ReadyBoost
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ReadyBoost is the name of a disk caching technology included with Microsoft's Windows Vista operating system. It aims to make computers running Windows Vista more responsive by using flash memory on a USB 2.0 drive, SD Card, Compact Flash, or other form of flash memory, in order to boost system performance.
Using ReadyBoost-capable flash memory devices for caching allows Windows Vista to service random disk reads with performance that is typically 8-10 times faster than random reads from traditional hard drives. This caching is applied to all disk content, not just the page file or system DLLs. Flash devices are typically slower than the hard drive for sequential I/O, so to maximize performance, ReadyBoost includes logic to recognize large, sequential read requests and then allows these requests to be serviced by the hard drive.
When a compatible device is plugged in, the Windows AutoPlay dialog offers an additional option to use it to speed up the system; an additional "ReadyBoost" tab is added to the drive's properties dialog where the amount of space to be used can be configured.[1] ReadyBoost may also be able to use spare RAM on other networked Vista PCs in a future release.[2] However, this feature is not present in the current version of Windows Vista.
For a device to be compatible it must conform to the following requirements:
- The capacity of the USB device must be at least 256 MB and no larger than 4 GB[3]
- The USB device must support USB 2.0
- The device must be capable of 3.5 MB/s read speeds for 4 kB random reads spread uniformly across the entire device and 2.5 MB/s write speeds for 512 kB random writes spread uniformly across the device.
- The device must have at least 64 MB of free space
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Tom Archer (April 14, 2006). ReadyBoost - Using Your USB Key to Speed Up Windows Vista. Tom Archer's Blog. Microsoft. Retrieved on 2006-05-21.
- ^ Jim Allchin (23 May 2006). Retrieved on 2006-11-01.
- ^ Matt Ayers, Program Manager, Microsoft Windows Client Performance (02 June 2006). Retrieved on 2006-11-15.
