Memory Management Problems on Computers with Pentium Processors
Article ID: 179897
Article Last Modified on 9/22/2005
APPLIES TO
- Microsoft Windows 95
- Microsoft Windows 95
This article was previously published under Q179897
SYMPTOMS
When you run multiple programs (especially MS-DOS-based programs) on a
Windows-based computer that has insufficient system memory (RAM) and
contains an Intel Pentium Pro or Pentium II processor, information in
memory may become unavailable or damaged, leading to unpredictable
results. For example, copy and compare operations may not work
consistently.
CAUSE
This behavior is an indirect result of certain performance optimizations
in the Intel Pentium Pro and Pentium II processors. These optimizations
affect how the Windows 95 Virtual Machine Manager (VMM) performs certain
memory operations, such as determining which sections of memory are not in
use and can be safely freed. As a result, the Virtual Machine Manager may
free the wrong pages in memory, leading to the symptoms described earlier.
RESOLUTION
STATUS
This problem no longer occurs in Windows 98. To resolve this problem, install the current version of Windows. For information about the current version of Windows, visit
http://www.microsoft.com/windows.
MORE INFORMATION
Keywords: kbqfe kbhardware kbprb kbdiskmemory kbhotfixserver KB179897