XP SP-2 System Boot Fails using /3GB switch in Boot.ini

  • Thread starter Thread starter Guest
  • Start date Start date
G

Guest

Greetings,

I am trying to increase the amount of Physical Memory used by Photoshop CS2.
It is stated by Adobe that this can be accomplished by using the /3GB switch
in Boot.ini on a Windows Xp Professional Service Pack 2 system. I have this
version and I am using SP2.

When I place the /3GB switch in Boot.ini the system fails to boot. The
system will post, then there is a Blue Screen, however it goes by in an
instant and it doesn't fully display. THe system then reboots itself. it
will do this in a continual loop. Windows Recovery Console will not repair
the problem as it cannot properly see the Partition on the Boot Drive. I
beleive that this is because it's a Seral ATA drive. Even when using F6 to
load in the Serial ATA driver, it still cannot read the partion. It states
that the file system is [unkown] and that there maybe corruption that is
unrecoverable. Obviously this is BS as all I did was change the Boot.ini
file. I resolved the issue by installing Windows to a new drive and used
that Windows session to change the Boot.ini file back to normal.

With that said, is there a way to use this switch with my system? Perhaps I
didn't place it in the right place? Is the order in which the switches are
executed important?

Here are my system specs:

Mainboard: ASUS P4800 SE
CPU: Intel P4 3.0 Ghz (Presscott)
Memory: 2x 512MB PC3200 Corsair 2x 1024MB PC3200 Corsair (Running in Dual
Channel)
Drives:
1) Maxtor 300GIG Serial ATA 7200RPM 16mb cache (2 partitions of 150GIG)
2) Maxtor 160GIG E-IDE UATA 7200 RPM 8mb Cache (Contains the Windows Swap)
3) Western Digital 40GIG E-IDE ATA 7200 RPM 4mb Cache
4) Creative DVD-ROM
5) Creative DVD-RW
VIDEO: AGP 8x Biostar 6800 Ultra 512MB using Forceware 93.71(latest)
SOUND: SundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS
OS: Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2 Version 2002

Thanks in Advance!

-Gaikotsu
 
On a new hd,specially SATA it doesnt get recognized,to solve this,download
the MS-DOS utility from its mfg web site.Install to a MS-DOS formatted
floppy,
boot to floppy,run the formating/burn in utilities.Also,you dont need to use
a 3GB switch,what does this accomplish....Also,make sure the BIOS is set
for SATA,by default it isnt.
 
Andrew,

Thanks for the response I'm glad there is an explanantion.

I DO need the 3GB switch! I am an illustrator and I work heavily in
Photoshop. The programers at Adobe saw fit to limit Photoshop to 1.7 GIG of
RAM. However, if you apply the 3GB switch it will allow upto 2.8 GIG of RAM.
This will assist me in having less data to swap on 'scratch' discs. A
simple 200MB file will take 5 minutes just to gausian blur :(.

I want to increase performance in Photoshop. I have a decent system...I
just want it to run like one ;).

-Gaikotsu

Andrew E. said:
On a new hd,specially SATA it doesnt get recognized,to solve this,download
the MS-DOS utility from its mfg web site.Install to a MS-DOS formatted
floppy,
boot to floppy,run the formating/burn in utilities.Also,you dont need to use
a 3GB switch,what does this accomplish....Also,make sure the BIOS is set
for SATA,by default it isnt.

Gaikotsu said:
Greetings,

I am trying to increase the amount of Physical Memory used by Photoshop CS2.
It is stated by Adobe that this can be accomplished by using the /3GB switch
in Boot.ini on a Windows Xp Professional Service Pack 2 system. I have this
version and I am using SP2.

When I place the /3GB switch in Boot.ini the system fails to boot. The
system will post, then there is a Blue Screen, however it goes by in an
instant and it doesn't fully display. THe system then reboots itself. it
will do this in a continual loop. Windows Recovery Console will not repair
the problem as it cannot properly see the Partition on the Boot Drive. I
beleive that this is because it's a Seral ATA drive. Even when using F6 to
load in the Serial ATA driver, it still cannot read the partion. It states
that the file system is [unkown] and that there maybe corruption that is
unrecoverable. Obviously this is BS as all I did was change the Boot.ini
file. I resolved the issue by installing Windows to a new drive and used
that Windows session to change the Boot.ini file back to normal.

