OS installed Page file on both HDD and NVMe drive

Dru2 · Dec 19, 2022

Windows 11 (and 10) for that matter isn't your grandfather's OS. Windows handles paging file just fine. I haven't manually managed it since Windows 7. I simply let Windows manage it and keep it moving.

By default, it should be on the OS drive, which ideally should be your fasted drive. Putting on an HDD drive when the OS is on an SSD drive is like moving over from the fast lane to a slower lane. With today's systems running at least 8gig of RAM, there's no need to mess with the paging file. I myself run with 32gig of RAM.

My two cents.

johnlgalt · Dec 19, 2022

Have to agree with Dru2. Of course, I overbuild my systems, so they're not a fair comparison, but still - I too, stopped trying to manually manage the pagefile and let the OS handle it on its own.

As ZBook noted - having them on multiple drives means the first to respond will be the first to be used. So, that typically means the fastest drive will win out most times.

Sammy888 · Dec 19, 2022

Dru2 said:
Windows 11 (and 10) for that matter isn't your grandfather's OS. Windows handles paging file just fine. I haven't manually managed it since Windows 7. I simply let Windows manage it and keep it moving.

By default, it should be on the OS drive, which ideally should be your fasted drive. Putting on an HDD drive when the OS is on an SSD drive is like moving over from the fast lane to a slower lane. With today's systems running at least 8gig of RAM, there's no need to mess with the paging file. I myself run with 32gig of RAM.

My two cents.

Ha. Actually, I'm [that] Grandfather. Thanks for your two cents.

Sammy888 · Dec 19, 2022

Thanks everyone. I'll let Windows Manage the page file only to the fastest drive which is the NVMe (C) drive. I disabled the page file on the D drive. So I suppose I'm still managing it, technically.

Dru2 · Dec 19, 2022

Sammy888 said:
Thanks everyone. I'll let Windows Manage the page file only to the fastest drive which is the NVMe (C) drive. I disabled the page file on the D drive. So I suppose I'm still managing it, technically.

If Windows is managing the Page File, it should look like this...

Scott · Dec 19, 2022

Okay I'll ask. If a computer has lots of RAM, say 32GB or more, does it even need a paging file?

zbook · Dec 20, 2022

See this Computer Hope link:

Code:

I have plenty of RAM, should I disable the page file?

No, the page file is what helps keep your computer stable.

Although you may think there is enough memory in your computer

to handle all the programs it runs, you can still exceed that limit,

which may cause program errors and system crashes.

Some programs also rely on there being a page file.

If the page file is missing or not available, the computer gets random

errors or the programs will not work.

Should I Change My Microsoft Windows Page File Size?

Reasons why it is not a good idea to change the Windows page file size or disable it.

www.computerhope.com

Also see this Microsoft link:

Page files in Windows with large physical memory

When large physical memory is installed, a page file might not be required to support the system commit charge
during peak usage.
For example, 64-bit versions of Windows and Windows Server support more physical memory (RAM) than 32-bit
versions support.
The available physical memory alone might be large enough.

However, the reason to configure the page file size hasn't changed.
It has always been about supporting a system crash dump, if it's necessary, or extending the system commit limit,
if it's necessary.
For example, when a lot of physical memory is installed, a page file might not be required to back the system commit
charge during peak usage. The available physical memory alone might be large enough to do this.
However, a page file or a dedicated dump file might still be required to back a system crash dump.

Introduction to the page file - Windows Client

Learn about the page files in Windows. A page file is an optional, hidden system file on a hard disk.

learn.microsoft.com

Dru2 · Dec 20, 2022

Scott said:
Okay I'll ask. If a computer has lots of RAM, say 32GB or more, does it even need a paging file?

Some might say no, but you risk performance/memory issues if something winds up eating more RAM than necessary. Letting Windows manage it avoids that. Also, if you look at your page file, you'll notice how little RAM is used. For that reason, why disable it? Just let Windows do its thing,

My two cents

Sammy888 · Dec 20, 2022

Dru2 said:
If Windows is managing the Page File, it should look like this...

View attachment 47995

Unfortunately not presently. When I was using W10 it was like that. Upon upgrading to W11 it was the same. But recently W11 decided to add the page file to the slow 2.5 inch 5400 rpm HDD. I went to manual (unticked automatically manage the page file for all drives) but allowed W11 to automatically adjust (manage) the page file size.

FWIW. W11 still believes the HDD is SSD.

Dru2 · Dec 20, 2022

Sammy888 said:
But recently W11 decided to add the page file to the slow 2.5 inch 5400 rpm HDD.

