File page file is getting full and not emptying properly.
File page file is getting full and not emptying properly.
I've faced problems with my pagefile for several years and tried fixing it repeatedly without results. Essentially, it keeps filling up, never clears, and at one point required a full restart because I couldn't keep more than one app open. On my previous system, the situation was extreme—I had to replace it quickly as it filled within a day. Currently, I have 16GB RAM and 40GB pagefile, but it's reaching 39GB. My RAM usage stays around 70%, yet it demands an extra 39GB of pagefile to operate. Despite changing my PC, visiting a repair shop, and swapping drives, the issue persists. I'm considering reinstalling Windows as it seems like the only option, but I'm also looking for other solutions. Thanks!
Besides Brave Browser, Rocket League, Blender, and Roblox, you're almost out of RAM. Here, I'll try to make it work for you. I only have a few apps open and stress-testing memory usage.
Avoid enabling the page file and consider adding more RAM instead.
A temporary storage area on your hard drive or SSD where Windows saves data that must remain available but isn’t stored in your main physical RAM. When more real RAM is needed, unused CPU tasks are written to this space to free up physical memory. If the pagefile runs out and there’s no physical RAM left, it clears data from the pagefile to make room for what’s needed now. Software can’t run directly from the pagefile—it only works from actual RAM. Linux performs the same function, referring to it as "swap."
Currently, 16GB is the standard. Aim for at least 32GB due to browser bloat effects. If budget allows, upgrade to 64GB RAM and avoid stressing about it further—unless you require it for content work or running multiple virtual machines, then consider 128GB.
You don't need to be changing drives or other such ridiculousness... Page file is a simple file on the SSD / Hard drive that is used by the operating system to move stuff from RAM and make empty memory for other applications, if those other applications need it. If you leave everything on auto, and you have enough disk space on the drive where the page file is, Windows won't shrink the file to a smaller size because there's no need to. Just because the file size is 40 GB, doesn't mean there's actually 40 GB worth of data in the page file. You can tweak the page file behavior easily ... go to Control Panel > System > Advanced System Settings and you get this : On the advanced tab, click on the Settings of the Performance section You get this Performance Options window, and on Advanced you can click Change... to adjust the page file sizes : You can uncheck that first checkbox and configure a page file on one or several or all hard drives You could leave it system managed (have Windows shrink the file if it thinks you're running out of disk space), or you could set it to a fixed size all the time by setting both initial and maximum at the same size Or you could set a small initial size and a maximum size, then every time you restart the PC Windows should shrink the page file to the initial size.
When I mentioned switching hard drives it wasn't directly about that. The setting isn't automatic because when auto was enabled, games wouldn't launch properly even with all closed, causing crashes and showing an error about insufficient pagefile. I believe the main issue isn't excessive RAM usage—my laptop only has 12GB, and the pagefile is likely not a significant factor. Problems usually appear after a long idle period, like during a party when many apps ran simultaneously. Even then, it worked until I tried to open Blender, which crashed. Closing all apps helped reduce the pagefile usage to 22GB, but it was still at 29% of my 12GB RAM, which is unusual. Your screenshot also showed only a few apps running with just 12GB used, which seems inconsistent. I’d appreciate your thoughts on this.