How to create a disk in RAM. RAMDisk Enterprise from WinRamTech: automatic increase in RAM disk capacity when there is not enough space

Let's try to create a RAM disk linked to an image file.

1. We create the image file itself. To do this, go to the menu Image – Create Image
   

   

2. Here the parameters are similar to those we chose when creating the RAM disk. Set the image file name, type, size, format and volume label. As an example, I will create an image with the same parameters as the RAM disk from the first example. Accordingly, you need to create an image file with exactly the same parameters as you want the RAM disk to have. It is important!

   

   After this, you will receive a message about the successfully created image.

   

3. Now we create the RAM disk itself. To do this, click on the already familiar big green plus. And in the window that opens, in the paragraph Path to the image file (optional) Click on the folder icon and select the image file created earlier.

   

   By the way, the image file itself can be created right there by clicking on the blank leaf icon. But we are not looking for easy ways!

   It could have been like that :)

4. Set the drive letter and be sure to check the box Save content. In this case, data from the RAM disk will be saved to the image file during system shutdown. And check the box How removable drive , if we don’t want unnecessary folders to be created on it.

   

   Main settings

5. Let's go to additional settings. Here we are interested in the point Save data to image every, min. If you have stored important information and there is a possibility of a sudden computer failure, set the frequency to 30 minutes, for example. But keep in mind that saving data to an image slows down the work. And if the created RAM disk occupies a large volume, the storage time increases significantly accordingly.

   

   Autosave to image

6. That's it, click OK and the created disk will be automatically mounted. You can start working with him.

   

   Result

Basic settings of the SoftPerfect RAM Disk program

In order to be a real guru in this program, let’s understand its basic settings. Fortunately there are few of them.

In order to get into them, go to the menu Tools - Settings.

Settings

basic settings

Launch withWindows– SoftPerfect program RAM Disk will be added to . A necessary setting so that RAM disks are created automatically, without your participation.

Allow configuration to unprivileged users– makes it possible for users who do not have administrator rights in Windows to work with the program and change the settings of created RAM disks.

Allow unmounting drives from File Explorer– thanks to it you can quickly disconnect the disk without going into the SoftPerfect RAM Disk program.

Global drive letters– use of global identification of disks created in the program. It is not recommended to disable it, according to the developer, if you are a regular user and do not use .

Show tray icon– when turned on, the program icon in the form of a lamb is displayed in the line next to the clock. It's better to leave it on for quick access to the program.

Results

So we have broken down the work with the SoftPerfect RAM Disk program and the process of creating RAM disks in it.

But why do I need a RAM disk? What will I record on it? How to use it the best way? This is what we will talk about in.

If you liked this article, don't forget to like, share with your friends and eat more vitamins!

I talked about what a RAM disk is and what functions it performs. The RAM disk is created based on random access memory. Part of the volume is taken from it and a partition is created on which you can install programs and store files. The access speed of such a disk is several times higher than that of an SSD, so it makes sense to use it for software that you frequently use. In this article I will tell you, how to create a RAM disk and move any programs and files to it.

How to create a RAM disk using SoftPerfect RAM Disk

There is one interesting utility creating RAM section - SoftPerfect RAM Disk. The program is in Russian, has a simple interface, but most importantly, it has the ability to transfer files from the RAM partition to the HDD. Why is this so important? The fact is that RAM is volatile memory, and when the computer is turned off, all data recorded on non-volatile memory is irretrievably destroyed. When the PC is turned off, the program will transfer the data to the hard drive, and when turned on, again to the RAM disk.

If you will use a partition of RAM for temporary files, then using the function of transferring data to the hard drive is not important, but when storing important files on RAM, it makes sense to transfer the files to the HDD when the device is turned off. Fortunately, the program does this automatically.

The utility really has many advantages, which means that such software will not be distributed for free. Its price is $29, but you can use the free trial version and try out the functionality. Here is a link to the program, the site is in English, but figuring out how to download is not difficult.

Let's say you have already downloaded and installed the utility. Opening SoftPerfect utility RAM Disk and click on green icon plus sign. This will add a new RAM disk.

A window will open where you need to fill in some information. In field "Size" We set the amount of RAM that you are ready to take away. It is important to note that you will not be able to use more than the amount used by the system. You can see how much memory is available in the task manager on the “Performance” tab of the “Memory” section.

