How to Reset Virtual Memory in Windows 10/11? [2 Easy Ways!] (2024)

There is nothing more frustrating than having your programs crash or slow down, resetting a Windows Virtual Memory is a simple fix

Are you also experiencing slowdowns and lags in Windows 10 or 11 and looking for a way to reset yourvirtual memory, also known as a pagingfile?

Memory managementis handled efficiently by the Windowsoperating system, however, if you find out thatvirtual memoryis not functioning properly, you may need to reset it manually.

Resetting avirtual memoryis a simple process that can be done in a few steps easily in both Windows 10 and Windows 11.

How to Reset Virtual Memory in Windows 10?

There are several ways to reset a pagingfile(virtual memory) but, we’ll discuss only two methods which are short and easy too.

Let’s have a look at these methods:

1. UsingWindows Settings
2. Using command prompt

Now, we’ll explore these two methods step-by-step individually.

Method 1:Reset Virtual MemoryUsing Settings

Windowsoperating systemhandlesvirtual memoryitself to improve the system’s overall performance, however, it provides you a facility to manually changevirtual memorysize (or paging file size) as well, thanks to Microsoft.

You have to follow the given steps in order toreset virtual memoryin Windows 10:

Step 1: Navigate toSystem Properties

Go to your Windows desktop.

Then, right-click onThis PCand selectProperties:

Alternatively, you can type “System” in theWindows searchbar and select “System” from the list of results.

Moreover, you can also usethe Control Panelto opensystem properties. To do this, openthe Control Panel> System and Security > System.

Step 2: Open Advanced System Setting

Now, click on theAdvanced system settingslocated at the right sidebar or at the bottom of the page:

Alternatively, you can type “advanced system settings” in theWindows searchbar and select “Viewadvanced system settings” from the list of results.

Inthe advancedtab, click onSettingsunderthe Performancesection:

Step 3: Reset theVirtual MemorySettings

Now, coming to our next and main step which is to reset thevirtual memory size.

In the Performance Options window, go tothe Advancedtab:

Then, click onChangeunder theVirtual Memorysection:

First, uncheck theAutomatically managepaging file sizefor all drivesoption and click on theCustom sizeradio button:

Now, you have to enter theInitial and Maximum size(in MB). It is fine to enter theinitial sizethe same as the recommended size. For instance, 1905 MB is recommended size in my case (this size will be different in your case) so, I’ll setthe initial sizeto 1905 MB.

As far as the maximum size ofa page fileis concerned, Microsoft recommends at least one and a half times (1.5 times) the size of yourphysical memory(RAM). For example, if you have 4 GB of RAM, the maximum size ofvirtual memoryshould be at least 6 GB (4 x 1.5) which is 6,144 (6 x 1024) in MBs.

For 16 GB RAM, you should set the maximum virtual memory size to 24 GB which is 24,576 in MBs. Similarly, for 32 GB RAM and Windows 11 users, you should set the maximum virtual memory limit to 48 GB which becomes 49,152 MBs.

Note:The maximum size should not exceed 3 times the size of your installed RAM.

Once you set limits, click onSetand then, hit theOkbutton:

To disable virtual memory, you need to select the no paging file radio button in the Virtual Memory settings, however, it’s not recommended as it can cause various system performance issues.

Step 4: Restart Your System

Now, you’ll need to restart or reboot your system for the changes to take effect.

After restarting your PC, you’ll notice improvements in performance especially when working with large files and multitasking.

In case you notice lags or crashes after this process, you can follow the above steps to revert the changes.

So, this is an entire procedure to reset or changevirtual memoryin Windows 10 in a few steps. From now on, multitasking won’t be a problem for you. And, you can easilyfix Windowspagingfileissues too.

Whenever you havelow virtual memory, you can increase its size by following this same procedure.

Method 2:Reset Virtual MemoryUsing Command Prompt

You can also use CMD to reset paging size and you just need to type a few commands to perform this task.

