Swap And Page - Which Does Linux/windows Use?

[manuleka 0]

I notice that everytime i install a Linux Distro, there's usually a Swap partition need to be createdDoes Windows use swap partitions? or does it just rely on paging?I'm having to sit down and have a read through on some articles to clarify the differences between the two but i'm wondering what are you experts understanding of the two?Can Windows use Linux created Swap partition? Does Linux use paging as well? or does it only utilize Swap?

[yordan 10]

The Linux paging system uses the swap partition. This partition has to be created as a swap partition type.The Windows page file has to be on a standard windows disk, cannot be on a swap partition.By the way, paging and swapping is the same thing, the only difference is the behavior toward a given process, whether the whole process is swapped, or some pages of this process, or some memory pages regardless which processes are in that pages.

[manuleka 0]

The Linux paging system uses the swap partition. This partition has to be created as a swap partition type.The Windows page file has to be on a standard windows disk, cannot be on a swap partition.
By the way, paging and swapping is the same thing, the only difference is the behavior toward a given process, whether the whole process is swapped, or some pages of this process, or some memory pages regardless which processes are in that pages.

yea i find a lot of people use the terms interchangeably... but was wondering whats their real difference, and why Linux uses it - i thought swap was an older technology

[yordan 10]

yea i find a lot of people use the terms interchangeably... but was wondering whats their real difference, and why Linux uses it - i thought swap was an older technology

Swap is an older technology, but the problem remains. So, it's easier to keep the old name "swap partition" type, which is used as swap space on old systems and is used as a paging space with the new systems. This name simply means "this should never be mounted as a filesystem".

[manuleka 0]

aaah i see... swap space is fixed though and page space is dynamic right?

[yordan 10]

Yes. The size of the paging space is fixed, and it is more or less empty as long as everything works fine. Then, on modern Unix systems, when a high water mark is reached, the page stealer starts working until the low level mark is reached.

[manuleka 0]

Windows Page Space is dynamic in size compared to Linux use of Swap Space which is fixed and created on installation...

[yordan 10]

That's the traditionnal way of creating a system.Operating system on a disk.Swap space on a second disk.Original data on the third disk.temporary space on the fourth disksorted data on the fourth disk.Is disk is used 100%, the most efficient way of swapping memory to or from disk is having no other traffic on that disk. That's why there is no use to make it variable size, changing the size will loose efficiency.

[manuleka 0]

That's the traditionnal way of creating a system.Operating system on a disk.
Swap space on a second disk.
Original data on the third disk.
temporary space on the fourth disk
sorted data on the fourth disk.
Is disk is used 100%, the most efficient way of swapping memory to or from disk is having no other traffic on that disk. That's why there is no use to make it variable size, changing the size will loose efficiency.

so you're saying Windows approach is inferior to the traditional swap system?

[yordan 10]

so you're saying Windows approach is inferior to the traditional swap system?

Of course no!
Today there are two ways installing a system :
1) The optimized way designed by skill IT people in order to obtain the best performances from professional systems.
2) The Windows way of life.

[manuleka 0]

Of course no!Today there are two ways installing a system :
1) The optimized way designed by skill IT people in order to obtain the best performances from professional systems.
2) The Windows way of life.

lol... I gather you aren't much of a Microsoft fan Yordan?

[yordan 10]

lol... I gather you aren't much of a Microsoft fan Yordan?

Why do you think this?
I am a Windows user on each PC I buy.
And I do it my way when I install a non-Windows computer.

[manuleka 0]

Why do you think this?I am a Windows user on each PC I buy.
And I do it my way when I install a non-Windows computer.

i thought it sounded like so (IT Pros vs Windows ways)

I like Windows although i tried shifting to Linux but due to certain Applications (Especially games) i can't leave... but with steam being ported to Linux as well (Beta stage at the moment) i probably will completely shift at some stage in the future

[yordan 10]

We will definitely have to wait until the time where most of personal computers will be sold with Linux installed. Then, most of games will also be written for Linux home users. Of course, customer service people will have to learn linux maintenance, now it's easier to boot on a backup and reinstall from the windows rescue DVD.

[manuleka 0]

We will definitely have to wait until the time where most of personal computers will be sold with Linux installed. Then, most of games will also be written for Linux home users. Of course, customer service people will have to learn linux maintenance, now it's easier to boot on a backup and reinstall from the windows rescue DVD.

i remember couple of years back they were trying to sell Ubuntu Computers, see all the advertisements on TV a lot... but i think people just weren't Computer literate enough to buy into Linux (eventhough these packages were a few hundred dollars cheaper than theirx Windows counterparts)

but with Steam on Linux, Gaming on Linux has a promising future