Owners of somewhat outdated computers and laptops often complain that there is not enough RAM to run demanding games or programs. But it plays one of the most basic roles in the system, since it is in it that additional application components are loaded in the form of dynamic libraries or parameter settings files. This is where the question of how to increase the RAM on the computer has to be solved (we will use Windows 7 as an example of the operating system). An ordinary user can use several simple methods, which will be discussed later.
How to increase RAM on a computer (Windows 7 64 bit) by the simplest method?
Let's start with stationary computer systems. As a rule, there are several slots on the motherboard for installing additional memory slats, and accessing them is as easy as shelling pears, you just need to remove the side cover. With laptops, the situation is more complicated, although they can use the proposed method.
Actually, in the simplest case, the solution to the problem of how to increase RAM on a computer (Windows 7) comes down to buying the brackets and installing them on the motherboard. True, here it is necessary to take into account the type of supported memory, since it will be impossible to install the strips of modern generations in the old connectors, and if they are installed, they will not work. Yes, and cause conflicts with the issuance of a blue screen (BSoD).
How to increase the RAM on the computer (Windows 7 32 bit) due to optimization?
On the other hand, the issue of increasing RAM can be interpreted as how to free it by unloading unnecessary or unused modules. But the system itself (Windows 7x86) does not index the amount of RAM more than 3 GB, so installing additional brackets is absolutely impractical.
To begin with, as a decision on how to increase RAM on a computer (Windows 7), you can suggest disabling some startup items. To do this, use the system configuration section ( msconfig command in the "Run" console) with the transition to the startup tab. Ideally, you can leave only the ctfmon service, which is responsible for changing the language and displaying the language bar in the system tray.
You can also use the programs and components section in the Control Panel, where you need to deactivate unnecessary components of the operating system (for example, disable the Hyper-V module or print service).
Virtual memory usage
Another technique that allows you to solve the problem of how to increase RAM on your computer (Windows 7) is to use the so-called virtual memory for which the pagefile.sys paging file is responsible.
Usually, after installing the OS on a computer or laptop, the default setting is to automatically determine the required size of the above file, but it can be increased if desired. To do this, you first need to use the system properties section (RMB menu on the “My Computer” icon), then go to the additional parameters, use the “Advanced” tab in the system properties again, click the advanced settings button in the performance section and on one tab "Advanced" use the button for changing settings, which is located at the bottom right.
Now in the virtual memory section you need to uncheck the line for automatic size selection, and a little lower you can set your own volume, which will be used when there is a lack of main (RAM) memory. But here you need to clearly understand that it is not recommended to install too much volume, since the call will be made to the hard disk on which the space is reserved, and it is much slower than a similar call to RAM. In addition, sometimes there are situations when the system will primarily access virtual memory, and not operational memory.
Install additional memory using an external drive
Finally, let's see how to increase the RAM on the computer (Windows 7) with a USB flash drive. This, by the way, is one of the most common and most acceptable options. To do this, you can use the Ready Boost program from the developers of Microsoft Corporation. You can use USB devices, memory cards, and SSD disks as storage media. But first you need to make sure that the media meets the requirements of the application itself (read and write speed, minimal free space, etc.).
If all conditions are met, we connect the media and through RMB go to the properties section. After installing the program, a special tab will appear in the window on which you should mark the line for providing the device for Ready Boost technology, after which you can independently set the desired cache size and save the changes.
BIOS options
And the very last way is to enter the primary BIOS when the computer boots up, find the Shared Memory or Video RAM parameters there. Then go to the menu and, for DRAM Read Timing settings, reduce the number of timings.
The smaller their number, the higher the productivity. But you should not get carried away, since too low indicators can adversely affect the operation of the entire system.
What to prefer?
It seems that experimenting with BIOS settings is possible only as a last resort, but disabling unnecessary startup items, system components with the parallel use of removable media as cache devices, and even with system optimization, is suitable for all users without exception. In this embodiment, you can not even use virtual memory.