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How to increase system resources in Windows 95/98

Situation:
You see various error messages, or your computer stops responding. Windows may seem to start slower and the computer may appear sluggish. You may have seen a "System Resources Low" or "User Resources Low" message, or the computer could be having problems from applications that load automatically. You may also notice some of the following:

- The problem happened during the installation of a Symantec product.
- The problem began after you installed a Symantec product.
- You suspect the problems may be caused by memory conflicts, old drivers, or incompatible software.
- Even though you may see an error message when booting, you can still run Windows in either Normal or Safe Mode.

You have contacted technical support, and they recommended you try removing startup items as a possible solution to the problem.

Solution:
Low system resources can cause a variety of problems. Often, the first evidence of low resources is when a program no longer functions correctly or the computer stops responding. If you have a program that reports low resources and has problems that tend to happen soon after the resources become low, the problems are probably due to low system resources.

Explanation of system resources
In Windows, the terms system resources and user resources refer to how the computer's memory is configured.

System resources usually do not refer to the amount of physical random access memory (RAM) on the system. Normally, increasing a system's RAM will only help a low-resources problem if the RAM is below that recommended by Microsoft. If you have 32 to 64 MB of RAM, then you have sufficient RAM for most Windows applications, except those that use graphics extensively, such as video streaming applications.

The more applications you run at the same time, the more resources are in use. When you close an application, most of its resources are returned to the operating system and made available for other applications. This means that if system resources are low, the most effective ways of increasing resources are:


To check for current System Resources use:
  1. Right-click the My Computer icon on the Windows desktop and then click Properties.
  2. Click the Performance tab. Current free system resources are displayed on the second line.

Note: Norton SystemWorks includes a program, System Doctor, that can warn you when the system resources are low before problems occur. System Doctor is also available in Norton Utilities.


Configuring your computer for optimal system resources can prevent many of these types of problems. One of the principal ways to increase system resources is to eliminate unnecessary applications that load automatically at Windows startup. This frees up system resources, improving performance and sometimes eliminating conflicts.

Here is a list of locations from which startup programs are loaded, followed by a section of instructions on how to remove items from these locations:
Note: Some programs load more than one file during system startup. They may have, for instance, a file that is loaded from the Startup folder, a file that is loaded from Autoexec.bat, and a file that is loaded from the registry. In this case, removing the entry for each file one at a time may not resolve the problem, but removing all entries may cause a problem. To identify which programs are loading more than one file, identify which files are loading during the computer startup, and then identify which folders those files are located in. When more than one file is loaded from the same folder, those files are all loaded from the same program.


Windows 98
These instructions will work under both Windows 95 and Windows 98. However, Windows 98 has an easier method for removing items from startup. See the document Configuring Windows 98 to clean boot, or follow these steps to find out more information.
  1. Click Start, point to Programs, Accessories, System Tools, and then click System Information. The System Information window appears.
  2. Click Tools, and then click System Configuration Utility.
  3. Click Help, and then click Help Topics.


Part 1 - Windows StartUp folder
Open the StartUp folder, evaluate which items you want to remove, and then create a new folder and move the shortcuts to it:

Loading unnecessary programs when Windows starts up reduces the amount of system resources available to other programs. To illustrate this point, follow these steps to see some of the programs that are being loaded as Windows starts.
  1. Restart the computer.
  2. After Windows loads completely, press Ctrl+Alt+Del to open the Close Program window. This window displays the programs that load from the Windows Startup folder.
  3. Count the items in the list to determine how many programs are loading at startup.
  4. Click the Cancel button to close the window.

