How much RAM do you have?

Libby Pritchett

Libby Pritchett

New member
I'm having such issues lately with warnings that I'm running out of RAM when I run Photoshop CS6 64-Bit in Windows 7 64-Bit. I currently have 16GB of RAM, and I always thought that was plenty, but I'm wondering if my thinking is old-school and maybe I *do* need to install more.

I currently have 85% of my system RAM allotted to PS use, but that still puts my efficiency rating at like 80% when I'm running PS (which means that it moves to my scratch disk to run). I just went through and cleared out all my presets, so currently, it's running better. But I constantly add and remove presets while I work, so it's sorta important that PS can run with those installed. LOL

Anyway, how much RAM do you have? Any other ideas on things I should be checking?
 
Hmm... my computer runs on Windows 8 and I have 12 GB of RAM, but I don't have any issues with PS CC running. My computer can be expanded to 32 GB of RAM, I think, but I haven't looked into it because it's never been slow. PS is installed on a SSD though so that probably helps things out.
 
I forgot to mention that I"ve also got PS installed on an SSD.

I keep telling dh that something weird is going on with my computer... I don't think it's JUST PS. I think I've got some underlying issues that PS is just bringing to light. Hmmmm...
 
How old is your computer? I don't know the reason, but many times I've had a computer that ran PS fine for the first year or year and a half slow down after that. It was just a little slower at first, then over time it got much worse. It wasn't the HD space available, the need for a defrag, anything virus related, the need for a BIOS update, or significant updates to the program. But nothing I could figure out did explain it, either. It's why I always end up buying a new laptop about every 3 years. Anyway, I'm currently running PS6 and Windows 8 with 12 GB RAM (and no SSD) on a 6 month old system.
 
Jeff built this computer for me almost exactly 3 years ago, so it's definitely in that window for needing to be upgraded, Rachel.

I do know that my SSD drive is filling up, but I also have a standard 2TB hard drive that has lots of free space. I probably SHOULD get a bigger SSD drive, but I'm wondering at what point I'd be better off just getting a new computer (I *really* want a laptop again).

Anyway, all my updates are good, no viruses... pretty much everything checks out. PS is just using a crapload of memory and causing me problems.
 
8 GB. 16 would be better, but it works fine as it is. 16 should be enough, Libby! As you say your computer is mischievous probably.

How much space do you have left on the SSD? Mine is on an SSD as well but I use another drive with much more free space as scratch disc.
 
I only have like 3gb left on the SSD, but I use my 2TB hard drive as my scratch (and it has nearly 1TB free space available on it).

I'm SURE I need a bigger SSD drive (though I'm dreading that as I don't want to have to re-install Windows and start over), but I wasn't sure if that alone would cause PS to claim that it didn't have enough RAM?
 
I work on a MB Air, so i only keep favorite scrap stuff + current ct stuff on there. It only has 4gb RAM on an SSD, and it is STILL super speedy compared to my MB Pro with 16gb RAM. It's why i'm inclined to go with Rachel's theory--my Air i got this year, my pro back in 2012.


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You know, it makes me wonder if there is something to that theory.

It's sorta like how a battery-operated toy will still function before the batteries die, but as they run out, the toy doesn't function to it's full-capacity. You don't always change the batteries right away because the toy still works. It isn't til you replace the batteries and the toy is functioning 100% again that you realize how poorly it was operating before. Perhaps computers have something similar going on?

(Obviously I'm NOT a tech, so I have no idea... I'm just blowing smoke. It makes sense in my head though. LOL)
 
I have 16 GB of RAM. I run PS from SSD as well. I have never had any problems. This is my husband's old computer so he built it for gaming and when he built himself a new one I got this one. I only store PS on the SSD.
 
My Mac is 3 years old, 8 GB of RAM, and I've never had any trouble. I have a 1TB hard drive, and no solid state. Your computer has better specs than mine, by far, I can't understand why you'd be having trouble. :(
 
Running 64 bit Win7, with 64bit PSCS6, 8 GB RAM, no issues. I hate SSD though- DH had one in his old computer and had nothing but issues with it, swapped it out for a standard drive and all his issues disappeared. I know they are supposed to be a lot better, but I just don't deal with em.
 
