Welcome
Welcome to NitroRAM

Congratulations on choosing NitroRAM from RoadSide Software, LLC. NitroRAM is the ultimate in RAM saving software technology. NitroRAM can stabilize and speed up your computer by increasing the amount of free physical RAM. It can also optimize the vCache for superior RAM performance.

NitroRAM is simple and very easy to use, and most of the operations are very intuitive. However, this help file has been included to make sure you have a clear understanding of the NitroRAM system.

NitroRAM is created and distributed by RoadSide Software, LLC - an advanced forward looking computer software company. RoadSide Software is dedicated to quality programs and quality customer service. If you have any questions, please visit http://www.roadside-software.com or http://www.NitroRAM.com

NitroRAM is trailware. That means you will be able to use the full functions of NitroRAM for a period of 30 days. Once your 30 days have ended you will need to purchase NitroRAM to continue use of the product.

For more information please visit http://www.nitroram.com

Once again, congratulations on your wise choice! Enjoy NitroRAM!

-RoadSide Software, LLC.

http://www.roadside-software.com

support@roadside-software.com

nitroram@roadside-software.com


Basic Operation
Basic Operation of NitroRAM

Basic operation of NitroRAM is very simple. The first step is to open NitroRAM.

1. Click the Start Menu.

2. Click “Programs.”

3. Click “NitroRAM.”

4. Click the NitroRAM icon.

NitroRAM will open. You will be confronted with a tabbed interface with the “Main” tab selected. The Main tab contains three dials indicating various system performance parameters. The Main tab also includes a button labeled “Optimize RAM Now!”

If left like this, NitroRAM will operate very efficiently. If you want to run NitroRAM in this simple mode, simply minimize the program. When left like this, NitroRAM will free up 1/4 of your RAM once the free RAM dips below 1/8 free and CPU use is at 20% or less. If you have 128 megabytes of RAM, NitroRAM will recover your free RAM to 32MB once the amount of free RAM dips below 16MB and the central processing unit (CPU) is being utilized 20% or less.

This is all you need to know for the basic operation of the NitroRAM program. However, more advanced options can be set to personalize NitroRAM to you.


Warnings and notices

To use the original settings for your vCache, open NitroRAM and click the "vCache" tab. Select the item in the history box labeled "Fail safe...". Click it. Then click "Use Setting." This will reset the vCache settings to what they were when you first ran NitroRAM

Changing vCache settings can be risky. Here is what to do if there is trouble:

Print this page as a reference. If this happens to you here are the steps you should take (if you cannot open Cache Speed):

1. Shut down the computer.

2. Power up the computer.

3. When you see the screen “Windows 9(X) is now starting.” Press the ‘F8’ key.

4. You will see a list of options, select the option “Command Prompt Only” and hit the Enter key.

5. Once you see “C:\>”, type “cd Windows” and press Enter.

6. Type “Edit System.ini” and press Enter.

7. You will see a blue window open with some text, scroll down until you see “[vcache]”.

8. Below you will see three items, “minfilecache”, “maxfilecache”, and “chunk size”, delete these lines.

9. Press and hold the “Alt” key while you press the “F” key.

10. Release the “Alt” key and press “X”.

11. When it asks you if you want to save changes, press Enter.

12. Power off your computer.

13. Boot as normal.


vCache
vCache - how it works.

The vCache is a section of the computer’s physical RAM set aside for quick storage of files that were opened but are no longer in use at the moment. To show you what this means, first restart your computer then open a program that normally takes a long time to open (Microsoft Word for example). Once the program is open and the files are done being read off your hard drive, close the program. Now open the same program again. The second time it will load faster because the files for the program were stored in the computer’s vCache. However, the vCache uses valuable physical RAM which is needed to run other programs.

When Windows manages the vCache, it will let the vCache take up almost all of the system’s memory! While it will free up some of the vCache when new programs are running, Windows is reluctant to just give it up. In other words, you could have too much of your memory being used as vCache.

The idea is that you want to limit the size of the vCache so Windows will be forced to unload files from the vCache which you are no longer using. However, if the vCache is set too low then it can slow down your computer in cases where the vCache is important.

There are three settings for the vCache: maximum vCache size, minimum vCache size, and vCache chunk size. The maximum size you would want to limit to keep the vCache from taking over your system. The minimum size should be set so that you always have a little bit in your vCache (just to keep your computer running fast). Also the minimum size will keep other programs from taking up the vCache when you need it. The chunk size is the amount of data stored as one section of the vCache. All of these three settings can be optimized.

There are different situations that the vCache can be optimized for, but there are two basic situations: general use and computer games. Please see the Advanced Operation section to read about how to set the vCache.

For General use of your computer, your maximum vCache should be about 1/4 of your systems total physical memory. Your minimum vCache should be around 2 Megabytes (this is a safe buffer for any system that has more than 16MB of RAM). The Chunk size has been shown to be best when it is 1/64 of the maximum vCache size. This is good for multitasking, which often takes advantage of the vCache. But it will also keep the amount of free RAM high enough to accommodate the programs you have running at the moment.

