There is not enough memory on a Windows 8.1 computer. What does "the computer doesn't have enough memory" mean? Reasons causing the error

This instruction tells you what to do if, when you start a program, you see a message from Windows 7 or 8 (or 8.1) that the system does not have enough virtual or simple memory and “To free up memory for normal operation of programs, save the files , and then close or restart any open programs."

I will try to take into account all possible ways this error may appear, and also tell you how to fix it.

About what kind of memory is not enough

When in Windows 7, 8 and Windows 8.1 you see a message that there is not enough memory, this refers primarily to RAM and virtual memory, which is essentially a continuation of the RAM - that is, if the system does not have enough RAM, then it uses Windows swap file or, in other words, virtual memory.

Some novice users mistakenly mean free space on the computer’s hard drive by memory and wonder how this is so: there are many gigabytes free on the HDD, but the system complains about a lack of memory.

Reasons causing the error

In order to fix this error, first of all, you need to figure out what caused it. Here are some possible options:

• You opened a lot of things, as a result of which a problem arose with the fact that there is not enough memory on the computer - I will not consider how to fix this situation, since everything is clear here: close what is not needed.
• You really have little RAM (2 GB or less. For some resource-intensive tasks, 4 GB of RAM may not be enough).
• The hard drive is full to capacity, so there is not enough space left for virtual memory when the paging file size is automatically adjusted.
• You yourself (or with the help of some optimization program) adjusted the size of the paging file (or disabled it) and it turned out to be insufficient for the normal operation of programs.
• Some individual program, malicious or not, causes a memory leak (gradually begins to use all available memory).
• Problems with the program itself, which causes the "insufficient memory" or "insufficient virtual memory" errors to appear.

If I'm not mistaken, the five options described are the most common causes of the error.

How to fix low memory errors in Windows 7, 8 and 8.1

And now, in order, about how to correct the error in each of the listed cases.

Low RAM

If your computer has a small amount of RAM, then it makes sense to think about purchasing additional RAM modules. Memory is not expensive these days. On the other hand, if you have a very old computer (and old-style memory), and you are thinking about purchasing a new one soon, the upgrade may not be justified - it’s easier to temporarily accept the fact that not all programs run.

Low hard drive space

Despite the fact that the volumes of today's HDDs are impressive, I myself have often seen that a user has 1 gigabyte or so free out of a terabyte - this not only causes an “insufficient memory” error, but also leads to serious slowdowns during work. It shouldn't come to this.

Well, the main advice is that you shouldn’t store a lot of films and other media that you won’t listen to or watch, games that you won’t play again, and similar things.

Setting up the Windows paging file resulted in an error

If you configured the Windows paging file settings yourself, then there is a possibility that it was these changes that led to the error. Perhaps you didn’t even do this manually, but some program designed to optimize Windows performance did. In this case, you may need to increase the page file or enable it (if it was disabled). Some old programs will not start at all with virtual memory disabled and will always write about its lack.

Memory leak or what to do if a separate program takes up all the free RAM

It happens that some individual process or program begins to intensively use RAM - this may be caused by an error in the program itself, the malicious nature of its actions, or some kind of failure.

You can determine whether such a process exists using the task manager. To launch it in Windows 7, press Ctrl + Alt + Del keys and select Task Manager from the menu, and in Windows 8 and 8.1, press Win keys (logo key) + X and select Task Manager.

In Windows 7 Task Manager, open the “Processes” tab and sort by the “Memory” column (you need to click on the column name). For Windows 8.1 and 8, use the “Details” tab to do this, which gives a visual representation of all the processes running on the computer. They can also be sorted by the amount of RAM and virtual memory used.

If you see that some program or process is using a large amount of RAM (a large amount is hundreds of megabytes, provided that it is not a photo, video editor, or something resource-intensive), then it is worth figuring out why this is happening.

If this is the program you need: Increased memory usage can be caused by both normal operation of the application, for example, during automatic updates, or operations for which the program is intended, as well as glitches in it. If you see that a program is constantly using a strangely large number of resources, try reinstalling it, and if this does not help, search the Internet for a description of the problem in relation to specific software.