Many of the programs that load with Windows during startup, load from the StartUp folder. Other programs are loaded from the registry and are typically enabled or disabled through the program's user interface. Follow these steps to remove unnecessary programs from the StartUp folder.
  1. Create a temporary folder:
    1. Right-click Start, and then click Explore. An Explorer window opens in the \Windows\Start Menu folder.
    2. Double-click the Programs folder in the right pane of the Explorer window.
    3. Click the File menu, point to New, and then click Folder.
    4. Type temp and then press Enter. You should now have new folder named Temp.
  2. Move the items to the temporary folder.
    1. Double-click the StartUp folder in the left pane of the Explorer window. Each of the items in this folder is a shortcut that loads a program during startup.
    2. Determine which items you do not want to load during Startup.
    3. Hold down the Ctrl key and click one of the shortcut items in the StartUp folder (in the right pane) that you do not want to load at startup.
    4. Right-click the highlighted shortcuts, and then click Cut.
    5. Right-click the Temp folder in the left pane, and then click Paste.
    6. Repeat steps 2.c through 2.f for each shortcut item that you want to remove from the Startup folder.
  3. Close the Explorer window and restart the computer.

If later, you decide you want to load one of the programs in the Temp folder at startup, you can cut and paste or drag and drop the shortcut back into the StartUp folder.

At this point, you can restart your system to see whether the problem is resolved, or continue with the steps below.

Part 2 - Evaluating lines in the Autoexec.bat, Config.sys, and Win.ini files
In Windows 95 and 98, the files Autoexec.bat, Config.sys, and Win.ini can affect the computer's resource allocation by loading legacy programs and DOS device drivers. Legacy programs and DOS drivers often demand system resources directly, rather than allowing Windows to determine how many resources to give them. This can create an imbalance in resources, allowing Windows or Windows applications and devices to run out of resources unnecessarily.

To prevent these programs and devices from loading, open the System Configuration Editor and then edit the files Autoexec.bat, Config.sys, and Win.ini. Use the following procedures.

Notes:
Open the System Configuration Editor
To edit the files, first open the System Configuration Editor.
  1. Click Start, and then click Run.
  2. Type sysedit and then press Enter.

The System Configuration Editor displays five overlapping windows, one for each of five startup files, including the Autoexec.bat, Config.sys, and Win.ini files.

To edit Autoexec.bat:
The first window displays the contents of the Autoexec.bat file. If the file is empty, see the previous Notes. Normally, this file will have anywhere between 0 and 50 lines, but it can have more.

Step 1: Remove entries that are for unnecessary files
Read each of the lines to determine whether you recognize any of them. Some of these lines are necessary for accessing devices on your system, but most of them load programs. To prevent a program from loading, type rem followed by a space at the beginning of the line that the program is on. For example, if your file includes these lines:

c:\progra~1\norton~2\navdx.exe /startup
c:\dos\smartdrv.exe
c:\progra~1\norton~1\ndd.exe /q

and you want to prevent the program Smartdrv.exe from loading, then type rem and a space at the beginning of the smartdrv.exe line, as follows:

c:\progra~1\norton~2\navdx.exe /startup
rem c:\dos\smartdrv.exe
c:\progra~1\norton~1\ndd.exe /q

Step 2: Add entries to increase the environment variables:
Add the following line:

SET DOS16M=2

This line should be added as the first line before any other lines in the Autoexec.bat file. It's function is to extend memory in DOS for strings of information that more than 64 characters in length.

To edit Config.sys:
The second window displays the contents of the Config.sys file. To get to that window, click the file's path at the top of the window, C:\Config.sys. If the file is empty, see the previous Notes. Normally, this file will have anywhere between 0 and 30 lines, but it can have more.

Step 1: Remove entries that are for unnecessary files
Read each of the lines to determine whether you recognize any of them and to determine which lines you do not need to load automatically with Windows. Some of these lines are necessary for accessing devices on your system. Generally, any device loaded from Config.sys is a 16-bit device and may not be fully compatible with Windows 95 or Windows 98. To prevent a program from loading, type rem and a space at the beginning of the line the program is on. For example, if your file includes these lines:

c:\dos\himem.sys
c:\dos\emm386.exe
device=c:\cdwrtr\cdwr.sys
device=c:\cdwrtr\sysfls\cdaut.drv
devicehigh=c:\mouse\mouse.sys

and you want to prevent the files from the CDWrtr folder from loading, then type rem and a space at the beginning of the CDWrtr lines, as follows:

c:\dos\himem.sys
c:\dos\emm386.exe
rem device=c:\cdwrtr\cdwr.sys
rem device=c:\cdwrtr\sysfls\cdaut.drv
devicehigh=c:\mouse\mouse.sys

Step 2: Add entries to increase the environment variables:
Add the following line:

DEVICE=C:\WINDOWS\HIMEM.SYS /M:1

The /M:1 switch commands HIMEM.SYS to identify the processor.

