Strange behavior - paging file won't resize.

[OldWin32Dog]

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System Properties
and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000 initial size and
3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK (and so on) until I exit
System Properties. I get the message telling me to reboot the system. I do
so. Upon logging back in I notice the paging file is still the same size as
it had been before I made the change! No messages indicating an error in
event logs. I go into System Properties and the new settings are still set
(as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size has now
changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about business.
However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again gone back to
its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

 

[JerryM \(ID\)]

Just a question,

When you go to the paging file, in the performance options, what is the
total paging file size for all the drives, that windows is using ?

If you choose system managed size in the following screen, it will adjust
automatically.

Another old dog,
Jerry

 

[OldWin32Dog]

JerryM, this machine only has a single drive. When the OS was originally
set up the paging file was set to have the system manage it. That's where
the original paging file size came from. I've tried setting it back to
system managed as well as to other custom sizes. The result is always the
same. I can reboot into Safe mode and the paging file will resize according
to whatever settings I have most recently told it to use. However, when I
then boot back into standard Windows, the paging file is always reset back
to the size created when I first installed the OS. Any ideas?

Thanks!
OW32Dog...

Just a question,

When you go to the paging file, in the performance options, what is the
total paging file size for all the drives, that windows is using ?

If you choose system managed size in the following screen, it will adjust
automatically.

Another old dog,
Jerry

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System
Properties and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000
initial size and 3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK (and
so on) until I exit System Properties. I get the message telling me to
reboot the system. I do so. Upon logging back in I notice the paging
file is still the same size as it had been before I made the change! No
messages indicating an error in event logs. I go into System Properties
and the new settings are still set (as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size has
now changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about business.
However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again gone back
to its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

 

[JerryM \(ID\)]

I assume you clicked the SET button when you made your changes ?

JerryM, this machine only has a single drive. When the OS was originally
set up the paging file was set to have the system manage it. That's where
the original paging file size came from. I've tried setting it back to
system managed as well as to other custom sizes. The result is always the
same. I can reboot into Safe mode and the paging file will resize
according to whatever settings I have most recently told it to use.
However, when I then boot back into standard Windows, the paging file is
always reset back to the size created when I first installed the OS. Any
ideas?

Thanks!
OW32Dog...

Just a question,

When you go to the paging file, in the performance options, what is the
total paging file size for all the drives, that windows is using ?

If you choose system managed size in the following screen, it will adjust
automatically.

Another old dog,
Jerry

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System
Properties and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000
initial size and 3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK
(and so on) until I exit System Properties. I get the message telling
me to reboot the system. I do so. Upon logging back in I notice the
paging file is still the same size as it had been before I made the
change! No messages indicating an error in event logs. I go into
System Properties and the new settings are still set (as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size has
now changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about business.
However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again gone back
to its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

 

[OldWin32Dog]

Yes.

I've been using all flavors of Windows NT since the initial release of 3.1
(including 3.51, 4.0, 2000, 2003 and XP). It seems highly unlikely that
this is an issue of mechanics as I've done this quite a lot in the last 16
or so years.

I strongly suspect it has something to do with all the changes to XP in the
security model. Some of the patches since service pack 2 have made major
changes in this area and I suspect not all impacts have been discovered.
Simply performing a comparison of the security model after installing sp2 to
the security model in place after applying all hotfixes/patches since sp2
(almost 80 of them for my environment) shows a complete overhaul. Somewhere
in this lies the answer.

What baffles me most is the lack of any other apparent problems. I've
installed quite a bit of other software (SQL Server 2005, Visual Studio
2005, Office 2007 and a whole lot more) and I'm not seeing any issues. The
event logs are very clean. All the applications are performing well.
Simply no other indicators of underlying issues.

So, (1) why this issue and, (2) what is causing it?

Thanks again!

I assume you clicked the SET button when you made your changes ?

JerryM, this machine only has a single drive. When the OS was originally
set up the paging file was set to have the system manage it. That's
where the original paging file size came from. I've tried setting it
back to system managed as well as to other custom sizes. The result is
always the same. I can reboot into Safe mode and the paging file will
resize according to whatever settings I have most recently told it to
use. However, when I then boot back into standard Windows, the paging
file is always reset back to the size created when I first installed the
OS. Any ideas?

Thanks!
OW32Dog...

Just a question,

When you go to the paging file, in the performance options, what is the
total paging file size for all the drives, that windows is using ?

If you choose system managed size in the following screen, it will
adjust automatically.