If you have 12 GB of RAM, but 8 GB is available, then you should take about 4-6 GB. Not a lot, but what will be the speed of launching programs later?

We return to the window for adding a RAM disk. In the window "Mount Options" indicate the letter. In chapter "File system options" let's choose NTFS. Having done everything necessary actions press the OK button.

In the main window of the program we see the RAM disk we created. Next click on the tab "Image" and select "Create an image". This function of transferring data to HDD, I talked about it at the beginning of the article. It just allows you to write files and folders to your hard drive, but first you need to provide the image with space.

By clicking the button, a window opens where we select the path to save the IMG image file. This is where data will be written from the RAM disk. Image type select "Tom". Specify the image size as a RAM disk. That is, if you specified a disk size of 4 GB, then the image size will be 4 GB. In field "Format" We specify the NTFS file system. You can write a label if you wish.

After clicking the OK button, a message about successful creation IMG image, according to the path you specified.

If there is some problem with the RAM partition and files will not appear on it, then you can extract the saved image file on your hard drive and all your data will be there.

How to set up a RAM disk

We haven't started setting up the RAM partition we created yet. Click on the disk right click mouse and select the item "Properties".

In the window that opens, specify the path to the image to link the RAM drive and the image. Be sure to check the box next to the item "Save the contents", otherwise the files will not be written to the image. After everything has been done, press the button "Additional".

A window with additional parameters will appear. We need to specify the time during which data will be written to the hard drive; we can specify, for example, an hour, or half an hour. Now click OK.

In the properties window, we also click the OK button and in the message that opens about remounting the disk, we also click OK.

So we have created our long-awaited and super-fast RAM disk.

If you had a desire to remove it, then this is done very simply. Right-click on it and select the option "Delete". Or press key combinations Ctrl+Del.

Of course, removing the RAM will not remove the image. The data will have to be extracted from it, and if it is not valuable, then deleted immediately.

What do we end up with? The disk will appear in the "Computer" directory with all other partitions. You can transfer any files there and work as with conventional drives. Of course, you won't be able to store large files on it, so you can use it to store temporary files, such as the Temp folder.

How to move the Temp folder to a RAM disk

Moving system folders, including Temp, is done quite easily using variable environments. First, let's find out where the Temp folder is located:

C:\Windows\Temp

It is also located in a different path:

C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local\Temp

Create a folder on the RAM disk, preferably called this: Temp. Now go to the “Computer” folder, click edit with the mouse button empty space and go to properties.

On the left we find the item "Advanced system settings" and go into it.

In the section that opens, go to the “Advanced” tab and select the option "Changed Environments".

There you should see a line with the name "TEMP". Click on it twice and in another window indicate the new path instead of the old value. If the letter of your RAM disk is “E”, then the path will be like this: E:\Temp. We do the same with the TMP directory, this is the second path that I indicated above.

For these changes to take effect, be sure to restart the computer.

Now you know how to create a RAM disk. Of course, they are not very large in volume, so they cannot be placed on it large files, but I think it will be suitable for a couple of programs, and all because the read/write speed of such a disk is simply enormous. After all, RAM is inferior in speed only to the processor. It probably makes sense to purchase a large amount of RAM when building a computer, at least 64 GB. Then you can make a pretty decent RAM disk.

I hope this article helped you, I will continue to look for tools that will help you get even more benefit from RAM, so stay tuned for site updates.

By using special programs discussed in this review, you can create a virtual disk in your computer’s RAM that works much faster than a regular HDD, so that any disk-intensive tasks will be performed on it several times faster.

RAM disks were used back in the days of MS-DOS and allowed you to work on a computer without hard drive with only one floppy disk. Using the RAMDRIVE.SYS file, a small virtual disk was created in memory, on which the user stored files until the computer was turned off, and then copied them back to the floppy disk. This made it possible to save the resource of floppy disks, and also increased the speed of operations on the computer.

Many years have passed, and RAM disks are being returned again, but this time, instead of floppy disks, they are used to protect SSDs, while at the same time, as before, increasing the performance of the computer.

