How to Use Pen Drive As RAM

Download Article
Download Article

This wikiHow teaches you how to improve the speed of your Windows PC by using a USB flash drive as virtual RAM. As long as you're using Windows 10, 8, 7, or Vista, Windows comes with a built-in feature that makes it super easy to allocate the entirety of your flash drive as extra memory that can be accessed when needed. Unfortunately there's no equivalent option for macOS.

Steps

Download Article
  1. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/a\/ac\/Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-1-Version-3.jpg\/v4-460px-Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-1-Version-3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/a\/ac\/Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-1-Version-3.jpg\/aid1816689-v4-728px-Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-1-Version-3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":348,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":551,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    In most cases, a window called "AutoPlay" will pop-up automatically.
    • If no such window appears, press ⊞ Win + E to open the File Explorer, right-click the drive in the left panel, then click Open AutoPlay .
    • If the drive is not blank, you should format it before you continue. Press ⊞ Win + E to open the File Explorer, right-click the drive in the left panel, and then select Format . Once formatted, right-click the drive and select Open AutoPlay .
  2. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/a\/a9\/Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-2-Version-3.jpg\/v4-460px-Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-2-Version-3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/a\/a9\/Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-2-Version-3.jpg\/aid1816689-v4-728px-Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-2-Version-3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":348,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":551,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    This opens your USB flash drive's properties to the ReadyBoost tab.
    • If you see an error on the tab says that your drive is not suitable for ReadyBoost, you may have plugged the drive into a USB port that isn't fast enough. Try a different port. If that doesn't help, you'll need to use a different USB flash drive.
    • If you see an error that says the computer is fast enough that ReadyBoost won't provide any benefits, it's usually because you're using an SSD (solid-state drive). No performance gains would be possible with a USB flash drive in this case.
    Advertisement
  3. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/e\/ec\/Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-3-Version-3.jpg\/v4-460px-Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-3-Version-3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/e\/ec\/Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-3-Version-3.jpg\/aid1816689-v4-728px-Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-3-Version-3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":348,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":551,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    You'll see one of these two options near the top of the ReadyBoost tab.
    • If you're using Vista, drag the "Space to reserve for system speed" slider all the way to the right.
  4. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/0\/0e\/Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-4-Version-3.jpg\/v4-460px-Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-4-Version-3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/0\/0e\/Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-4-Version-3.jpg\/aid1816689-v4-728px-Use-Pen-Drive-As-RAM-Step-4-Version-3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":348,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":551,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    This adds a special cache file to the USB flash drive that allows it to be used by Windows as additional RAM.
    • Windows will start using the drive as RAM immediately, although you may not notice speed improvements until you've populated the new cache file by running your normal tasks.
    5. Advertisement

Community Q&A

Search
Add New Question
  • Question
    Is this method adding the RAM or replacing the laptop RAM?
    Community Answer
    It's not replacing your laptop's RAM. It's using the pen drive as RAM memory along with your real RAM.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 6 Helpful 37
  • Question
    How do I stop using my pen drive as RAM and use it as a data storage device?
    Community Answer
    Just go to ready boost again and tick the mark on "Do not use this device" and you can use it as a data storage device.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 16 Helpful 83
  • Question
    How do I remove the pendrive after completing my work?
    Community Answer
    Just go to computer Properties and deselect the virtual memory. Then go to the USB setting and remove the ready-boost (do not use this device) then apply and format. Then restart your PC.
    Thanks! We're glad this was helpful.
    Thank you for your feedback.
    If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow
    Yes No
    Not Helpful 9 Helpful 31
See more answers
Ask a Question
200 characters left
Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.
Submit
      Advertisement

      Tips

      • Apps that require a certain amount of RAM to run (including most games) will not recognize your new virtual RAM as actual RAM. You will still need to add RAM to your computer if you want to use an app that requires more RAM than what is installed.
        Thanks
      • To disable ReadyBoost in the future, right-click the drive in File Explorer, select Properties , choose ReadyBoost , and then choose Do not use this device .
        Thanks

      Tips from our Readers

      The advice in this section is based on the lived experiences of wikiHow readers like you. If you have a helpful tip you’d like to share on wikiHow, please submit it in the field below.
      • If you're using a public computer, like a school computer, you'll have to ask the teacher to log into the main account in order to continue the process.
      • You may need to delete some files in the Pen Drive, otherwise it might not work.
      Submit a Tip
      All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published
      Submit
      Thanks for submitting a tip for review!
      Advertisement

      You Might Also Like

      3 Easy Ways to Check Storage Space on a Flash Drive
      How to Use a Flash Drive as a Hard Drive for File Storage
      How to
      Save Files to a USB Flash Drive
      How to Make a Bootable USB Drive on Windows & macOS
      A Guide to Disabling Write Protection
      6 Ways to Repair a USB Flash Drive
      2 Simple Ways to Erase and Format a USB Flash Drive
      How to
      Copy Documents to a USB Flash Drive from Your Computer
      How to
      Put Music on a Flash Drive
      4 Simple Ways to Format and Clear an SD Memory Card
      How to
      Boot from an External Hard Drive
      How to
      Partition a Thumb Drive
      How to
      Remove Write Protection on an SD Card
      How to Reformat an External Hard Drive on Windows or Mac
      Advertisement

      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Insert blank USB drive.
      2. Click Speed up my system .
      3. Click Dedicate this device to ReadyBoost .
      4. Click OK .

      Did this summary help you?
      In other languages
      Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 892,303 times.

      Reader Success Stories

      • Chirayuu Pandharpurkar

        Sep 3, 2016

        "Guys, actually I wanted to use extra RAM because I wanted to make a really big terrain in Unity 5.4. It crashed ..." more
      More reader stories Hide reader stories
      Share your story

      Is this article up to date?

      Advertisement