Another old dog,
Jerry

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System
Properties and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000
initial size and 3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK
(and so on) until I exit System Properties. I get the message telling
me to reboot the system. I do so. Upon logging back in I notice the
paging file is still the same size as it had been before I made the
change! No messages indicating an error in event logs. I go into
System Properties and the new settings are still set (as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size
has now changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about
business. However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again
gone back to its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

 

[JerryM \(ID\)]

Sorry, don't have an answer at the moment,

Scratching my head on this one.

Jerry

Yes.

I've been using all flavors of Windows NT since the initial release of 3.1
(including 3.51, 4.0, 2000, 2003 and XP). It seems highly unlikely that
this is an issue of mechanics as I've done this quite a lot in the last 16
or so years.

I strongly suspect it has something to do with all the changes to XP in
the security model. Some of the patches since service pack 2 have made
major changes in this area and I suspect not all impacts have been
discovered. Simply performing a comparison of the security model after
installing sp2 to the security model in place after applying all
hotfixes/patches since sp2 (almost 80 of them for my environment) shows a
complete overhaul. Somewhere in this lies the answer.

What baffles me most is the lack of any other apparent problems. I've
installed quite a bit of other software (SQL Server 2005, Visual Studio
2005, Office 2007 and a whole lot more) and I'm not seeing any issues.
The event logs are very clean. All the applications are performing well.
Simply no other indicators of underlying issues.

So, (1) why this issue and, (2) what is causing it?

Thanks again!

I assume you clicked the SET button when you made your changes ?

JerryM, this machine only has a single drive. When the OS was
originally set up the paging file was set to have the system manage it.
That's where the original paging file size came from. I've tried
setting it back to system managed as well as to other custom sizes. The
result is always the same. I can reboot into Safe mode and the paging
file will resize according to whatever settings I have most recently
told it to use. However, when I then boot back into standard Windows,
the paging file is always reset back to the size created when I first
installed the OS. Any ideas?

Thanks!
OW32Dog...

Just a question,

When you go to the paging file, in the performance options, what is the
total paging file size for all the drives, that windows is using ?

If you choose system managed size in the following screen, it will
adjust automatically.

Another old dog,
Jerry

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've
applied service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS
Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System
Properties and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000
initial size and 3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK
(and so on) until I exit System Properties. I get the message telling
me to reboot the system. I do so. Upon logging back in I notice the
paging file is still the same size as it had been before I made the
change! No messages indicating an error in event logs. I go into
System Properties and the new settings are still set (as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size
has now changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about
business. However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has
again gone back to its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

 

[JerryM \(ID\)]

Just thinking,

The size indicated in the performance options, is what Windows is actually
using.
You can increase the size to give it more space, but you will still see the
amount Windows actually uses, not the space you give it.

I hope this makes sense,

Jerry

Yes.

I've been using all flavors of Windows NT since the initial release of 3.1
(including 3.51, 4.0, 2000, 2003 and XP). It seems highly unlikely that
this is an issue of mechanics as I've done this quite a lot in the last 16
or so years.

I strongly suspect it has something to do with all the changes to XP in
the security model. Some of the patches since service pack 2 have made
major changes in this area and I suspect not all impacts have been
discovered. Simply performing a comparison of the security model after
installing sp2 to the security model in place after applying all
hotfixes/patches since sp2 (almost 80 of them for my environment) shows a
complete overhaul. Somewhere in this lies the answer.

What baffles me most is the lack of any other apparent problems. I've
installed quite a bit of other software (SQL Server 2005, Visual Studio
2005, Office 2007 and a whole lot more) and I'm not seeing any issues.
The event logs are very clean. All the applications are performing well.
Simply no other indicators of underlying issues.

So, (1) why this issue and, (2) what is causing it?

Thanks again!

<Snip>

 

[Guest]

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System Properties
and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000 initial size and
3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK (and so on) until I exit
System Properties. I get the message telling me to reboot the system. I do
so. Upon logging back in I notice the paging file is still the same size as
it had been before I made the change! No messages indicating an error in
event logs. I go into System Properties and the new settings are still set
(as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size has now
changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about business.
However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again gone back to
its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

Hi,
In setting the page file there are certain rules:
We all know that the page file minimum is 1.5 the amount of the RAM
installed on the Operating system and the Maximum is 3 times that amount.
Say for example: you have the famous 256 MBs of RAM, the minimum Paging
file will be (384 = 1.5X256) and the Maximum amount of the paging file is
1152= 3 X 256.
So I don't know how much RAM you have installed on your Computer!.
Read this article:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308417
Another if you have a protective softwares that runing and disallowing the
changes if all been right?.
HTH.
Regards,
nass

