I have configured a Linksys WRT600N to connect using PPTP to my company’s VPN server in the past as noted in this previous article. I have since swapped out the Linksys WRT600N with a Linksys WRT54GS because I wanted to replace the antennas with larger antennas to work on getting better wireless coverage in my workshop in the basement and with the primary wireless router being located on the second floor of my house I needed to do numerous things to squeeze as much signal as possible. I also noticed numerous other issues with the WRT600N including the router locking up on a regular basis as well as dropping connections.

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You can stop Windows XP from using the pagefile.sys file for SWAP memory however it is not typically recommended. Most suggestions on the Internet say that you should always make the pagefile 1.5 times the amount of physical memory you have in the Windows PC. It is also mentioned that you should have at least 1GB of memory if you are going to disable the Windows SWAP. Windows should not use SWAP (pagefile.sys) unless it has run out of RAM (memory) to use however I noticed on my PC that it appeared as though SWAP was being used after only 20% or so of my actual physical memory was being used so I decided to try disabling the SWAP and so far it has made most things faster on my PC.

To disable the Windows SWAP memory usage follow the below simple steps which will require a reboot at the end of configuration.

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TortoiseSVN uses a lot of system resources attempting to make sure that the SVN cache on your system is up to date. By default TortoiseSVN will attempt to keep all “Fixed Drives” up to date which will in most cases use a lot of unnecessary system resources such as CPU cycles and RAM. Below are two options to either cut down on the amount of resources used or to turn of the TortoiseSVN Status Cache all together.

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Below are a couple tips for replacing memory on a Macbook (1.1) laptop. Make sure to purchase the proper memory as noted below and always handle the Macbook and RAM carefully.

1. Purchase Correct Memory: I upgraded this Macbook from 512MB of RAM to 2GB of RAM. It uses PC5300 DDR2 667 MHz so-dimm memory.
2. Carefully Remove: Follow the instructions from the below manual to remove the memory.

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After upgrading the RAM on your Windows XP or Windows Vista computer (laptops and desktops) you should review your performance settings. The primary concern will be your pagefile.sys size to make sure it matches or exceeds the amount of RAM you have in the computer. For those of us that are familiar with Linux more so than Windows the pagefile is also called the swap file in Windows. The pagefile or swap file is used for anything that won’t fit into RAM so technically it is an overflow for RAM so the excess has somewhere to go.

RAM: Random Access Memory

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