With that said, is there a way to use this switch with my system? Perhaps I
didn't place it in the right place? Is the order in which the switches are
executed important?

Here are my system specs:

Mainboard: ASUS P4800 SE
CPU: Intel P4 3.0 Ghz (Presscott)
Memory: 2x 512MB PC3200 Corsair 2x 1024MB PC3200 Corsair (Running in Dual
Channel)
Drives:
1) Maxtor 300GIG Serial ATA 7200RPM 16mb cache (2 partitions of 150GIG)
2) Maxtor 160GIG E-IDE UATA 7200 RPM 8mb Cache (Contains the Windows Swap)
3) Western Digital 40GIG E-IDE ATA 7200 RPM 4mb Cache
4) Creative DVD-ROM
5) Creative DVD-RW
VIDEO: AGP 8x Biostar 6800 Ultra 512MB using Forceware 93.71(latest)
SOUND: SundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS
OS: Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2 Version 2002

Thanks in Advance!

-Gaikotsu
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Gaikotsu

I have a system with 2GB RAM.

I have found the best tweak to speed up PS CS2 and AI CS2 is to move the scratch disk to it's own, dedicated partition on a separate hard drive. I have the first partition (25GB) on the second hard drive set as the scratch disk for both PS and AI. Works very well.

--

Ronnie Vernon
Microsoft MVP
Windows Shell/User


Gaikotsu said:
Andrew,

Thanks for the response I'm glad there is an explanantion.

I DO need the 3GB switch! I am an illustrator and I work heavily in
Photoshop. The programers at Adobe saw fit to limit Photoshop to 1.7 GIG of
RAM. However, if you apply the 3GB switch it will allow upto 2.8 GIG of RAM.
This will assist me in having less data to swap on 'scratch' discs. A
simple 200MB file will take 5 minutes just to gausian blur :(.

I want to increase performance in Photoshop. I have a decent system...I
just want it to run like one ;).

-Gaikotsu

Andrew E. said:
On a new hd,specially SATA it doesnt get recognized,to solve this,download
the MS-DOS utility from its mfg web site.Install to a MS-DOS formatted
floppy,
boot to floppy,run the formating/burn in utilities.Also,you dont need to use
a 3GB switch,what does this accomplish....Also,make sure the BIOS is set
for SATA,by default it isnt.

Gaikotsu said:
Greetings,

I am trying to increase the amount of Physical Memory used by Photoshop CS2.
It is stated by Adobe that this can be accomplished by using the /3GB switch
in Boot.ini on a Windows Xp Professional Service Pack 2 system. I have this
version and I am using SP2.

When I place the /3GB switch in Boot.ini the system fails to boot. The
system will post, then there is a Blue Screen, however it goes by in an
instant and it doesn't fully display. THe system then reboots itself. it
will do this in a continual loop. Windows Recovery Console will not repair
the problem as it cannot properly see the Partition on the Boot Drive. I
beleive that this is because it's a Seral ATA drive. Even when using F6 to
load in the Serial ATA driver, it still cannot read the partion. It states
that the file system is [unkown] and that there maybe corruption that is
unrecoverable. Obviously this is BS as all I did was change the Boot.ini
file. I resolved the issue by installing Windows to a new drive and used
that Windows session to change the Boot.ini file back to normal.

With that said, is there a way to use this switch with my system? Perhaps I
didn't place it in the right place? Is the order in which the switches are
executed important?

Here are my system specs:

Mainboard: ASUS P4800 SE
CPU: Intel P4 3.0 Ghz (Presscott)
Memory: 2x 512MB PC3200 Corsair 2x 1024MB PC3200 Corsair (Running in Dual
Channel)
Drives:
1) Maxtor 300GIG Serial ATA 7200RPM 16mb cache (2 partitions of 150GIG)
2) Maxtor 160GIG E-IDE UATA 7200 RPM 8mb Cache (Contains the Windows Swap)
3) Western Digital 40GIG E-IDE ATA 7200 RPM 4mb Cache
4) Creative DVD-ROM
5) Creative DVD-RW
VIDEO: AGP 8x Biostar 6800 Ultra 512MB using Forceware 93.71(latest)
SOUND: SundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS
OS: Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2 Version 2002

Thanks in Advance!

