Page Files Test

When the load imposed by applications and services running on a server nears the amount of installed RAM, additional storage is necessary. The page file serves as the temporary store on disk for memory that cannot be accommodated in the physical RAM. Since it is frequently accessed for storing and retrieving data that is needed for virtual memory access by application, the location and sizing of the page files can have a critical impact on a server's performance. Ideally, the server operating system and the page file should be available on different drives for optimal performance. Splitting the page file across different drives can improve performance further. A rule of thumb in sizing the page file is to set the maximum size of the page file to 1.5 times the available RAM. While this works well for systems with smaller physical memory, for other systems, the optimal page file size has to be determined based on experience using the system and studying the typical workload.

This tracks the usage of each of the page files on a Windows server.

Target of the test : A Windows host only

Agent deploying the test : An internal agent

Outputs of the test : One set of results for every page file on a Windows server

Configurable parameters for the test
Parameter Description

Test Period

How often should the test be executed.

Host

The host for which the test is to be configured.

Report total

Set this flag to Yes if you want the test to report total page file usage - i.e., the aggregate usage across multiple page files. In this case therefore, a Total descriptor will newly appear for this test in the eG monitoring console.

Report total only

If both the Report total and Report total only flags are set to Yes, then the test will report only the aggregate usage across multiple page files - in other words, the test will report values for the Total descriptor only. Likewise, if the Report total flag is set to No, and the Report total only flag is set to Yes, then again, the test will report current usage for the Total descriptor only. However, if both the Report total and Report Total only flags are set to No, then the test will report individual usages only.  Also, if the Report total flag is set to Yes and the Report total only flag is set to No, then both the individual and Total usages will be reported.

Measurements made by the test
Measurement Description Measurement Unit Interpretation

Current usage:

Indicates the current usage of a page file.

Percent

This metric should be less than 90%. If the page file does not have additional space, additional users/processes cannot be supported and system performance will suffer. To improve performance, consider resizing the page file. Microsoft Windows allows a minimum and maximum size of the page file to be specified. If the system has sufficient disk space, consider setting the page file to start out at the maximum size (by using the same value for the minimum and maximum sizes), so that system resources are not spent growing the page file size when there is a virtual memory shortage.