For computer games the settings are quite different. Because when you are playing computer games (that is, 3D games and other resource heavy games) you do not often need a large vCache. You also don’t want to waste valuable processor power on negotiating the size of the vCache. The best setting has been shown to have both the minimum and maximum vCache be 1/16 of the systems total RAM. The Chunk size should also be about 1/64 of the maximum cache size.

Of course all these settings will not be the best for every situation. Once you think you know enough about the vCache, you can set the settings by hand.


Advanced Operation
Advanced Operation for NitroRAM

While NitroRAM is very simple, it also has powerful features for advanced users.

To set the values for your vCache, click the tab labeled “Cache Tweaking.” You will see a box labeled “Settings.” Here you can choose how you want to set your vCache. It is recommended that you use the automatic settings, but you can use manual settings if you know what you are doing and if you have a specific need. To take advantage of an automatic setting, enter the amount of RAM that you have into the “Total RAM” field (this should be filled out automatically, however), and enter your current computer use in the “Main Computer Use” field. Then click “Apply.” The settings will take place as soon as you restart your computer. Note: you must restart your computer; that is how Microsoft made the Windows operating system. To use a manual setting, select the “Manual setting” option in the “Main Computer Use” field. Now enter the manual settings in the fields below. Be sure to click “Apply” to cause the changes to take place.

To change the options for RAM recovery, click the “Options” tab.

The first option is “Use Auto Recovery.” When checked, this will enable NitroRAM to recover RAM without user intervention when the RAM drops below a user defined level.

The next option is “Emergency recover when RAM reaches X MB”(where X is the number that you set by clicking the up and down arrows). This option will recover the RAM unconditional of the current CPU usage. This is useful if a program is maxing-out the CPU while filling up your RAM. This option should be set very low to avoid stealing RAM from programs that need it. If the value is set to “0", this option will be disabled.

The next option is “Auto Recover when free RAM reaches X MB” (where X is the number that you set by clicking the up and down arrows). This option determines the lower limit of the free RAM. Once the free RAM dips below this level, NitroRAM will automatically recover the RAM to this level.

The item down is “Recover RAM to X MB” (where X is the number that you set by clicking the up and down arrows). This is the amount of free RAM you will have when NitroRAM automatically or manually recovers RAM.

“Only recover if CPU usage is below X%” (where X is the number that you set by clicking the up and down arrows) controls when RAM can be automatically recovered. If the CPU usage is above this level, NitroRAM will wait until it dips below this level to start automatically recovering RAM. Note: this option only applies to automatically recovering RAM.

“Send to tray when minimized.” This option, if enabled, will cause NitroRAM to hide as a little icon near the clock in the corner.

“Start NitroRAM when Windows starts.” This option, if enabled, will cause NitroRAM to load when Windows loads. This option can save you a lot time when starting your computer and it is a good idea to leave it on.

“Start NitroRAM minimized” makes NitroRAM open only the system tray (near the clock). That means NitroRAM can start out of the way and stay out of the way. NitroRAM can be open to full size by double clicking its tray icon.

The next item down is a button labeled “Reset all settings!” This button will reset all the options to their original settings (just in case you made a mistake and forgot what to set it back to).


Freeing physical RAM
Freeing physical RAM - how it works.

The physical memory is much faster than the virtual memory. The virtual memory is used when the system does not have enough physical memory to complete its tasks. The virtual memory is a file that is stored on your hard drive. As noted above, the physical RAM is much faster than the hard drive. However, physical RAM is expensive when compared to hard drives. Physical memory can be filled very quickly. Once a program closes, it should free all physical memory which it used, but it often does not; this is called leaking. This leaves less and less room in the fast physical RAM for other programs. NitroRAM can increase the amount of free space in your physical memory.

When you optimize your RAM using NitroRAM, it will move extra data in the physical memory and move it to the virtual memory (SWAP file). This data will remain in the slower virtual memory until it is needed, leaving room in the physical RAM for higher priority programs. Often the memory which is moved to the SWAP is not needed again, because it was leaked memory.

When you first free the memory from the physical RAM, you might notice a lot of hard drive action. This is simply the physical RAM getting swapped into the hard drive as virtual memory.

It can be bad to free too much physical RAM. This is because the data will get moved to the slower SWAP file, but a lot of it will be needed as soon as you are done optimizing. That means that the data will be brought right back into the physical RAM. This will waste a lot of time.

You should experiment to see what works best for you.


Registering NitroRAM

NitroRAM is trailware. It will only function for free for 30 days. During this time you will have the chance to experience the awesome power of NitroRAM. You can register NitroRAM at any point. If you register NitroRAM before 30 days is up, NitroRAM will never expire! To register NitroRAM click the "Register NitroRAM!" button.


What's New!

New in version 1.31:

New built-in tutorial.

New help tab.

Minor bug fixes.

New in version 1.2:

New eSellerate sales (makes buying NitroRAM easier).

Minor bug fixes.

New in version 1.1:

Better auto recovery of RAM.

Lower CPU usage.

Emergency recover feature.

NitroRAM can now be started minimized in the tray.

Two more options for the Cache Tweak tool ("Power User" and "CD write use").

The RAM status is now displayed on the the taskbar.