Optimizing the Paging File

Did you notice the pagefile.sys file that was shown in Figure 25.15? This 512MB of space (on that particular system at least) is the space that has been allotted to the paging file. The paging file is a hidden, protected system file located in the boot partition of your Windows XP computer. Commonly referred to as the swap file by earlier versions of Windows, the paging file acts as an extension to your computer's installed physical RAM. Together, the physical RAM and the paging file comprise the virtual memory your computer has to work with. By default, the paging file is sized at 1.5× the amount of RAM you have installed in your computer and can expand dynamically as required. The paging file shown in Figure 25.15 ...

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