-Gaikotsu
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Like it or not, some part of installed RAM has to be available for kernel
processes, pci memory address, video etc. The fact that a system does not
make the user aware of this until such time as 4gb is installed does not
take away from the that fact. By using the /3gb switch in a system where
only 3gb was installed, the system was attempting to do as asked, but in
doing so was cutting away resources needed for the 'system' to operate.

Even in a 64bit system which accurately reports 4gb installed RAM, a portion
of that is required for system processes, and so will not be directly
available to Windows purely because the system will not allow it.

As far as I am aware, Windows XP can't use more than 2gb for any one single
process, so forcing by using the /3gb switch will not work for just one
process anyway.

To rebuild your boot.ini file such that the machine boots properly, go to
this website..

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/330184

--
Mike Hall
MS-MVP Windows Shell/User



Gaikotsu said:
Andrew,

Thanks for the response I'm glad there is an explanantion.

I DO need the 3GB switch! I am an illustrator and I work heavily in
Photoshop. The programers at Adobe saw fit to limit Photoshop to 1.7 GIG
of
RAM. However, if you apply the 3GB switch it will allow upto 2.8 GIG of
RAM.
This will assist me in having less data to swap on 'scratch' discs. A
simple 200MB file will take 5 minutes just to gausian blur :(.

I want to increase performance in Photoshop. I have a decent system...I
just want it to run like one ;).

-Gaikotsu

Andrew E. said:
On a new hd,specially SATA it doesnt get recognized,to solve
this,download
the MS-DOS utility from its mfg web site.Install to a MS-DOS formatted
floppy,
boot to floppy,run the formating/burn in utilities.Also,you dont need to
use
a 3GB switch,what does this accomplish....Also,make sure the BIOS is set
for SATA,by default it isnt.

Gaikotsu said:
Greetings,

I am trying to increase the amount of Physical Memory used by Photoshop
CS2.
It is stated by Adobe that this can be accomplished by using the /3GB
switch
in Boot.ini on a Windows Xp Professional Service Pack 2 system. I have
this
version and I am using SP2.

When I place the /3GB switch in Boot.ini the system fails to boot. The
system will post, then there is a Blue Screen, however it goes by in an
instant and it doesn't fully display. THe system then reboots itself.
it
will do this in a continual loop. Windows Recovery Console will not
repair
the problem as it cannot properly see the Partition on the Boot Drive.
I
beleive that this is because it's a Seral ATA drive. Even when using
F6 to
load in the Serial ATA driver, it still cannot read the partion. It
states
that the file system is [unkown] and that there maybe corruption that
is
unrecoverable. Obviously this is BS as all I did was change the
Boot.ini
file. I resolved the issue by installing Windows to a new drive and
used
that Windows session to change the Boot.ini file back to normal.

With that said, is there a way to use this switch with my system?
Perhaps I
didn't place it in the right place? Is the order in which the switches
are
executed important?

Here are my system specs:

Mainboard: ASUS P4800 SE
CPU: Intel P4 3.0 Ghz (Presscott)
Memory: 2x 512MB PC3200 Corsair 2x 1024MB PC3200 Corsair (Running in
Dual
Channel)
Drives:
1) Maxtor 300GIG Serial ATA 7200RPM 16mb cache (2 partitions of 150GIG)
2) Maxtor 160GIG E-IDE UATA 7200 RPM 8mb Cache (Contains the Windows
Swap)
3) Western Digital 40GIG E-IDE ATA 7200 RPM 4mb Cache
4) Creative DVD-ROM
5) Creative DVD-RW
VIDEO: AGP 8x Biostar 6800 Ultra 512MB using Forceware 93.71(latest)
SOUND: SundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS
OS: Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2 Version 2002

Thanks in Advance!