Increase in productivity

RAM disks can be used for different purposes, but maximum growth can be achieved only if the following conditions are met: after placing the files in the RAM disk, there will still be a few gigabytes left on the computer free memory; When processing data, the disk must be intensively used, otherwise the performance gain will not be noticeable.

Most often, RAM drives are used for the following tasks: compiling heavy programs; launching a web server; launch games from large textures; loading large projects into the application, working with images virtual machines. Although these tasks are indeed often mentioned when discussing RAM disks, not all of them benefit from using a RAM drive; read more about this in the testing section.

Some of the above examples are not relevant for regular user, however, on a home computer you can also use RAM disks to speed up some everyday operations (launching programs, games, opening files). The increase will be especially noticeable if the system has a regular HDD instead of an SSD.

It makes sense to transfer games only if the PC has at least 8 GB of RAM installed, and sometimes all 16, otherwise, after copying the game, there is no free RAM left to run it. The gain should be noticeable only when running the most demanding games (Crysis, Metro 2033), in particular with installed textures high resolution. You should not expect an increase in FPS, only the level loading time will decrease. In the case of Steam games, you can use the utility to move games to any selected folder. Gamers who record HD gaming video without compression may also notice the benefit.

SSD storage

RAM disks are also becoming popular as a means to reduce SSD wear. To do this, the swap file, the directory of temporary files, as well as some programs are transferred to a virtual disk, thus reducing the number of accesses to the solid-state disk. Some RAM disk creation programs even include options to make these settings easier.

Of the frequently used programs on RAM, it is advisable to move the browser first. If it opens with a large number of tabs left over from the previous session, it will start to launch much faster. Also, starting from a RAM disk will prolong SSD life, since browsers intensively use the cache, which in this case will be located in memory. The easiest way to install a browser on a RAM disk is to copy the folder with the Portable version of the program to a virtual partition. This way you won’t have to manually enter the paths to the required directories in the browser.

Other benefits of RAM disks

Using RAM disks brings other benefits:
- Reduces noise and, to a small extent, PC heating due to less frequent HDD usage
- Reduces disk fragmentation by ensuring temporary files and browser cache are never written to the physical disk
— There will be more space on your hard drive: temporary files that programs sometimes do not delete will not accumulate on the computer.

There is another interesting use for RAM disks - the ability to place RAM drives in memory unused on 32-bit systems. As you know, Windows 32-bit can use no more than ~3.5 GB of memory, and if more is installed on the computer, then the memory simply “disappears”. The programs Gavotte Ram Disk (more about setting up) and SuperSpeed ​​RamDisk Plus (this program was not considered in the review due to the lack of free version).

Programs for creating RAM disks

Before moving on to a review of the programs, two clarifications need to be made. First, only free programs were considered. Second, the Bond Disc and Gavotte Ram Disk utilities were not included in the review because they did not run on Windows 8 64-bit.

One of the simplest and most understandable programs. Allows you to create RAM disks up to 4 GB in size (limitation of the free version), but only in a single copy.

Dataram can initialize the RAM disk when the system starts, and optionally loads any specified image into it.

Autosave can be set for any period of time (five minutes by default), and you can separately specify whether the disk will be saved when the computer is turned off. Manual saving is also available, which can be done at any time.
After overwriting the image, the previous copy of the disk is not deleted, but is saved with the .bak extension.

In the program settings there is an option to create a TEMP directory on the RAM drive, however, the system paths for storing temporary files do not change and applications still use regular folder TEMP. Hence, to transfer temporary files to RAM disk TEMP variables and TMP will need to be edited manually in the My Computer settings System Properties->Environment Variables.

The options on the last tab of the program mainly concern functionality related to extending the life of the SSD. If the virtual disk will be used solely for storing temporary files and reducing system access to solid state drive, then such settings as erasing the contents of memory when exiting the program and refusing to store the previous copy of RAMDisk will be very useful.

The disadvantages of Dataram RAMDisk include the banner that appears on the screen when the program is launched, and the already specified limitation on the size of the RAM drive of 4 GB.

ImDisk has a somewhat confusing interface compared to its colleagues, and it is not clear why they left it this way, because some options could have simply been removed.

The program has only a console version of the executable file, and for working with graphical interface you will need to open the Control Panel, where the ImDisk icon is located (however, you can always make a shortcut for it on the desktop using Windows tools).