 

[OldWin32Dog]

Jerry, it does. Here's what I am seeing:

Open up System Properties and go to the Advanced tab. Click on the Settings
button associated with the Performance section. In the following dialog for
Performance Options click on the Advanced tab. Inside the Virtual memory
section is the following: "Total paging file size for all drives: 2046 MB".
Now click on the Change button in the Virtual memory section. The Virtual
Memory dialog appears. It displays a "Paging File Size (MB)" of "4080-4080"
(for drive C: - the only drive in the system) in the top section of the
dialog. In the middle section of the dialog ("Paging file size for selected
drive") the radio button for "Custom size:" is enabled. The "Initial size
(MB):" value is set to "4080". The "Maximum size (MB):" value is set to
"4080". In the bottom section of the dialog ("Total paging file size for
all drives") the "Minimum allowed:" value is "2 MB", the "Recommended:"
value displays "3069 MB" and the "Currently allocated:" value displays "2046
MB".

Windows Explorer reports that the file "C:\pagefile.sys" has a "Size" of
"2,095,480 KB".

Obviously there is an incongruity here. Changing any of the values in the
Virtual Memory dialog only effectively changes the size of pagefile.sys when
I boot into Safe mode. Booting back into normal Windows mode returns the
file to the size noted in Windows Explorer.

This is, arguably, one of the most interesting problems I've seen in Windows
for some time (given that there don't appear any other system issues)...

Thanks,
Glenn

 

[Rock]

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System
Properties
and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000 initial size
and
3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK (and so on) until I
exit
System Properties. I get the message telling me to reboot the system. I
do
so. Upon logging back in I notice the paging file is still the same size
as
it had been before I made the change! No messages indicating an error in
event logs. I go into System Properties and the new settings are still
set
(as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size has
now
changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about business.
However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again gone back
to
its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

Hi,
In setting the page file there are certain rules:
We all know that the page file minimum is 1.5 the amount of the RAM
installed on the Operating system and the Maximum is 3 times that amount.
Say for example: you have the famous 256 MBs of RAM, the minimum Paging
file will be (384 = 1.5X256) and the Maximum amount of the paging file is
1152= 3 X 256.
So I don't know how much RAM you have installed on your Computer!.
Read this article:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308417
Another if you have a protective softwares that runing and disallowing the
changes if all been right?.

I disagree here. There are no rules for setting the page file, nor is there
any maximum. The old rule to have the page file set to 1.5 x the amount of
RAM is not a good one to follow in XP. The amount of page file needed
depends on how much memory is in the system and what apps are run.

The only rule that has any general applicability is that the more memory
there is in the system, the less the page file is needed. Certain apps are
heavy on page file needs so they skew this general rule. I would recommend
you read the article on Virtual Memory and setting the page file by the late
Alex Nichol, MVP. There is a small utility by Bill James, linked to on this
site, with which you can monitor actual page file usage and thus set the
page file accordingly.

Note there is no advantage to setting a minimum and maximum page file
setting to be the same. Set the initial size setting to be above your
normal page file usage as shown by this utility, and then set a maximum
above that to give it some room to grow if some special circumstance needs
it

To the OP, sorry I don't know what is causing your problem. I have not seen
it in practice so it's certainly not universal for SP2 installations, but
that doesn't mean there isn't something unique about your setup with SP2 and
post SP2 updates causing this. On occasion someone posts here with this
problem, but not very often. One culprit indentified in several instances
has been a Norton home product. It's been some time since I saw the last
this tied to a Norton product, so I don't know if it was unique to those
versions, or if it does still occur.

Virtual Memory in Windows XP
http://aumha.org/win5/a/xpvm.htm

 

[JerryM \(ID\)]

You are welcome,

As you can see, there can be a lot of space used up needlessly.
You would be better off letting system managed size control the paging file.

Another space saving idea is in system Restore.
On the left side of the page, click system restore settings,
click the settings button and drag the slider to the left to reduce the size
of the restore down to around 3% to 5% of disk space.
Since Restore only restores system files and not any additions installed by
you.