-Gaikotsu
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
To Ronnie:

I do have the Photoshop scratch disc on it's own drive. I have 3 harddrives
and 4 total partitions. Windows has its own swap on a different drive, and
Photoshop has it's swap on it's own drive (separate from the windows swap.)

The issue is that when I open say a 200MB file, it'll immediately expand to
1.7 gigs of RAM (yes, I set it to use 100% of my RAM), then it will consume
about 4 to 5 gigs of Swap space. Then, whenever I make a change it takes 5+
minutes for it to take effect. It's annoying. So all it does is swap,
swap, swap when it should easily be able to handle it all in resident memory.
Photoshop is suppose to use about 4 times the size of the file in memory.
By my math, 200 mbs should be using 800MB of RAM. Why the need to swap?

To MIKE:

Much appreciated. It's pretty much what I had figured that you can only use
the /3GB switch if and only if, you have 4GB installed. I suppose I can live
without until I upgrade.

To all, and I know this somewhat changes the thread topic...but......

Do you think that the way I have the drives installed causes a bottle neck
in my memory bandwidth? I feel like my system isn't as fast as it should be.
If you guys don't mind being a little more charitable can you take a look at
how I have this set up and perhaps suggest a better configuration. I'd be
most appreciated! :D

The main Bootable drive is a Maxtor 300 GIG 16mb cache (7200 RPM) drive on
the Serial ATA bus.

the Primary IDE port is set up as having a Maxtor 160GIG 8B cache (7200 RPM)
drive with a DVD RW as a slave.

The Secondary IDE port is set up similarly with a Western Digital 40GIG 4MB
cache (7200 RPM) drive with a DVD ROM as a slave.

The Windows swap is on the Maxtor 160 GIG (primary IDE) and the Photoshop
scratch is on the 40 GIG drive (Secondary ide.)

Thanks again for al your sage-like wisdom :)

-Gai

Ronnie Vernon MVP said:
Gaikotsu

Mike is on the right track. Here are more articles that will help.

Driver may not be loaded with the /3GB switch:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/319043

How to use the /userva switch with the /3GB switch to tune the User-mode space to a value between 2 GB and 3 GB:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316739

--

Ronnie Vernon
Microsoft MVP
Windows Shell/User


Gaikotsu said:
Greetings,

I am trying to increase the amount of Physical Memory used by Photoshop CS2.
It is stated by Adobe that this can be accomplished by using the /3GB switch
in Boot.ini on a Windows Xp Professional Service Pack 2 system. I have this
version and I am using SP2.

When I place the /3GB switch in Boot.ini the system fails to boot. The
system will post, then there is a Blue Screen, however it goes by in an
instant and it doesn't fully display. THe system then reboots itself. it
will do this in a continual loop. Windows Recovery Console will not repair
the problem as it cannot properly see the Partition on the Boot Drive. I
beleive that this is because it's a Seral ATA drive. Even when using F6 to
load in the Serial ATA driver, it still cannot read the partion. It states
that the file system is [unkown] and that there maybe corruption that is
unrecoverable. Obviously this is BS as all I did was change the Boot.ini
file. I resolved the issue by installing Windows to a new drive and used
that Windows session to change the Boot.ini file back to normal.

With that said, is there a way to use this switch with my system? Perhaps I
didn't place it in the right place? Is the order in which the switches are
executed important?

Here are my system specs:

Mainboard: ASUS P4800 SE
CPU: Intel P4 3.0 Ghz (Presscott)
Memory: 2x 512MB PC3200 Corsair 2x 1024MB PC3200 Corsair (Running in Dual
Channel)
Drives:
1) Maxtor 300GIG Serial ATA 7200RPM 16mb cache (2 partitions of 150GIG)
2) Maxtor 160GIG E-IDE UATA 7200 RPM 8mb Cache (Contains the Windows Swap)
3) Western Digital 40GIG E-IDE ATA 7200 RPM 4mb Cache
4) Creative DVD-ROM
5) Creative DVD-RW
VIDEO: AGP 8x Biostar 6800 Ultra 512MB using Forceware 93.71(latest)
SOUND: SundBlaster Audigy 2 ZS
OS: Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2 Version 2002

Thanks in Advance!

-Gaikotsu
Click to expand...
Click to expand...
 
Back
Top