The difference between ImDisk and some other utilities is that this program allows you to create any number of virtual disks(as long as there are free letters for drives).

ImDisk was originally intended to emulate disk drives, optical drives And hard drives, however it can also be used to create RAM drives. To do this, you need to specify the path to store the image file, specify its size, select the Harddisk disk type and do not forget to check the Copy image file to memory option.

The last option means that the image file will be loaded into memory and all operations will be performed with it there. Thus, the original image will not be updated unless all changes are manually synchronized.

There are both pros and cons to manual synchronization: you will need to use the Save image function yourself, but this can only be done when you really need to update the file, and this way the computer will not periodically slow down when dumping the contents of memory into a file.

After creating a RAM disk, some of its properties can be changed: for example, increase the size or set the Read Only label.

The main disadvantage of ImDisk is that the program cannot start a RAM disk automatically when you turn on the computer and you have to create it manually each time.

The OSFMount utility clearly has some kind of relationship with ImDisk, which is noticeable by the presence of absolutely identical options in the programs and also in the interface. However, there are still some differences between the utilities.

OSFMount has a separate executable file, the interface is slightly simplified and more emphasis is placed on working with RAM disks.
The utility can also be used to mount common images (ISO, NRG, VMDK, etc.).

No settings related to autosave have been added, but when you disconnect the disk, the utility asks whether it is worth updating the contents of the image. This feature can be combined with manual saving, which remains in place.

The only complaint about OSFMount, besides the lack of automatic creation RAM drive when you turn on the computer, as in the case of ImDisk, is that when you disconnect disks and some other operations, the program freezes for several seconds, and, as the Task Manager shows, at this moment the contents of the memory are not copied to HDD, and what the program is doing is unclear.

After working with SoftPerfect RAM Disk, I was left with the impression that this is one of the few free programs whose interface is being more or less brought into line with the requirements of 2012.

As with other applications, SoftPerfect Ram Disk is generally designed to work with images own format(SVI), and in particular can be used to create RAM disks.

After starting the program, the main window displays the amount of free RAM, which simplifies the creation of a RAM disk, since it is immediately clear what the limit on its maximum size is.

To access some program options, you must first create an image and save it on a physical disk. This will enable the option to autosave the contents of the RAM disk to a file.

SoftPerfect RAM Disk allows you to create any number of virtual disks without software size restrictions.

Among useful options It is also worth noting: data compression on disk; creating a RAM disk at system startup; cleaning the disk when unmounting; autosave after a specified period of time; editing the path to Temp folder; export/import of all settings for disks.

This utility is installed and uninstalled almost like real hardware, through the device manager Windows by manual addition drivers in the settings wizard.

After this, RAM disk B: 1 MB in size appears in the system, and to change its parameters you must either download a separate executable file from the developer’s website, or open the properties of the virtual device in the manager each time Windows devices. Instructions for installing the program and a direct link to the configurator can be found in the CHM file.

QSoft RAMDrive can create only one RAM disk in the system, but its size is not limited by software. There is an option in the settings to automatically change the size of the RAM drive, but when using it, the disk volume is 256 MB and does not increase after the free space runs out (probably due to incompatibility of the software with Windows 8 64 bit).

RAMDrive can work with images, load them when the system starts and save the content when the driver is unloaded, at certain intervals or by a timer.

The website states that Russian version RAMDisk “Enterprise” is free only when run on localized Russian-language systems, but the use of English-language Windows 8 during tests confirms the opposite. Perhaps it is enough that system settings locale was specified as Russian.

Important clarification: QSoft RAMDrive did not take part in testing because the program generated an error during the creation of the RAM drive large capacity(disks with a capacity of 1-2 GB were used for testing). Apparently this is due to poor compatibility programs and Windows 8 64 bit.

Testing

Of the seven free programs selected, for the reasons stated above, only four made it to testing. Initially, it was planned to use several synthetic benchmarks at once to test them, but during the testing process it turned out that many of them test programs work with disks at a very low level and simply do not see RAM disks. That is why basic information about the performance of RAM drives was collected using CrystalDiskMark. Testing was carried out on a computer with 6 GB of memory and Intel processor [email protected] GHz

Synthetics
CrystalDiskMark shows highly repeatable results, although on some RAM disks it produces two individual set numbers that differ from each other by approximately two hundred megabytes. Apparently, this is explained by the use of several memory sticks with different speeds in the computer. The diagrams show the best result.

