this article by the late MVP,
Alex Nichol, is excellent: "Virtual Memory in Windows XP" at
http://aumha.org/win5/a/xpvm.htm
 
G

Guest

Thank you to everyone who replied to my questions. I think I've got it now. I
appreciate your time.

- Linda
 
B

Bob C

Question:
I've run a virus check and it's warned me that the antivirus software cannot
scan these 2 system files. Can anyone tell me whether this is normal or not.
 
P

Pegasus [MVP]

Bob C said:
Question:
I've run a virus check and it's warned me that the antivirus software
cannot
scan these 2 system files. Can anyone tell me whether this is normal or
not.
Click to expand...

These two files are locked and cannot be scanned. Good virus checkers "know"
this and don't even try.
 

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