If it is an unknown process: it is possible that this is something malicious and it is worth checking your computer for viruses, there is also the possibility that this is a failure of some system process. I recommend searching the Internet for the name of this process in order to figure out what it is and what to do about it - most likely, you are not the only user who has had this problem.

Finally

In addition to the options described, there is one more: the error is caused by the exact instance of the program that you are trying to run. It makes sense to try downloading it from another source or read the official support forums for this software, options for solving problems with insufficient memory may also be described there.

This instruction tells you what to do if, when you start a program, you see a message from Windows 10, Windows 7 or 8 (or 8.1) that the system does not have enough virtual or simple memory and “To free up memory for normal operation of programs , save the files, and then close or restart any open programs."

In order to fix this error, first of all, you need to figure out what caused it. Here are some possible options:

• You opened a lot of things, as a result of which a problem arose with the fact that there is not enough memory on the computer - I will not consider how to fix this situation, since everything is clear here: close what is not needed.
• You really have little RAM (2 GB or less. For some resource-intensive tasks, 4 GB of RAM may not be enough).
• The hard drive is full to capacity, so there is not enough space left for virtual memory when the paging file size is automatically adjusted.
• You yourself (or with the help of some optimization program) adjusted the size of the paging file (or disabled it) and it turned out to be insufficient for the normal operation of programs.
• Some individual program, malicious or not, causes a memory leak (gradually begins to use all available memory).
• Problems with the program itself, which causes the "insufficient memory" or "insufficient virtual memory" errors to appear.

If I'm not mistaken, the five options described are the most common causes of the error.

How to fix low memory errors in Windows 7, 8 and 8.1

And now, in order, about how to correct the error in each of the listed cases.

Low RAM

If your computer has a small amount of RAM, then it makes sense to think about purchasing additional RAM modules. Memory is not expensive these days. On the other hand, if you have a very old computer (and old-style memory), and you are thinking about purchasing a new one soon, the upgrade may not be justified - it’s easier to temporarily accept the fact that not all programs run.

I wrote about how to independently find out what memory is needed and make an upgrade in the article - in general, everything described there is applicable to a desktop PC.

Low hard drive space

Despite the fact that the volumes of today's HDDs are impressive, I myself have often seen that a user has 1 gigabyte or so free out of a terabyte - this not only causes an “insufficient memory” error, but also leads to serious slowdowns during work. It shouldn't come to this.

I wrote about disk cleanup in several articles:

Well, the main advice is that you shouldn’t store a lot of films and other media that you won’t listen to or watch, games that you won’t play again, and similar things.

Setting up the Windows paging file resulted in an error

If you configured the Windows paging file settings yourself, then there is a possibility that it was these changes that led to the error. Perhaps you didn’t even do this manually, but some program designed to optimize Windows performance did. In this case, you may need to increase the page file or enable it (if it was disabled). Some old programs will not start at all with virtual memory disabled and will always write about its lack.

Memory leak or what to do if a separate program takes up all the free RAM

It happens that some individual process or program begins to intensively use RAM - this may be caused by an error in the program itself, the malicious nature of its actions, or some kind of failure.

You can determine whether such a process exists using the task manager. To launch it in Windows 7, press Ctrl + Alt + Del keys and select Task Manager from the menu, and in Windows 8 and 8.1, press Win keys (logo key) + X and select Task Manager.

In Windows 7 Task Manager, open the “Processes” tab and sort by the “Memory” column (you need to click on the column name). For Windows 8.1 and 8, use the “Details” tab to do this, which gives a visual representation of all the processes running on the computer. They can also be sorted by the amount of RAM and virtual memory used.

If you see that some program or process is using a large amount of RAM (a large amount is hundreds of megabytes, provided that it is not a photo, video editor, or something resource-intensive), then it is worth figuring out why this is happening.