Good Luck,
Jerry

Jerry, it does. Here's what I am seeing:

Open up System Properties and go to the Advanced tab. Click on the
Settings button associated with the Performance section. In the following
dialog for Performance Options click on the Advanced tab. Inside the
Virtual memory section is the following: "Total paging file size for all
drives: 2046 MB". Now click on the Change button in the Virtual memory
section. The Virtual Memory dialog appears. It displays a "Paging File
Size (MB)" of "4080-4080" (for drive C: - the only drive in the system) in
the top section of the dialog. In the middle section of the dialog
("Paging file size for selected drive") the radio button for "Custom
size:" is enabled. The "Initial size (MB):" value is set to "4080". The
"Maximum size (MB):" value is set to "4080". In the bottom section of the
dialog ("Total paging file size for all drives") the "Minimum allowed:"
value is "2 MB", the "Recommended:" value displays "3069 MB" and the
"Currently allocated:" value displays "2046 MB".

Windows Explorer reports that the file "C:\pagefile.sys" has a "Size" of
"2,095,480 KB".

Obviously there is an incongruity here. Changing any of the values in the
Virtual Memory dialog only effectively changes the size of pagefile.sys
when I boot into Safe mode. Booting back into normal Windows mode returns
the file to the size noted in Windows Explorer.

This is, arguably, one of the most interesting problems I've seen in
Windows for some time (given that there don't appear any other system
issues)...

Thanks,
Glenn

<Snip>

 

[Guest]

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System
Properties
and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000 initial size
and
3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK (and so on) until I
exit
System Properties. I get the message telling me to reboot the system. I
do
so. Upon logging back in I notice the paging file is still the same size
as
it had been before I made the change! No messages indicating an error in
event logs. I go into System Properties and the new settings are still
set
(as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size has
now
changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about business.
However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again gone back
to
its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

Hi,
In setting the page file there are certain rules:
We all know that the page file minimum is 1.5 the amount of the RAM
installed on the Operating system and the Maximum is 3 times that amount.
Say for example: you have the famous 256 MBs of RAM, the minimum Paging
file will be (384 = 1.5X256) and the Maximum amount of the paging file is
1152= 3 X 256.
So I don't know how much RAM you have installed on your Computer!.
Read this article:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308417
Another if you have a protective softwares that runing and disallowing the
changes if all been right?.

I disagree here. There are no rules for setting the page file, nor is there
any maximum. The old rule to have the page file set to 1.5 x the amount of
RAM is not a good one to follow in XP. The amount of page file needed
depends on how much memory is in the system and what apps are run.

The only rule that has any general applicability is that the more memory
there is in the system, the less the page file is needed. Certain apps are
heavy on page file needs so they skew this general rule. I would recommend
you read the article on Virtual Memory and setting the page file by the late
Alex Nichol, MVP. There is a small utility by Bill James, linked to on this
site, with which you can monitor actual page file usage and thus set the
page file accordingly.

Note there is no advantage to setting a minimum and maximum page file
setting to be the same. Set the initial size setting to be above your
normal page file usage as shown by this utility, and then set a maximum
above that to give it some room to grow if some special circumstance needs
it

To the OP, sorry I don't know what is causing your problem. I have not seen
it in practice so it's certainly not universal for SP2 installations, but
that doesn't mean there isn't something unique about your setup with SP2 and
post SP2 updates causing this. On occasion someone posts here with this
problem, but not very often. One culprit indentified in several instances
has been a Norton home product. It's been some time since I saw the last
this tied to a Norton product, so I don't know if it was unique to those
versions, or if it does still occur.

Virtual Memory in Windows XP
http://aumha.org/win5/a/xpvm.htm

Will do Rock...
But if the OP wanted to use Customize Setting these rules can be a guide or
be considered.
If the OP set the page file to lesser than this (Minimum) the system will
produce an Error of a " Virtual memory" kind.
If the OP Increase the Page file size to more than needed, it will n't be a
problem but it will be wasted.
I don't why the OP doesn't like to let windows manage it, instead of custome
settings file?.
Regards,
nass

 

[Jim]

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System
Properties and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000
initial size and 3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK (and
so on) until I exit System Properties. I get the message telling me to
reboot the system. I do so. Upon logging back in I notice the paging
file is still the same size as it had been before I made the change! No
messages indicating an error in event logs. I go into System Properties
and the new settings are still set (as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size has
now changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about business.
However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again gone back to
its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

Isn't it true that Windows never reduces the size of the pagefile? Isn't it
true that the only way to accomplish your task is to boot into safe mode,
create a small pagefile on another disk, then tell Windows to use only the
new pagefile? After you reboot, the old pagefile may safely be deleted.