CrystalDiskMark (sequential operations, MB/s, more is better):

CrystalDiskMark (4K, MB/s, bigger is better):

As you can see, the indicators RAM speed disks are noticeably different, and due to the fact that the priority when working with them is read speed, the undisputed winner in this category was left for further tests - SoftPerfect RAM Disk, which showed excellent results both sequential and random reading (as well as random writing).

The HD Tune benchmark was able to recognize only one of the virtual disks, and it incorrectly reported its size, so it was not possible to determine which one. However, this test can compare typical access times and CPU load.

As for the CPU load, for the hard drive according to HD Tune it was 4%, for the SSD - 7%, and for the RAM disk an error was received, since the result was minus one percent.

Program launch time

After testing, it was known that VLC is one of the longest-running “daily” programs, so the launch speed comparison was carried out only with its participation.

VLC startup time (seconds, less is better):

Quite predictably, there was virtually no difference between a cold start from a RAM drive and a hot start from any media, since in both cases the program actually started from RAM. As for performance, the RAM disk was twice as fast as even the SSD, and as already mentioned, this time was very close to the time of hot startup, that is, there was simply nowhere to improve it further.

Other tasks

Archiving in zip (fast compression, seconds):

Performance testing when creating an archive showed that “ bottleneck» in such operations on this moment is the processor, and not the hard drive, because even with the minimum possible zip compression, a 1 GB file was archived in about 40 seconds on all disks.

To be fair, it is worth noting that in the zip store mode (simply put, without compression), in which the file is not compressed, but only copied to the archive, the difference between different drives became obvious. The only problem is that in real conditions such tasks are very rare.

Archiving in zip (no compression, seconds, less is better):

We left two tests for last in which no benefits were identified from using a RAM disk.

Launching Ubuntu in VirtualBox (the image was located on a HDD, SSD and RAM disk) showed that the type of drive used does not affect the OS boot speed (~40 sec +/-1 sec), and everything is again limited by the speed of the CPU.

Loading times for game levels were simulated using popular benchmarks. Considering that individual tests They load in about ten seconds, and sometimes more, the comparison seemed appropriate, but RAM disks did not improve this indicator. Apparently, everything once again boils down to the fact that the main load falls on the processor, and the amount of loaded data both in these benchmarks and in real games not so great that the difference in speed is noticeable.

Used in testing: Heaven DX11 Benchmark, 3DMark 06, 3DMark 11, Call Of Pripyat Benchmark.

Which is better, SSD or RAM disk?

Price
In terms of one gigabyte, an SSD is cheaper. Starting from 500 UAH, you can buy an additional 16 GB of RAM for a PC, but for the same money you can get a good 64 GB SSD, and if you want to save money, then a 32 GB drive is easy to find for 400 UAH.

RAM disk
A RAM disk, by and large, has only one advantage - speed that is several times (sometimes an order of magnitude) higher than the speed of an SSD, but this potential cannot be revealed in all tasks.

Disadvantages: necessity additional settings some programs; small volume; volatility (the contents of the RAM disk can be periodically written to an image file, but this is not full replacement non-volatile memory cells).

SSD
Solid state drives speed up all programs installed on the drive, including the operating system.

Flaws
Under intense loads, the performance of the SSD will be lower and in this case it will wear out faster.

As you can see, in certain situations, RAM disks can not only compare with SSDs in performance, but also noticeably outperform them. If you are faced with a choice: SSD or additional memory, once again weigh all the pros and cons of each decision.

I have been using this configuration on my home computer since last fall, for more than six months. I’ll try to organize my subjective impressions:
Pros:
+ Indeed, it works quickly. Programs from memory run instantly (obviously). There are no complaints about the stability of operation - the computer works for weeks and months.
+ No unnecessary sounds from the HDD.
+ The concepts of “wear” and “number of read/write cycles” are unimportant for RAM.
+ A side benefit - the result is an unchangeable, indestructible system. You can install all sorts of crooked programs one time (for example, for USB recovery flash - they usually install their own drivers, which are then difficult to pick out) without the risk of ruining anything. Reboot and it’s like nothing happened.
+ Side benefit - VHD is cool. No more disk partitions, just files that are simply copied/moved/deleted/backed up without any acronis/paragons/gparteds.