If this is the program you need: Increased memory usage can be caused by both normal operation of the application, for example, during automatic updates, or operations for which the program is intended, as well as glitches in it. If you see that a program is constantly using a strangely large number of resources, try reinstalling it, and if this does not help, search the Internet for a description of the problem in relation to specific software.

If it is an unknown process: it is possible that this is something malicious and it is worth checking your computer for viruses, there is also the possibility that this is a failure of some system process. I recommend searching the Internet for the name of this process in order to figure out what it is and what to do about it - most likely, you are not the only user who has had this problem.

Finally

In addition to the options described, there is one more: the error is caused by the exact instance of the program that you are trying to run. It makes sense to try downloading it from another source or read the official support forums for this software, options for solving problems with insufficient memory may also be described there.

If there is insufficient memory for all the operations the computer is trying to perform, Windows and programs may become unresponsive (or stop working). To prevent data loss, Windows will report low RAM. You can also learn to recognize low-memory situations yourself and take steps to prevent the problem.

Signs of low memory

Signs of low memory include severely slow performance, low or low memory notifications, and display problems. For example, if the computer does not have enough memory, then when you try to open a menu in a program, it may be delayed in responding or stop responding altogether. And even if the menu opens, its items may not be displayed, and the selected item may not respond. In addition, after selecting an item, the menu itself may disappear, and an empty area will appear instead of the contents of the working file or document.

Causes of low memory

There are two types of memory in a computer: RAM and virtual memory. All programs use RAM, but when a program you run runs out of RAM, Windows temporarily places data that would normally be stored in RAM in a file on your hard drive called the page file. The amount of data that is temporarily stored in the page file is also called virtual memory. Using virtual memory (in other words, moving data in and out of the page file) frees up enough RAM for programs to run properly.

Out of memory problems occur when there is insufficient RAM and insufficient virtual memory. A similar situation can occur if more programs are running on the computer than are supported by the installed RAM. Additionally, problems can also occur if a program does not free up memory that it no longer needs. This situation is called excessive memory usage or memory leak.

Ways to Prevent Out of Memory Problems

Running fewer applications at the same time can prevent low memory problems and data loss. It is recommended to pay attention to which applications are experiencing low memory situations and not to run them at the same time.

However, limiting the number of simultaneously running applications is sometimes unacceptable from a practical point of view. Signs of low memory may indicate that your computer needs more RAM to run the programs you use. The following are recommended ways to resolve or prevent low memory issues.

To determine which program is using the most memory, follow these steps:

1. Open Task Manager. To do this, right-click the taskbar and select Task Manager.
2. Open the tab Processes
3. To sort programs by memory used, click Memory(Private working set)

You can also use Event Viewer to view program errors and troubleshooting information.

1. Open the section " Event Viewer" To do this, click Start - Control Panel - Administrative Tools, then double-click Event Viewer.‌ When prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, enter the password or provide confirmation.
2. In the left pane, select Application and Service Logs to view errors. To view a description of the issue, double-click it. If there is a link to online help, then you can view information to resolve the problem.

If Windows detects possible problems with your computer's memory, you are prompted to run the Memory Diagnostic Tool. There are two options for running the Memory Diagnostic Tool:

Important: Save your files and close all applications before selecting the first option. The Memory Diagnostic Tool will run automatically after you restart Windows. The tool may take a few minutes to complete checking your computer's memory. After the test is completed, Windows automatically restarts. If the diagnostic tool finds errors, you should contact your computer manufacturer for information on how to resolve the errors, because memory errors usually indicate problems with the memory chips in your computer or other hardware problems.

You can also launch it manually. There are two ways to do this:

1. Start - Control Panel - Administrative Tools - Windows Memory Checker
2. Start - Run and Enter mdsched Click OK.

When you select "Reboot and check", after the reboot, when you launch the Memory Diagnostic Tool, press the F1 key. For advanced users, additional diagnostic options are provided:

1. Test suite
   • simple
   • standard
   • extended
2. Cache
   • Default
   • On or Off
3. Number of passes

To run the test, press F10. It is necessary to take into account that the more complex the test, the longer the verification takes. After checking and loading the system, the Windows Memory Checker icon will appear in the tray.