Jim

 

[Rock]

:

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've
applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System
Properties
and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000 initial
size
and
3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK (and so on) until
I
exit
System Properties. I get the message telling me to reboot the system.
I
do
so. Upon logging back in I notice the paging file is still the same
size
as
it had been before I made the change! No messages indicating an error
in
event logs. I go into System Properties and the new settings are
still
set
(as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size
has
now
changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about business.
However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again gone
back
to
its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

Hi,
In setting the page file there are certain rules:
We all know that the page file minimum is 1.5 the amount of the RAM
installed on the Operating system and the Maximum is 3 times that
amount.
Say for example: you have the famous 256 MBs of RAM, the minimum
Paging
file will be (384 = 1.5X256) and the Maximum amount of the paging file
is
1152= 3 X 256.
So I don't know how much RAM you have installed on your Computer!.
Read this article:
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308417
Another if you have a protective softwares that runing and disallowing
the
changes if all been right?.

I disagree here. There are no rules for setting the page file, nor is
there
any maximum. The old rule to have the page file set to 1.5 x the amount
of
RAM is not a good one to follow in XP. The amount of page file needed
depends on how much memory is in the system and what apps are run.

The only rule that has any general applicability is that the more memory
there is in the system, the less the page file is needed. Certain apps
are
heavy on page file needs so they skew this general rule. I would
recommend
you read the article on Virtual Memory and setting the page file by the
late
Alex Nichol, MVP. There is a small utility by Bill James, linked to on
this
site, with which you can monitor actual page file usage and thus set the
page file accordingly.

Note there is no advantage to setting a minimum and maximum page file
setting to be the same. Set the initial size setting to be above your
normal page file usage as shown by this utility, and then set a maximum
above that to give it some room to grow if some special circumstance
needs
it

To the OP, sorry I don't know what is causing your problem. I have not
seen
it in practice so it's certainly not universal for SP2 installations, but
that doesn't mean there isn't something unique about your setup with SP2
and
post SP2 updates causing this. On occasion someone posts here with this
problem, but not very often. One culprit indentified in several
instances
has been a Norton home product. It's been some time since I saw the last
this tied to a Norton product, so I don't know if it was unique to those
versions, or if it does still occur.

Virtual Memory in Windows XP
http://aumha.org/win5/a/xpvm.htm

Will do Rock...
But if the OP wanted to use Customize Setting these rules can be a guide
or
be considered.
If the OP set the page file to lesser than this (Minimum) the system will
produce an Error of a " Virtual memory" kind.
If the OP Increase the Page file size to more than needed, it will n't be
a
problem but it will be wasted.
I don't why the OP doesn't like to let windows manage it, instead of
custome
settings file?.

Yes, letting windows manage it is ok, though if the system has a lot of
memory system managed allocates too much for the page file (assuming you
don't have one of those page file hungry apps). And yes the only downside
to having too large a page file is that the space is wasted. Normally with
hard drive costs the way they are you don't need to worry about this.

 

[OldWin32Dog]

All, thanks for the info. However, the core issue is still that I am not
able to set the size of the paging file (nor is Windows for that matter).
Whether it is set to let the system manage it or if I set it to a fixed
amount, the file size will always stay the same. This is errant behavior.
I've set the paging file size on hundreds of Windows machines with all
flavors of Windows (NT based) and have never before experienced this
particular issue. I believe Rock commented that he has seen this issue in
this newsgroup some time ago and that it was tied to a Norton home product.
I don't use Norton but I do have other security and performance products
installed so it is certainly possible one of them is the culprit. Given
that when I boot into Safe mode the file does get set to the correct size I
now suspect one of the other apps may well be the problem. I shall
investigate these further. If I find anything conclusive I'll repost here.

Again, thank you all for your input!
OldWin32Dog

[Originally posted in windowsxp.configuration_manage]

I have recently installed Windows XP Pro on a new laptop. I've applied
service pack 2 as well as all applicable hotfixes from MS Update.

My account is an Administrator on the machine. I go into System
Properties and change the paging file settings to a custom size, 3000
initial size and 3000 maximum size. I click the Set button, then OK (and
so on) until I exit System Properties. I get the message telling me to
reboot the system. I do so. Upon logging back in I notice the paging
file is still the same size as it had been before I made the change! No
messages indicating an error in event logs. I go into System Properties
and the new settings are still set (as noted above).

I reboot the box and go into Safe mode. Voila, the paging file size has
now changed to the size I set. Good. Reboot and go on about business.
However, upon logging in I see that the paging file has again gone back
to its original size!

Any ideas as to what is going on here?
Thank you!

