What do I do if I get a pop-up that says I am out of memory?
What do I do if I get a pop-up that says I am out of memory?
Periodically, while operating your computer, you might get a popup from Windows that says “Insufficient Memory” or something similar to this.
This is a general system error that your computer is letting you know that you may have 1 of 2 conditions happening. Either your PC doesn’t have enough RAM to open the applications that you want to run, and hence you might have too many running at the same time. The other option is that you might have some old processes still running from applications that were shut down already.
Depending on the amount of RAM that you have in your computer is normally what will dictate how often you get this error. To check on the amount of RAM you have in your PC, read my other post here. If you have a very small amount of RAM, you might want to purchase more for your PC, if you have enough space to install it (slots for it to sit in on your motherboard).
If you have RAM that is not being freed when you close applications, this can be due to a memory leak or a rogue process that is not shutting down correctly. There are 2 ways to get rid of this message. The first is to simply do a cold boot of the machine, so all memory is wiped clean. A cold boot is done by shutting down the system and waiting 10 or more seconds before starting it again.
If you have applications running that you can’t shut down at the moment, yet you need to get some RAM back, you can “kill” the process that is causing the issue.
***WARNING*** terminating processes that you are unsure of, might lead to data loss in applications that are open.
Let’s start shall we?
First open the Task Manager for Windows. Right click on your task bar and select Task Manager
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when the task manager launches select the Performance tab
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If your system is running out of resources the second graph will be very close to the top.
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select the Processes tab and sort by memory used
Here you will be able to see which applications are using the most RAM on your system. You can select the application, and select end process.
This will terminate the application, and get you back some of your RAM. Remember if you don’t know what the process is, it might not be safe to terminate it.
Periodically, while operating your computer, you might get a popup from Windows that says ‘Insufficient Memory’ or something similar to this.
This is a general system error that your computer is letting you know that you may have 1 of 2 conditions happening. Either your PC doesn’t have enough RAM to open the applications that you want to run, and hence you might have too many running at the same time. The other option is that you might have some old processes still running from applications that were shut down already.
Depending on the amount of RAM that you have in your computer is normally what will dictate how often you get this error. To check on the amount of RAM you have in your PC, read my other post here. If you have a very small amount of RAM, you might want to purchase more for your PC, if you have enough space to install it (slots for it to sit in on your motherboard).
If you have RAM that is not being freed when you close applications, this can be due to a memory leak or a rogue process that is not shutting down correctly. There are 2 ways to get rid of this message. The first is to simply do a cold boot of the machine, so all memory is wiped clean. A cold boot is done by shutting down the system and waiting 10 or more seconds before starting it again.
If you have applications running that you can’t shut down at the moment, yet you need to get some RAM back, you can “kill” the process that is causing the issue.
***WARNING*** terminating processes that you are unsure of, might lead to data loss in applications that are open.
Let’s start shall we?
First open the Task Manager for Windows. Right click on your task bar and select Task Manager
when the task manager launches select the Performance tab
If your system is running out of resources the second graph will be very close to the top.
select the Processes tab and sort by memory used
Here you will be able to see which applications are using the most RAM on your system. You can select the application, and select end process.
This will terminate the application, and get you back some of your RAM. Remember if you don’t know what the process is, it might not be safe to terminate it.
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Categories: Computers, Software, Tips and Tricks Tags: Memory, RAM, System Error, Task Manager
Just how much resouces is that program using?
Have you ever looked at the task manager to see if a program or service was using a lot of your resources? Then once you have a look see that the program is not really using all that much and wonder…
“Hmm I thought for sure it was that program, but its not using much of my RAM!”
A ha! Let me show you a little trick to see just how much “Memory” that program really is using. If you remember we talked about RAM and Hard Disk Space a few articles ago, and I was teaching you the difference.
Well each program that you run uses to components. One part RAM, and One Part Swap space (this is space on your Hard Disk).
How do I see this elusive Swap Space you might ask, well, lets teach the Task Manager to show it to you again.
- Right-click in the task bar
- Select “Task Manager”
- Select the “Processes” tab
- Select “View”
- Choose “Select Columns”
- Place a check by “Memory – Private Working Set”
- Choose “Ok”
A new column will be available in the Task Manager, and you will be able to see how much RAM, and Hard Disk space each program is using.
Don’t be surprised when you see your favorite web browsers consuming 2 X the amount of memory you thought they were using!
Hope this helps!
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Categories: Tips and Tricks Tags: Memory, RAM, Task Manager
How can I tell what type of CPU or RAM I have?
There is a great free little tool that you can use to find out some important information about your computer. This is a little freeware program that gives you some specifics about your computer, that you don’t have to go digging to find.
I use a program called CPUz. This program gives a wealth of information about your core system, so you know just what you have.
you can get the program here: CPUz
After installing the program, it will immedately get your system specs for you, so you can see all the important information about your system
The CPU tab will show you your processor, and the speeds that it runs at:
The Memory tab will show you the timings of your RAM and the amount that you have installed:
The SPD tab will show the size of each stick, and the type that you have. This is the information that you will need in order to go to your local computer store to purchase more.
Remember that your computer mother board might not accept certain types of RAM, and certain sizes. This means that you need to also know what type of mainboard your computer has installed as well. This information is on the Mainboard tab.
If you need help to figure out what all these numbers are, I would suggest that you print off the images that CPUz generates of your computer, and take them with you to your local computer store. The sales associates should be able to help you get the right kind of RAM for your system.
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How much RAM do I have?
Have you ever been told:
“You’re computer would run so much better if you just had more RAM”
What does this mean? RAM is the memory that your computer uses to actively work on something. Your computer also stores information on your Hard Disk, but the more RAM you have the better.
Think of it this way, your RAM is like your desk that you work at, and it only has so much space that you can use. After its filled up, all the information needs to be filled into that shiny filling cabinet behind you. It’s a pain to take files to and from the filing cabinet, but it has to be done, as your desk is only so big.
What if you could increase the size of your desk? Then you would need to make less trips to the filing cabinet. The same is true if you have more RAM.
How can you check how much RAM you have? Well you can see this information in your task manager and its the most helpful there, so lets have a look there. You can right-click on your taskbar and choose “Task Manager”
This will bring up your Task Manager. This is what your Task Manager looks like.
Where it says “Physical Memory” this is the amount of RAM that you have installed on your PC. The PC that I am using to write this has 8 GB of RAM, and 2.26 GB of it is in use at the moment.
If you notice that your graph is almost at the top, then you are maxing out the RAM, and you might want to consider putting more in.
There are some other tricks that you can do to squeeze out a bit more from your system, but we’ll save those for another time.
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