Have you made sure you're not running a bunch of stuff in the background? Most programs these days will stay open & just minimize to the taskbar tray. Stuff like skype, spotify, etc.

Also, does it say if it's actual physical RAM or virtual memory/page file?

If it's physical RAM, 16gb should be enough, but maybe one or more sticks of it is failing. You could try running a diagnostic on it (I recommend http://www.memtest86.com/).

For virtual memory problems this article may help:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/preventing-low-memory-problems#1TC=windows-7
 
Thanks for those links, Amber! I'll check them out. The errors I'm getting are definitely physical RAM. I don't have extra stuff running in the bg (with the exception of a few programs like Crashplan & Dashlane). I'm pretty good about checking and stopping the extra programs.

It's been about a year since I last tested my RAM, so that's probably a good place to start. Thanks for the idea!
 
You say you only have 3 gb left on your SSD? How big is it? Aren't you supposed to have 10-15% free for optimal performance? Can you move some things to your 3 tb drive?


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Well, it's only a 60GB SSD to start with... it only has Windows, Adobe, and Microsoft Office installed on it. Everything else runs on my hard drive. I could probably move MS Office off of it and see if that helps.
 
I'm about in the same point here, 16 gig of RAM and it still runs slow quite a bit of the time. I'm also considering increasing the RAM in mine. I had a SSD in mine but it failed only a few months after I got the computer and the only one I could find quickly to replace it was a regular drive so I don't have a SSD anymore.
 
I'd actually love to go Mac when I get a laptop, but right now I can't afford to buy the new software that would be required. I'm hoping to avoid going to PS CC til Chloe is in Kindy so I can get the education discount. But that *is* my eventual goal.
 
I have 8 gig. Runs as fast as I could want. I run a lot of filters without a worry.

Megs xxx
{Using Tapatalk}
 
Drive space might be your problem, not the memory. 3 GB is not enough! Your poor computer doesn't have air to breathe! And also delete your Temp folder and anything that keeps space unnecessarily.

For what it's worth, I don't see why you should buy a Mac when fine-tuned PCs work just as well, but that's just my opinion. ;-)

I'm at 8 GB RAM and there are no issues even with huge PSDs.
 
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amber565 said:
Have you made sure you're not running a bunch of stuff in the background? Most programs these days will stay open & just minimize to the taskbar tray. Stuff like skype, spotify, etc.

Also, does it say if it's actual physical RAM or virtual memory/page file?

If it's physical RAM, 16gb should be enough, but maybe one or more sticks of it is failing. You could try running a diagnostic on it (I recommend http://www.memtest86.com/).

For virtual memory problems this article may help:
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/preventing-low-memory-problems#1TC=windows-7
Click to expand...

Cool links, will save those for future reference! Thanks!
 
That's what I'm thinking, A. I may try installing it on my hard drive instead of the ssd where I have plenty of space. That might at least give me a temporary fix til I can afford to upgrade the drive or get a new computer.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk
 
Libby Pritchett said:
That's what I'm thinking, A. I may try installing it on my hard drive instead of the ssd where I have plenty of space. That might at least give me a temporary fix til I can afford to upgrade the drive or get a new computer.

Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

That's not a bad idea, Libby! Just keep Windows at the SSD and then you'll have space enough I think. I hope it helps!!!

ETA: I had suspiciously low space on my SSD until I noticed that Adobe Bridge was keeping previews of all files I ever looked at in its database! I deleted that and changed the settings so that it doesn't keep them. Dunno if you use Bridge though, but if you do you might want to look into that as well.
 
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I only have 4GB, and I can't go further coz my Macbook is 5 years old. It's still running fine, which makes me reluctant to get a new computer. But I don't use it heavily (i.e. for designing), so even though it's slower than most computers, it's fine for me. It's not like I need a blazing fast computer for scrapping.
 
adrianka said:
That's not a bad idea, Libby! Just keep Windows at the SSD and then you'll have space enough I think. I hope it helps!!!

