®®Microsoft Windows 7 for Power Users

Tutorial 9Evaluating System Performance

XPXPXPXPXPXPObjectives• Examine RAM, virtual memory, and the paging file• View virtual memory settings• Monitor changes in system performance with Task

Manager• Use Resource Monitor to evaluate system

performance• Create a system health report

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XPXPXPXPXPXPObjectives• Use Performance Monitor to track performance

changes on your computer• Analyze, save, and print performance measurements• Use Resource and Performance Monitor to examine

memory usage• Examine Windows ReadyBoost and SuperFetch

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XPXPXPXPXPXPMemory Usage

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XPXPXPXPXPXPThe Importance of RAM and Virtual Memory• Affects the performance of a computer• Paging file is used for supplemental RAM– Maximum size is three times the amount of installed

RAM– Virtual memory

• Memory is used:– For the operating system and startup programs– Each time you open an application or other program

• Windows cannot always reclaim originally allocated memory– Memory leak

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XPXPXPXPXPXPViewing the Paging File• Locate pagefile.sys

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XPXPXPXPXPXPExamining Virtual Memory Settings• Right-click the

Computer icon, click Properties, click the Advanced system settings link

• Under Performance, click the Settings button, and then click the Advanced tab

• Under Virtual memory, click the Change button

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Windows Task Manager to View System Performance• Right-click an empty area of the taskbar, and then

click Start Task Manager

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Windows Task Manager to View System Performance

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• Paged kernel memory is that portion of kernel memory that can be paged, or swapped, to disk so other programs can use that memory

• Nonpaged kernel memory is available only to the operating system, and these pages cannot be paged to disk.

• A thread is an object within a process that executes instructions

• A handle is an ID that uniquely identifies a resource, such as a file or Registry setting, so a program can access that resource

XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Resource Monitor to Evaluate System Performance• Displays information about the use of CPU, disk,

network, and memory resources

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Resource Monitor to Evaluate System Performance• Resource Monitor can also:– View processes that are using the CPU– View processes reading and writing to files on disk– View processes and their memory usage

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Resource Monitor to Evaluate System Performance

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XPXPXPXPXPXPCreating a System Health Report• You can use Resource and Performance Monitor to

create a system health report• Right-click the Computer desktop icon, click

Properties, click the Performance Information and Tools link in the System window, click the Advanced tools link, click the Generate a system health report link

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XPXPXPXPXPXPCreating a System Health Report

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XPXPXPXPXPXPCreating a System Health Report• The System Health Report also allows you to:– View information on startup programs– View Hot Files that cause the most disk I/O

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XPXPXPXPXPXPMemory Usage

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Performance Monitor to Evaluate System Performance• A performance object is a broad category that

contains a set of related performance counters for measuring the performance of some aspect of your computer system

• A performance counter is a specific option for measuring the performance of an object– An instance allows you to sample a performance

counter in a specific way• From the Start menu, point to Administrative Tools,

and then click Performance Monitor

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Performance Monitor to Evaluate System Performance

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Performance Monitor to Evaluate System Performance• You can add performance counters by clicking the

Add button on the Performance Monitor Toolbar

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Performance Monitor to Evaluate System Performance

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Performance Monitor to Evaluate System Performance• Monitor your computer’s performance as you open

an application

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Performance Monitor to Evaluate System Performance• Comparing changes in memory usage

• Additional options on the Performance Monitor toolbar include:– Change graph type button– Properties button– Update Data button– Delete button

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Resource and Performance Monitor to Examine Memory Performance• Reliability and Performance Monitor also provides

information on the current memory usage by reporting on the values of key performance counters– Generate a system health report

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Resource and Performance Monitor to Examine Memory Performance

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing Reliability and Performance Monitor to Examine Memory Performance• Preview the System Diagnostics Report using the

Print Preview feature• You also may be able to export the performance data

to Microsoft Excel

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing ReadyBoost with Superfetch• Windows ReadyBoost uses high-speed storage space

on a flash drive to boost the performance of your computer by storing cached data on the flash drive, including the paging file

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing ReadyBoost with Superfetch

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XPXPXPXPXPXPUsing ReadyBoost with Superfetch• Superfetch determines how you use your computer,

and then preloads the programs so that they are available when you need them– Also performs other important functions when the

computer is idle• Background processes

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