View the "Log of computer problems and stability":

Opening the Support Center Service -.

Click any event on the chart to view more information about it

Click to view only problems that have occurred on your computer. This view does not include other computer events that are shown in System Reliability Monitor, such as software installation events. Select Windows Memory Checker to view the inspection report.

Some problems and solutions can only be viewed and resolved by an administrator. To view these issues, log in with an administrator account

Content distributed via the Internet, programs and operating systems is becoming more and more demanding every day on the hardware of our computer. High-quality videos take up a lot of processor resources, OS updates “clog” free space on your hard drive, and applications with a huge appetite “devour” RAM. In this article, we will look at the problem with the system warning about low memory in Windows.

Computer memory is the system resource most in demand by applications, and if there is a shortage of it, we will see a well-known message on the monitor screen.

There are several reasons for this:

• There is physically not enough RAM on the PC.
• Missing or insufficient paging file size.
• High memory consumption by running processes.
• The system hard drive is “full” to capacity.
• “Pumping out” of RAM by viruses or very demanding programs.

Below we will look at each of these reasons and try to eliminate them.

Reason 1: RAM

RAM is the place where information is stored and transferred to the central processor for processing. If its volume is small, then “brakes” in the operation of the PC may occur, and the problem that we are talking about today may also arise. Many applications with stated system requirements can actually consume much more RAM than is written on the developer’s official website. For example, the same Adobe Premiere, with a recommended volume of 8 GB, can “use up” all the free memory and “remain unhappy.”

The only way to eliminate the lack of RAM is to purchase additional modules in the store. When choosing brackets, you should be guided by your needs, budget, and the capabilities of your current PC platform.

Reason 2: Page file

The paging file is the virtual memory of the system. All information that is not currently being used by RAM is “uploaded” here. This is done in order to free up the latter’s space for priority tasks, as well as for faster re-access to already prepared data. It follows from this that even with a large amount of RAM, the paging file is necessary for normal operation of the system.

An insufficient file size may be interpreted by the OS as a lack of memory, so if an error occurs, you must increase its size.

Read more: Increasing the paging file in Windows XP, Windows 7, Windows 10

There is another hidden reason for a failure associated with virtual memory - the location of the file, in whole or in part, on “bad” sectors of the hard drive. Unfortunately, without certain skills and knowledge, it is impossible to accurately determine its location, but it is quite possible to check the disk for errors and take appropriate measures.

Reason 3: Processes

At its core, a process is a collection of resources and certain information necessary for the operation of an application. During operation, one program can launch several processes - system or own - and each of them “hangs” in the computer’s RAM. You can see them in "Task Manager".

With a small amount of RAM, certain processes that must be launched directly by the operating system to perform certain tasks may not have enough “space”. Of course, Windows immediately informs the user about this. If an error occurs, look at the “Manager” (click CTRL+SHIFT+ESC), there you will see the current memory consumption as a percentage. If the value exceeds 95%, then you need to close those programs that are not currently in use. This is such a simple solution.

Reason 4: Hard drive

The hard drive is the main storage location for data. From what was written above, we already know that it also contains the paging file – virtual memory. If a disk or partition is more than 90% full, then normal operation of the latter, as well as applications and Windows, cannot be guaranteed. To fix the problem, you need to free up space from unnecessary files and, possibly, programs. This can be done both by system means and with the help of specialized software, for example, Conclusion

The reasons that cause an out of memory error on a computer are, for the most part, very obvious and can be eliminated quite simply. The simplest step - purchasing additional RAM sticks - will help solve almost all problems, with the exception of viral infection.

Often, PC users, especially those with older computer devices, may experience a long loading time for a page or opening a required folder, the computer freezing, or a blank page simply appearing when selecting a command from the menu. The reasons for the slowdown in computer performance may be the penetration of viruses or Trojans, significant disk fragmentation, file system litter, or the automatic downloading of a large number of unnecessary programs. Also, one of the factors that affects the speed of the computer is the lack of memory.