Follow the given steps to reset Virtual Memory in Windows 11 or Windows 10 using the command prompt:

• First, click on the WindowsStartbutton
• Type “CMD” in theWindows searchbar and runthe command promptas an administrator from the list of results:

• Typethe following command andpressEnter. Upon executing the following command, you can check the currentvirtual memoryin Windows 10 or 11:

wmic pagefile list /format:list

• After that, type the following command andpressEnter. This command will switch from automatically manage paging file size to custom management.

wmic computersystem where name="%computername%" set AutomaticManagedPagefile=false

• Then, copy and paste the following command andpressEnter. Replace “XXXX” with the desired size in megabytes for both the initial and maximum sizes.

wmic pagefileset where name="C:\\pagefile.sys" set InitialSize=XXXX,MaximumSize=XXXX

For instance:

wmic pagefileset where name="C:\\pagefile.sys" set InitialSize=1905,MaximumSize=12288

The above example sets theinitial page file sizeto 1905 MB and the maximum size to 12288 MB.

• Once you execute this command, you’ll need to restart your computer for the changes to take effect. Thepaging file sizelimits will be changed once the system is rebooted.

Note:Setting the initial and maximum size properly will also help reduce the chances of system crashes and lags.

After following this process, you should observe improvements because your system will continue to operate smoothly and will prevent crashing due to a lack ofphysical memory(Random Access Memory).

This is how you can reset your Windows 10 or Windows 11virtual memoryeasily.

How toClear Virtual Memoryin Windows 10/11?

Resetting avirtual memorymeans either clearing thevirtual memoryor manually changing it again.

To clear thevirtual memoryin Windows 10 and Windows 11, follow the given procedure:

PressWindows+ Rkeys together to open the run dialog box.

Typegpedit. mscin the open field and click onOKto open the Group Policy Editor:

Navigate toLocal Computer Policy>Computer Configuration>Windows Settings:

Go toSecurity Settings>Local Policies>Security Options:

In security options, find and double-click onShutdown:Clear virtual memorypagefile:

Click on theEnabledoption and then, hitApplybutton:

Now, every time you Shutdown your system, thevirtual memorywill be cleared automatically.

So, in this way, you can free upvirtual memoryorvirtual RAMeasily. There is also aregistry editormethod that can be used for this task, but this is an easier method.

Why Does Windows UseVirtual Memory Concept?

Virtual Memoryis one of the important features ofthe operating systemthat allows it to use moresystem memorythan it physically has. But how? This goal is achieved by using a portion of yourhard driveas a temporary storage space when thephysical RAMis full in order to improve the overallsystem performance.

When a system runs out ofphysical memoryor RAM, it temporarily transfers data from the RAM to a space on thehard drivecalled the pagingfileorvirtual memory. It’s actually thedisk spaceon yourhard drive. Solid-state drives (SSDs) perform better since they are fast. This allows the computer system to continue runningsmoothlyandeffectively.

Note:You can check yourrandom accessmemory(RAM) usageanddisk usageinthe task managerperformance tab.

Virtual memoryis particularly useful when dealing with large programs that require morememorythan the computer can physically provide. Due to thevirtual memoryfeature, you arerunning heavy gameson a limited amount of RAM.

In short, virtual memory compensates for a shortage of physical memory (RAM). The operating system itself handles it efficiently, however, we can also set the virtual memory limits manually (as we did earlier).

It is generally recommended to leave thevirtual memorypaging file settings as they are and let theoperating systemhandle them more efficiently.

However, you can manually increase the limit if you face crashes or lags in performance by following the steps described above.

Frequently Asked Questions

Bottom Line:

After resetting your Windows 10 or Windows 11virtual memory, your system performance will be better than before. You can try differentvirtual memorysizes and observe which one suits you best according to your system.

Some users recommend to turn off the pagingfilebut it’s not a good idea since you can face different issues likememoryshortage, software crashes, and lags. Also, some heavy applications will not work. Although you have a large amount of RAM but disablingvirtual memoryis not a great idea.

So, I hope you learned something from this guide. If so, you can share your thoughts in the comment section. Furthermore, you can share this useful guide with others too so that they can also get benefit from it.