The information in this article applies to:
IMPORTANT: This article contains information about editing the registry. Before you edit the registry, make sure you understand how to restore it if a problem occurs. For information about how to do this, view the "Restoring the Registry" Help topic in Regedit.exe or the "Restoring a Registry Key" Help topic in Regedt32.exe. SYMPTOMSWhen you run a large number of Windows-based programs, "Out Of Memory" error messages appear when you attempt to start new programs or try to use programs that are already running, even though you still have plenty of physical and pagefile memory available. CAUSE
This behavior can occur if the desktop heap in the WIN32 subsystem is
depleted.
RESOLUTIONWARNING: Using Registry Editor incorrectly can cause serious problems that
may require you to reinstall your operating system. Microsoft cannot
guarantee that problems resulting from the incorrect use of Registry Editor
can be solved. Use Registry Editor at your own risk.
MORE INFORMATION
Windows NT uses a special memory heap for all Windows-based programs
running on the desktop. The desktop heap is used for all objects (windows,
menus, pens, icons, etc.). When a large number of Windows-based
programs are running, this heap may run out of memory. When there is
not enough memory to satisfy an allocation request, the system normally
returns an error and notifies the user that they are running low on
memory. Some programs do not handle the failure gracefully, and in some
cases there may not be enough memory to create the error message dialog box.
As a result, the requested operation fails without any indication.
The first SharedSection value (1024) defines the heap size common to all desktops. This includes the global handle table (Window handles are unique machine wide) and shared system settings (such as SystemMetrics). It is unlikely you would ever need to change this value. The second SharedSection value (3072) controls the size of the desktop heap (used for Windows objects). This static value is used to prevent ill- behaved applications from consuming too many resources. Because the desktop heap is mapped into each process' address space, this value should not be set to an arbitrarily high value (as it would decrease performance), but should only be increased sufficiently to allow all the desired applications to run. Additional query words: prodnt low failure fixed size page file
Keywords : kbenv ntconfig |
Last Reviewed: January 18, 2000 © 2000 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved. Terms of Use. |