Add the following lines or, if they already exist, modify them to read as follows:

FILES=150
BUFFERS=80
STACKS=12,256

If the computer is connected to a network, use a value of 200 instead of 150. The default value for files is 60, for buffers is 30, and for stacks is 9,256.

To edit Win.ini:
The third window displays the contents of the Win.ini file. To get to that window, click the file's path at the top of the window, C:\WINDOWS\WIN.INI. If the file is empty, see the previous Notes. Normally, this file will have anywhere between 50 and 150 lines, but it can have more or less.

The first section in this file, called Windows, includes the run= and load= lines , as in this example:

[windows]
run=
load=
NullPort=None

Files listed on the Run= and Load= lines will be loaded during system startup. In the following example, two files are loading from the Run= line, Symevnt..386 and Cdwr2.sys:

[windows]
run=C:\NU\SYMEVNT.386;C:\CDWrtr\CDWR2.SYS
load=
NullPort=None

To prevent a file from loading here, type a semicolon (;) in front of the line, as in the following example:

[windows]
;run=C:\NU\SYMEVNT.386;C:\CDWrtr\CDWR2.SYS
load=
NullPort=None

To save the changes:
Click the File menu, and then click Exit. Click Yes to save current changes to all files that you modified. Part 3 - Windows registry

CAUTION: We strongly recommend that you back up the system registry before making any changes. Incorrect changes to the registry could result in permanent data loss or corrupted files. Please make sure you modify only the keys specified. Please see How to back up the Windows registry before proceeding.


To edit the registry, do the following:
  1. Backup the registry:
    1. Click Start, and then click Run.
    2. Type regedit and then press Enter.
    3. Click Registry, and then click Export Registry File.
    4. Select Desktop in the Save In field.
    5. Type regbackup in the File Name field and then click save. This creates a Regbackup.reg file on your desktop. If you make any mistakes, or your some application does not function correctly after editing the registry, you can double-click this file to restore your registry to the state it was in before you began editing.
  2. Delete selected registry entries:
    1. Navigate to the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run key.
    2. Look in the Name column in the right pane. You should see some entries listed. The first entry is always "(Default)."
      If you recognize an entry here from an application that has been loading at startup and you do not necessarily need it to load automatically, then right-click the entry and then click Delete.
    3. When prompted "Are you sure you want to delete this value?" click Yes. The value is deleted.
    4. Repeat steps 2.a through 2.c for the following subkeys:
      • RunOnce
      • RunOnceEx (if you have it)
      • RunServices
      • RunServicesOnce
  3. Delete entries from the HKEY_USERS "Run" key:
    1. Navigate to the HKEY_USERS\.DEFAULT\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run key.
    2. Look in the Name column in the right pane. You should see some entries listed. The first entry is always "(Default)." If you recognize an entry here from an application that has been loading at startup and you do not necessarily need it to load automatically, then right-click the entry and then click Delete.
    3. When prompted "Are you sure you want to delete this value?" click Yes, and the value will be deleted.
  4. Delete entries from the HKEY_CURRENT_USER "Run" key:
    1. Navigate to the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run key.
    2. Look in the Name column in the right pane. You should see some entries listed. The first entry is always "(Default)." If you recognize an entry here from an application that has been loading at startup and you do not necessarily need it to load automatically, then right-click the entry and then click Delete.
    3. When prompted "Are you sure you want to delete this value?" click Yes. The value is deleted.
  5. Exit and restart:
    1. Click Registry, and then click Exit.
    2. Click Start, and then click Shut Down.
    3. Click Restart, and then click Yes.

Your computer should now have more system resources in the Windows environment and should run more efficiently.

 

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Document ID: 1999073012412507
Last Modified: 06/03/2005
Date Created: 07/30/1999
Operating System(s): Windows 95, Windows 98
Product(s): TS_GEN


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