Memory Usage 95%-100%

We have an older computer which we bought new in 1999. It is a Pentium II 400, with Windows 98. Everything is original, except for a new hard drive last year, and a new CD Burner.

The last couple of weeks I've noticed that the computer is just eating up all the memory. I have 448 MB installed and once the computer warms up, it is using over 420 MB. I have Everest installed, and I checked to see what processes are running and they total up to about 160 MB.

How can I find out what is eating up all this memory? It does seem to get worse the longer the computer is on.

Could it possibly be the video card gonig bad? We have the Diamond Viper 550, 16 MB AGP. We are not experiencing any problems with the picture, but are just trying to trouble shoot.

I'm open for suggestions to try to find what the culprit is that is sucking up all my memory.

Thanks.

 

Barring any computer viruses, spyware, etc., it sounds like you may have an application or process running that has a "memory leak ".

I no longer use Windows 98 and I can't remember specifics about how to troubleshoot Windows 98. Perhaps upgrading to Win98 SE would help (if Microsoft still offers that upgrade).

I searched Google for "windows 98" "memory leak" (including all 4 words in one search with the quotes as typed) and found some info that may be useful to explore if you have time and patience to experiment and troubleshoot.

These are the resources I would try:
HP and Compaq PCs - Increasing System Resources and Performance Without Adding Memory
Even though the title says, "HP and Compaq PCs," I would follow their directions even if I didn't use an HP or Compaq.

Windows 98 & WinME Memory Management

Edit: By the way, give some thought about any changes you may have made to your system shortly before you started noticing the memory consumption issue. Those changes are what you might want to investigate first.

 

Thanks for the links. I will try them and see if I can come up with a solution.

If you think of anything else, please let me know.

Thanks again!

 

Hi,

There is information on memory leaks at the Microsoft website (knowledgebase). They basically state to shutdown (not start) programs until you isolate the one with the memory leak.

From what I know, I don't think an upgrade to SE would help. Just about everything in SE is covered by Windows Updates.

Matt