Minuses:
- To be honest, there are differences with good SSD speed is not noticeable. In both cases, there is no room to complain about performance.
- Of course, precious memory is wasted. Take out and put in 6-8 gigabytes. In my case, the remaining 10GB is enough for me, and if it’s not enough, I can boot into VHD mode.
- 6-8 GB for Windows 7 - still very little. Just updates Windows Update They'll quickly eat up the whole place. You’ll also want to install your favorite programs... for some, even a 100GB system partition may not be enough (and some advocate not partitioning disks at all). In my case I posted on system partition only the most popular programs, and everything else in the form portable versions I keep it on HDD. Still this home computer, there are no greedy memory and space on it system disk monsters like SQL Server, Visual Studio, Adobe CS, MS Office (portable LibreOffice is also sufficient). So far so good.
- temp has to be transferred to another disk. Some installers, without asking anyone, unpack exactly there and free space may not be enough.
- You have to disable driver signature verification. There's nothing to be done about it.
- Indestructibility has another side. For every change in settings, for every update, for every installation of a program/driver, for permanent use you must reboot into VHD mode - otherwise everything will be lost upon reboot. If some of your programs store something of their own in the profile (for example, games store saves there), then it is advisable to transfer the profile to another section.
- Loading 6-8GB into memory takes a lot of time - you can’t boast of a 10 second load.
- For obvious reasons, it is impossible to use hibernation. But in normal sleep The system goes away and wakes up normally.

But I hear screams in the hall again. “And they won’t come up with anything, as long as they don’t buy an SSD!”, “This is nonsense, throwing away so much memory for nothing!”, “Will you install some crooked wood?”, “No need!” Agree. I will not recommend this approach. This is more of a fun experiment than working solution. Thank you for your attention, now you can post pictures with bread trolleybuses.

P.S. Many thanks to the developers of Firadisk and WinVBlock - karyonix and Shao Miller, as well as the reboot.pro forum.

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Good day, dear friends, acquaintances, readers, passing personalities and all, all, all. As you understand, today we will talk about what is ram disk, why it might be needed, how to set it up and use it.

Articles are rarely published so far (but they are published :-)), as they are underway great amount works in all areas of sites, I think, the line known to you. Over time, we will return not just to the previous pace, but also to a greater frequency of publications, so that, so to speak, you do not get bored.

By the way, just one of these days long-term construction projects will be crawling out, namely a site-about-website-creation and a hard version. Actually, the delay with the articles is due to their active revision. Well, yes, a new version of the design is being slowly prepared website, as well as the promised buns with mobile version and all that other stuff.

For the first time in the history of the project, I want, within the framework of the article, to remind you that you can, in some way, support its development, funds for which are especially needed now. However, the matter is up to you, and therefore, aside from the lyrics and organizational moments, let’s move on to the very topic of the article, i.e. directly to what it is ram disk.

Where, in the first screenshot, is, in fact, the little defenseless RAID 0 from two disks, and on the second directly RAM-disk. As you probably understood, the difference between the speeds, roughly speaking, differs somewhere in 10 once to the side RAM-disk, let alone access time ( Access Time) I am generally silent. Speed, of course, was measured according to one of the articles, namely "".

Who will benefit from such RAM disk performance?

Yes, in general, everyone who has a lot of RAM, especially since it now costs a penny (from 300 rubles per gigabyte DDR3). In addition, it is perfect for Windows 10.

It will be especially convenient for those who 8 - a gigabyte at home, like mine. And the owner of the servers... However, the latter themselves know what to do with all this :)

Why is such power of a ram disk needed?

Yes, in general, because the last thing in the system that really loses in performance is hard disks. Therefore, I personally recommend dragging disk-dependent programs to RAM-disks, i.e. the very ones we are talking about.

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There, even the same one, my favorite Firefox, being cleverly transferred along with the profile (I’ll tell you separately), it flies like I didn’t fly with, although it seemed like it was much faster :)

In general, given the price of, I personally still don’t really understand why they haven’t, at least partially, replaced the usual hdd, especially since the difference in speed is simply colossal.

What does a ram disk look like in practice?

Very simple, namely... like a regular disk.

