Post subject: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Fri May 24, 2013 11:12 pm

Here is a YouTube video where someone managed to modify Windows 98 to recognize 2 GB of RAM (at least for all intents and purposes) by placing the virtual memory file (or swap file; basically WIN386.SWP) on a RAM drive. This to me is quite interesting, especially for LoneCrusader (that is, if he hasn't already broken the barrier himself by now, or known someone who did).
So basically, it sees the extra RAM as another drive, on which the virtual memory happens to be stored. Any comments are welcome.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Fri May 24, 2013 11:36 pm

Very interesting topic and video, thank you for sharing this YouTube video WinPC.
It is Starting up faster with Win386.swp file stored on RAM disk with 2 GB of virtual memory available to Windows 98, he used HimemX to achieve this virtual memory size as well, it's great to see this achievement with Windows 98.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat May 25, 2013 12:35 am

Interesting video and topic. I never known this is actually possible with Windows 98. Thanks for sharing.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat May 25, 2013 4:08 am

Only 2GB?
Let's try for 4GB. Under Windows 95 even. (Assuming you all know that ALL 32-bit systems limit addressable RAM to 3.5 or 3 GB, depending on your motherboard.)
How? The one and only RAM Limitation Patch by Rudolph Loew. (Time-limited Demo version is available on that page.)

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat May 25, 2013 4:55 am

I should have known you to have already broken the limit by now...

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat May 25, 2013 5:07 am

Not me, I can't take any credit for it. I only wish I had the skills Mr. Loew does.
I helped test for functionality and compatibility on Windows 95 (it already worked on 98/98SE/ME), but I don't have a clue as to how it works. I'm no programmer.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat May 25, 2013 6:26 am

Interesting video. Never seen Windows 98 run on 2GB of RAM before, and I thought that the highest Windows 98 could go was 1GB if I remember correctly. Thanks for sharing this WinPC.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat May 25, 2013 10:13 am

Well I wonder why you want to let Windows 95 run on 2GB RAM.......
I think that software in 1995 won't need to use such large RAM.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat May 25, 2013 10:35 am

I have Windows 95 on Virtual Machine with 128MB RAM and works great. I don`t know why 9x OS need more than approximately 512 MB RAM. All works with as long as it is sufficiently with 9x OS (95,98,Me).

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat May 25, 2013 10:53 am

Now, how many programs will consume the entire 2 Gigs...

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat May 25, 2013 11:01 pm

Because I can. And because I might want to run it on a dual or multi-boot system with Linux or later versions of Windows.

'Virtual Machine' says it all here. I run Windows 9x on REAL hardware. I use it on a DAILY basis for actual computing tasks. Not for 'playing with.'

Does wonders for even 9x-era games. WarCraft III for example.
And I actually crashed a Windows 98SE machine with 512MB of RAM once, just browsing the net with Firefox 2. It ran out of memory on a very large page and locked the system.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sun May 26, 2013 1:03 am

Win98SE with various patches can handle the full 32-bit memory space. It was artificially limited by Microsoft for stability purposes. My understanding of R. Lowe's patch is that it removes the limitation imposed by Microsoft. This all seems to occur within vmm32. You can actually give DOS access to the whole 32-bit memory space with a third party memory manager, like JEMM (http://www.japheth.de/Jemm.html). Granted, most applications will not see anything beyond the standard 'limit' of around 64mb, but it's nice to know such things exist for future-proofing DOS

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sun May 26, 2013 7:44 pm

Well, I for one can't really blame Microsoft much for placing in that 'limitation' in the first place - Windows 3.x and Windows 9x simply were not intended to be used with more than 512 MB of RAM. Back then, until the end of the decade, most systems had only about 48 MB of RAM at most, and even as recently as the early 2000s, I still knew of a number of systems that only had about 16 MB of RAM or less (we still had one system up to early 2002 that had only 8 MB of RAM, a 486 system which I'm now in the process of rebuilding, and we even still had a 386 system with the same amount of RAM, despite our other systems having 32 MB and 64 MB of RAM respectively).
However, theoretically speaking, if Windows 9x had still been developed, then obviously, they would have made it more compatible with modern hardware (already, Windows Me had support for 'legacy-free PCs' as a top priority even during pre-release testing). A typical PC manufactured today has at least 2 GB of RAM, and rarely has less than 1 GB, and most systems in use at the moment have at least 512 MB of RAM installed at the absolute minimum. And for those like us who would like to see Windows 9x utilize modern capabilities, patches and workarounds such as the ones mentioned above are quite an interesting sight.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Fri May 31, 2013 7:31 am

I don't need 2 GB RAM on the Windows 98. The technology wasn't high this years. Example, the little children learn iPhone. When I was a child, I learnt 98...
But that's good. I like it.
Have a nice day!

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Fri Jul 26, 2013 12:21 am

That was an interesting video. I heard that Windows x32 limits RAM to 4GB (even Windows 8 Pro with Media Center x32 does that), but I didn't know Early versions of Windows limits their own RAM. I learn something new every day.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Fri Aug 02, 2013 9:50 am

I developed the RAM Limitation Patch.
Windows 95/98/98SE/ME had inadequate internal table space to support more than approx. 1.15GB of RAM. I raised the limit to 4GiB.
It is not obvious that Microsoft specifically set a limit, although there is a test for 2GiB, which has no obvious effect.
WinPC referred to a Video about using placing the Swap File in RAMDISK. Most RAMDISKs tie up System Memory so they cannot be more than a few hundred Megabytes.
I created RAMDISKs that did not have this limitation, and could use 64-Bit RAM, but putting the Swap File on it caused hangups when waking up a spun down Hard Drive.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 7:17 am

Microsoft does not provide Windows98 source code, if the replacement file, that is using virtual memory file, to ensure stable?

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Thu Aug 08, 2013 10:50 pm

Please clarify your question. I don't know what you are asking.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2013 6:36 am

Microsoft does not provide Windows98 source code,Let the 98 recognition memory, should use its source code, to achieve the recognition memory if it is not so, it should be to replace a file. But that he stable?

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2013 9:26 am

I reverse engineered enough of the Memory Management Code to extend it to 4GB. My Patches are stable. I have been selling this Patch for several years without problems.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2013 11:49 pm

I know, thank you, but can you provide the download address? Please provide to hotfile, thank you!

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Wed Aug 14, 2013 2:00 am

You can go to my website at:
rloew1.no-ip.com
Only the 10 Minute Demo is free.

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Wed Aug 14, 2013 3:52 am

Literally,I think that windows 95 as an old version up to now can still rely on a 2GB Ram to survive when i still remember that the windows 95 that i used to have was running on a 786MB Ram space Literally Awesome

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sat Aug 17, 2013 12:49 pm

Very interesting guideline. Usually 256MB RAM for Windows 98 is well enough. Over 512MB usually makes the system less stable.~

Post subject: Re: Windows 98 and 2 GB of RAM... Posted: Sun Aug 18, 2013 4:55 am

Not anymore. I made it stable up to 4GiB. I routinely use it with 3GiB of RAM.