Isn't it true that Windows never reduces the size of the pagefile? Isn't
it true that the only way to accomplish your task is to boot into safe
mode, create a small pagefile on another disk, then tell Windows to use
only the new pagefile? After you reboot, the old pagefile may safely be
deleted.

Jim

 

[Rock]

All, thanks for the info. However, the core issue is still that I am not
able to set the size of the paging file (nor is Windows for that matter).
Whether it is set to let the system manage it or if I set it to a fixed
amount, the file size will always stay the same. This is errant behavior.
I've set the paging file size on hundreds of Windows machines with all
flavors of Windows (NT based) and have never before experienced this
particular issue. I believe Rock commented that he has seen this issue in
this newsgroup some time ago and that it was tied to a Norton home
product. I don't use Norton but I do have other security and performance
products installed so it is certainly possible one of them is the culprit.
Given that when I boot into Safe mode the file does get set to the correct
size I now suspect one of the other apps may well be the problem. I shall
investigate these further. If I find anything conclusive I'll repost
here.

<snip>

Do some clean boot troubleshooting.

Clean Boot Troubleshooting

How to Troubleshoot By Using the Msconfig Utility in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=310560

How to perform advanced clean-boot troubleshooting in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/?id=316434

How to perform a clean boot in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/

 

[JerryM \(ID\)]

One other thing you might try,

SFC /SCANNOW on the run line.

In case you have a slightly corrupt or missing file.
Be sure to have your XP CD handy.

Jerry

All, thanks for the info. However, the core issue is still that I am not
able to set the size of the paging file (nor is Windows for that matter).
Whether it is set to let the system manage it or if I set it to a fixed
amount, the file size will always stay the same. This is errant behavior.
I've set the paging file size on hundreds of Windows machines with all
flavors of Windows (NT based) and have never before experienced this
particular issue. I believe Rock commented that he has seen this issue in
this newsgroup some time ago and that it was tied to a Norton home
product. I don't use Norton but I do have other security and performance
products installed so it is certainly possible one of them is the culprit.
Given that when I boot into Safe mode the file does get set to the correct
size I now suspect one of the other apps may well be the problem. I shall
investigate these further. If I find anything conclusive I'll repost
here.

Again, thank you all for your input!
OldWin32Dog

<Snip>

 

[OldWin32Dog]

Rock/all,

I found a solution, although it isn't going to be the normally recommended
path.

I went in to the registry (using regedit.exe) and went to the following key:

HKLM\SYSTEM\CurentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management

There I edited the mult-string value PagingFiles. It already contained the
value "C:\pagefile.sys 4000 4000" (without the quotes). I simply changed
that value to "C:\pagefileX.sys 4000 4000" (again, without the quotes). I
exited the registry editor and rebooted the machine.

When the OS came back up and I logged in I discovered that there now existed
2 paging files on the root of my C drive, pagefile.sys and pagefileX.sys. I
was able to delete pagefile.sys as the OS wasn't, in fact, using it anymore.
The size of the new paging file was as expected.

One last item to ensure no disconnects in the registry was to modify the
following multi-string value:

HKLM\SYSTEM\CurentControlSet\Control\BackupRestore\FilesNotToBackup\Memory
Page File

It contained the value "\Pagefile.sys" (without the quotes); I changed this
to "\pagefileX.sys" (again, without the quotes). I exited the registry
editor and rebooted the machine.

The system has now been up and running fine with no apparent ill
side-effects for a number of hours. I have run much of the software on the
system without any errors.

Since I'm not an MS employee nor do I report to anyone there I'm not going
to include any disclaimer about the methods I've utilized here to solve this
problem.

Thank you,
OldWin32Dog

 

[R. McCarty]

I know of a single 3rd-Party application, eTrust 7 that tends to lock
out Pagefile sizing changes. Haven't seen it on "Every" setup using it -
but a few. Any chance that's your current AV product ?

 

[OldWin32Dog]

Now that's interesting - I am using the anti-virus only component of CA's
Internet Security Suite 2007 (eTrust is CA's stand alone anti-virus
product). I have had multiple other problems with this package (it is the
reason I had to reinstall my OS this last time around!) The problems with
this package were so severe it caused me not to use the other components
found within it.

Let me explore removing this package and resetting my registry settings back
to the way they were to see if this solves the problem. I'd much rather not
keep a "hack" in place such as I've done already (see response on 1/8/2007
10:02 am).

I'll get back once I have more info.

Thank you,
OldWin32Dog