The appearance of such a message on the monitor indicates that there is not enough memory on the computer. Moreover, both RAM and virtual memory, which, in principle, extends RAM. This means that if there is not enough RAM, the system starts using virtual memory (Windows page file).

Reasons for lack of memory on your computer

To fix problems with low memory on your computer, you must first understand the reasons that caused it.

The most common sources of this error are:

• opening many different tabs that slow down the PC (the solution to the problem is closing unnecessary information resources);
• there is really little RAM (less than 2 GB, although 4 GB of memory will not be enough for some large tasks);
• the hard drive is completely full, and because of this there is no free space on it for the paging file when its parameters are automatically configured;
• independently adjusting the size of the paging file or disabling it provoked a low speed, which is insufficient for standard operation of programs;
• a separate program (often malicious) causes a memory outflow, and over time completely uses all available memory;
• a complex situation with the program itself that causes an out of memory error, be it RAM or virtual memory.

Depending on the reason, the solution to the problem also varies.

Fixing "Out of Memory" Error in Windows 7

To remove the “Not enough memory” error on your computer in Windows 7, you need to determine the reason that causes it.

You can solve the problem of low memory like this:

• little RAM. You can buy an additional RAM module;
• minimum hard disk space. Disk cleanup required. In general, it is recommended not to “clog” the memory with various media that are no longer needed, outdated games, a lot of movies that just “gather dust” and take up space on the hard drive;
• self-configuring the Windows swap file. If the computer writes “Not enough memory,” then, first of all, you need to increase the page file or enable virtual memory (if it is disabled). For example, old programs will not work without a connected swap file, although some will.

Fixing "Out of Memory" Error in Windows 10

It happens that a specific process or individual program begins to actively use RAM; such a reaction may be caused by some kind of failure, a virus attack, or an error in the structure of the program itself.

You can identify such a process by using the Task Manager. To run it for testing, you need to press the key Win + X and select "Task Manager".

• go to the “Performance” tab (you need to examine the amount of available memory in it). If your computer does not have enough memory in Windows 10, then you need to end all unnecessary applications that “eat up” the RAM resource in the standard way. At the same time, by closing processes that run in the application field, you can lose unsaved information;
• you need to go to the “Startup” tab and uncheck the boxes next to programs that do not need to be launched along with the operating system;
• identifying resource-intensive applications in the “Processes” tab and closing them (if possible) or using a page file to increase the amount of virtual memory.

The role of the page file in cleaning RAM

The developers, in order to operate Windows, have introduced a caching mechanism, thanks to which programs that have not been used for a long time are moved to the paging file from RAM, thereby freeing up unused PC resources.

Therefore, if several programs cannot run simultaneously due to lack of memory, then Windows 10 will move information that is not needed at that time to the hard drive from RAM.

If a large amount of RAM is installed in a computer device (over 8 GB) and the computer consistently writes “Insufficient memory”, then in order for the page file ( pagefile.sys), located at the root of the system partition, did not slow down the functionality of the PC, you need to use the minimum indicator of its volume.

To do this, we perform the following functions:

• open the “Properties” section;
• go to “Advanced settings”;
• in the “Advanced” attachment, click on “Options” in the “Performance” section;
• click on “Advanced” and go to “Change”;
• moving the checkbox to the “Specify size” position, where you need to set the current and largest volume (they need to be set the same because of the obstacle to defragmentation of the paging file);
• we reboot the computer.

Insufficient memory due to damaged disk

If the problem with insufficient memory has not been resolved, then it is recommended to check the system partition for bad sectors. It is possible that the reason for too little memory may be that pagefile.sys is located on the hard drive in a damaged sector.

To fix this problem, do the following:

• menu call - Win+X;
• open Command Prompt (administrator);
• using the sfc /scannow utility to check for system file errors;
• you need to enter the required commands in order and restart the PC.

After using this program to repair damaged files, there is a chance that the “Out of Memory” message will no longer appear on your computer monitor.