Microsoft touts lean Windows 8 memory usage

SOFTWARE REDEVELOPER Microsoft has revealed some of the ways it intends to kerb Windows 8 memory usage.

Microsoft's upcoming Windows 8 operating system (OS) will not always have gigabytes of RAM at its disposal, thanks to the company's desire to have it running on tablets. In order to show how lean Windows 8 can be, the firm claims that a version of the operating system running on a PC needs only around 200MB of RAM, half that of Windows 7.

For Microsoft, one of the biggest challenges with Windows 8 is showing that it can run on the same sorts of devices as Apple's BSD-based IOS and Google's Linux-based Android OS. Both BSD and Linux are known to require far fewer resources, while Windows has a long and well deserved reputation for being used by PC makers as an excuse to sell faster and more memory laden machines.

One of the ways Microsoft has managed to decrease memory usage is to start services such as Windows Update and Plug and Play only when triggered by the operating system rather than residing in memory from start-up. According to Microsoft's Bill Karagounis, while that might sound simple, Microsoft had to add "a ton of new functionality and new code to Windows 8".

Karagounis also pointed to fine grained 'memory prioritisation' in Windows 8, essentially a way for Windows 8 to discard data from RAM that it views isn't worth keeping. Applications can be assigned different priorities and Karagounis used the example of antivirus programs that generally scan single files and go on standby and can be dumped out of memory, whereas applications such as Microsoft Excel generally run continually for long periods of time.

Microsoft has already outlined how parts of the desktop will not be loaded into system memory, with Karagounis claiming that this strategy saves around 23MB.

Whether or not Microsoft's attempts to make Windows 8 leaner will help it in the tablet market, desktop users will enjoy the benefits. For system builders, it could hinder their ability to use Windows 8 as a way of flogging new kit with the suggestion that Windows needs yet more processor cycles and RAM. µ