ETA: I had suspiciously low space on my SSD until I noticed that Adobe Bridge was keeping previews of all files I ever looked at in its database! I deleted that and changed the settings so that it doesn't keep them. Dunno if you use Bridge though, but if you do you might want to look into that as well.
Click to expand...

Yes three things that have been said hit me as something to try:

Test your RAM, who knows a stick may have gone bad and they are cheap and easy to replace! I had that happen on my Alienware laptop and it was still under warranty, got the new stick and it was back to rocking again.

Definitely move MS Office to the other hd, see how much space you have then? PS really does run faster on an SSD but not if it doesn't have enough "room to breathe" as someone else mentioned.

And those darn temp files!! That was another thing I had set wrong and sure enough all my preview images was on my SSD sucking it down. So check to see where the preview images and temp files for Bridge/PS are going.

I've been on this laptop for over 4 years now and I don't want to have to upgrade so I'm hoping she lasts a long while still. I have 16 Gig RAM and a 120SSD + 500Gig internal and 2TB external. The only thing that slows my computer down is my 36MP files from my D800 but that is only if I try to open more than 10 at a time...go figure!

I think with a little investigation and testing and such...you will get your PS back rocking. Will your guy that built it not "fix" it for you? I mean he is your personal IT guy right? ;-)
 
Ok so here's the latest...

I was mistaken about PS being loaded on my SSD drive. When I was getting things backed up this morning in preparation of uninstalling, I realized it's already on my hard drive! Oops!!

Adrianka, I appreciate the tip about the Bridge files! I did find a few, but they were all on my hard drive as opposed to my SSD.

After searching the files on my SSD, I did find 2 folders that I didn't realize were there. One was Dropbox and the other was another cloud storage. Between the 2, there was nearly 6GB of data that I was able to remove.

I did move MS Office to my hard drive, but that hardly made a dent.

So, I've learned off some space and am up to just over 8GB now on the SSD. I know that's still not very much, but it's a heck of a lot better than the >3GB that I had when I started this morning.

So, I'm gonna open PS now and see if I can get through my work this afternoon without crashing. LOL
 
Libby Pritchett said:
Ok so here's the latest...

I was mistaken about PS being loaded on my SSD drive. When I was getting things backed up this morning in preparation of uninstalling, I realized it's already on my hard drive! Oops!!

Adrianka, I appreciate the tip about the Bridge files! I did find a few, but they were all on my hard drive as opposed to my SSD.

After searching the files on my SSD, I did find 2 folders that I didn't realize were there. One was Dropbox and the other was another cloud storage. Between the 2, there was nearly 6GB of data that I was able to remove.

I did move MS Office to my hard drive, but that hardly made a dent.

So, I've learned off some space and am up to just over 8GB now on the SSD. I know that's still not very much, but it's a heck of a lot better than the >3GB that I had when I started this morning.

So, I'm gonna open PS now and see if I can get through my work this afternoon without crashing. LOL
Click to expand...

Good luck!!!
 
sprauncey1 said:
I think with a little investigation and testing and such...you will get your PS back rocking. Will your guy that built it not "fix" it for you? I mean he is your personal IT guy right? ;-)
Click to expand...

LOL He's absolutely no help whatsoever. He's convinced it's just a problem with Photoshop sucking up my memory, but now that I'm telling him that everyone else is running on way less memory than what I have and not having these problems, he's starting to listen...

I"m making progress though!
 
I'm not sure how you are progressing, but I was having awful issues with mine over the last couple of weeks, running maxed out processor and consuming lots of memory. I moved a bunch of files off my hard drive, didn't help. What does seem to have finally helped is that I deleted my history and cache from Google Chrome. I also disabled my Feedly extension. things seem to be back to normal now. So, if you use Chrome, it might be worth considering.
 
I opened my computer this week to see how much RAM was in it and how it was configured. I ordered another 16 gig of RAM on Friday. That should make it zippy fast again!
 
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