More precisely, the program creates a virtual drive that uses part of the RAM and presents itself to the user like regular partitions in the system, i.e. there is nothing complicated or specific about it, but from a practical point of view it’s just lovely :)

However, aside from the lyrics. Let's get to practice.

Download, install and configure ram disk

Actually, as you understand from the title, we will talk about a wonderful free program(with a slight limitation on maximum size the disk being created) entitled Dataram RAMDisk, which, in fact, helps everything described above come to life.

I would like to note that it is almost the only one in its segment that is free, of this kind of programs (and also sane for workers), a miracle of programmer thought. Even everyone is supported Windows. Unfortunately, there is no Russian interface, but this is not critical, since everything is quite simple there and I will tell you everything now.

You can download the program here by clicking on the button " Download It" on the left. Installation is extremely simple (consists of only " Next"ov"), so we will not dwell on it.

So, after installation and launch (double click on the shortcut " RAMDisk Configuration Utility") program, you will see the following window for setting up such a thing as ram disk:

With some differences, because I am showing an already configured version of the program (it’s difficult to show from scratch, because the machine where the review is being written is now actively using the section and it doesn’t seem possible for me to stop, because it will be difficult to write further :)).

Let's immediately go through how to set everything up so that it works and as in the screenshots.

"Settings" tab and your ram disk

As you can see from the screenshot above, our magic program, first of all, plaintively asks to set the size virtual partition in field Disk Size. For trial purposes, you can make the partition size for now 1 GB, in order to test what it’s like.

Next, select the type of organization of the file system, namely what is indicated to the right of the dimensions, i.e. FAT32/FAT16(if you can't choose FAT32, then we leave FAT16), and then type boot sector (Windows boot sector).

Note:
Don't rush to press " Start RAMDisk" (thus creating a virtual disk), because first you need to configure everything correctly.

Now let's go to "Load and Save" tab" and here we set the following parameters:

You need to check the box here " Load Disk Image at Startup" And " Save Disk Image on Shutdown".

The trick is that so that the contents of our ram the disk was not lost after turning off the computer (and, as you hope you know, RAM is cleared during reboots/shutdowns, unlike hard drives), our high-speed partition will be written to a file of the appropriate size, for which, in fact, the tick we put is indicated " Save Disk Image on Shutdown".

The first of them loads the contents of this very file when the system starts.

• Path where the file is written ram disk (equal in volume to what we set on the first tab) is specified under each of the checkboxes by clicking on the folder image. The paths must be the same;
• Alternatively, you can also check the box " AutoSave" and set the time for constant auto-saving to disk in a file, which will help avoid problems with an unexpected reboot, and all sorts of other sudden horrors with the computer. I don’t have to, because this doesn’t happen in principle;
• You can also assign some sonorous name to your RAM disk(check the box " Disk Label" and specifying the name). Create a temporary directory (" Create TEMP directory) not necessary.

Well on the tab"Options" let's check the last two boxes we need, namely, " Do not create backup file when saving disk image" And " Do not compress image file on NTFS filesystems".

The first one, which "Do not create", allows you not to create backup copy file when saving a disk image, so that there is no mess of saves and problems with the load on the disk subsystem. The second one, which "Do not compress", do not compress the image file into file system NTFS, which I think is worth it to all of you.

If you wish, you can also put " Manually set RAMdisk timeout value" is a parameter that allows you to manually set the required identification time ram disk (the time when it is recognized by the OS as a virtual disk), which is convenient if you have a problem and the system boots slowly.

That's it, having completed all the settings, you can launch the disk using the " button Start RAMDisk".

Afterword

I deliberately omitted the options for using this disk in RAM, mentioning only briefly the transfer of the browser and disk-dependent programs. The essence of this “intention” is not only that I don’t want to make a big mess out of the article, but I also decided to hold a small competition, namely...

• The author of the most interesting and correct idea for using such a mega-fast disk will receive from the author and the project an excellent, nice gift, pleasant and far away Not good-for-nothing ;)
• Write your ideas in the comments, as well as questions, additions, thanks and anything else that you like to write :)

That's all for now, I ran to finish the long-term construction, so tomorrow, by evening, we can expect either both new sites, or one for sure, fortunately, even the server for them has already been purchased for a long time;)