Specifically in IBMPC based 32-bit operating systems, some RAM drives are able to use any 'unmanaged' or 'invisible' RAM below 4 GB in the memory map (known as the 3 GB barrier) i.e.Software using unmanaged memory can cause stability problems. Some RAM drives when used with 32-bit operating systems (particularly 32-bit Microsoft Windows) on computers with IBM PC architecture allow memory above the 4 GB point in the memory map, if present, to be used this memory is unmanaged and not normally accessible.

Some software allows several RAM drives to be created other programs support only one.If this functionality is not provided, contents can always be preserved by start-up and close-down scripts, or manually if the operator remembers to do so. Some RAM drives automatically back up contents on normal mass storage on power-down, and load them when the computer is started.Data can be copied between conventional mass storage and a RAM drive to preserve it on power-down and load it on start-up.įeatures that vary from one package to another: A RAM drive has much faster read and write access than a hard drive with rotating platters, and is volatile, being destroyed with its contents when a computer is shut down or crashes -volatility is an advantage if security requires sensitive data to not be stored permanently, and to prevent accumulation of obsolete temporary data, but disadvantageous where a drive is used for faster processing of needed data. RAM drive software allows part of a computer's RAM (memory) to be seen as if it were a disk drive, with volume name and, if supported by the operating system, drive letter. ( May 2011) ( Learn how and when to remove this template message)

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Soft ramdisk