Not sure what your system is doing cause it's odd it'd automatically manually manage the file that way. That's an end user task. With that, my Windows 11 page file settings look exactly like the one above. If yours looks differently, I'd surmise it's something you did, not something Windows automatically did.

Scott · Dec 20, 2022

zbook said:
See this Computer Hope link:

Code:

I have plenty of RAM, should I disable the page file? No, the page file is what helps keep your computer stable. Although you may think there is enough memory in your computer to handle all the programs it runs, you can still exceed that limit, which may cause program errors and system crashes. Some programs also rely on there being a page file. If the page file is missing or not available, the computer gets random errors or the programs will not work.

Should I Change My Microsoft Windows Page File Size?

Reasons why it is not a good idea to change the Windows page file size or disable it.

www.computerhope.com

Also see this Microsoft link:

Page files in Windows with large physical memory
When large physical memory is installed, a page file might not be required to support the system commit charge
during peak usage.
For example, 64-bit versions of Windows and Windows Server support more physical memory (RAM) than 32-bit
versions support.
The available physical memory alone might be large enough.

However, the reason to configure the page file size hasn't changed.
It has always been about supporting a system crash dump, if it's necessary, or extending the system commit limit,
if it's necessary.
For example, when a lot of physical memory is installed, a page file might not be required to back the system commit
charge during peak usage. The available physical memory alone might be large enough to do this.
However, a page file or a dedicated dump file might still be required to back a system crash dump.

Introduction to the page file - Windows Client

Learn about the page files in Windows. A page file is an optional, hidden system file on a hard disk.

learn.microsoft.com

Dru2 said:
Some might say no, but you risk performance/memory issues if something winds up eating more RAM than necessary. Letting Windows manage it avoids that. Also, if you look at your page file, you'll notice how little RAM is used. For that reason, why disable it? Just let Windows do its thing,

My two cents

Thanks guys. Windows gave me a 4.2GB page file.

Sammy888 · Dec 20, 2022

Dru2 said:
Not sure what your system is doing cause it's odd it'd automatically manually manage the file that way. That's an end user task. With that, my Windows 11 page file settings look exactly like the one above. If yours looks differently, I'd surmise it's something you did, not something Windows automatically did.

That's a solid assumption. However, I did not. It's absurd to have the page file on both the NVMe and slower (but larger) HDD.

Given very few people have upgraded to W11, I must assume it's a [recent] Windows 11 thing.

Edit: this how it looks now:

Sammy888 · Dec 20, 2022

Scott said:
Thanks guys. Windows gave me a 4.2GB page file.

Mine is 1.02 GB.

Dru2 · Dec 20, 2022

Sammy888 said:
It's absurd to have the page file on both the NVMe and slower (but larger) HDD.

Uh.... yeah, I know that, thus why I said what I said. And you're on a Windows 11 forum where pretty much everyone here it is running Windows 11. And many, including me, have been running it since release. Additionally, if you look at the OS below my avatar, you'll notice it's the latest RTM version. Mine is not doing what you say yours is.

At the end of the day Windows just doesn't decide on its own to manually shift the page file around. Someone had to do it.

Deleted member 8037 · Dec 20, 2022

Scott said:
Okay I'll ask. If a computer has lots of RAM, say 32GB or more, does it even need a paging file?

today's video games definitely need virtual memory, If you turn it off it will most likely crash

Dru2 · Dec 20, 2022

Scott said:
Thanks guys. Windows gave me a 4.2GB page file.

Yeah, I have 32gig in my system and Windows created a near 5gig page file. This is from my Win11 build in system specs (sys 1)...

Windows 11 Page File Windows Managed.jpg

Dru2 · Dec 20, 2022

Sammy888 said:
Edit: this how it looks now:

View attachment 48000

That's how it should look. And Windows has allocated a gig to the file.

DigitalGoat · Dec 20, 2022

Just purusing this thread and wondered, is the OP's system set up so that Windows has installed it's startup files on the HDD as well as the SSD as it is know to do under certain circumstances? Would that explain the multiple pagefiles.
Alternatively if the OP has had the machine looked at by a repair service it may be the result of an over eager shop technician.

johnlgalt · Dec 20, 2022

Scott said:
Okay I'll ask. If a computer has lots of RAM, say 32GB or more, does it even need a paging file?

As noted by everyone else, and especially ZBook's link and the real world scenarios:

Check out my system. I still let Windows manage my page file, and it does exist.

Mine is exactly 19 GB on my System NVMe drive.