How to enable the 3GB Switch?

[Baldwin_4-6-0]

I enabled it on my machine and then lost my documentation and forgot how.

Where is the tread that explains how to enable the 3GB switch?

[gandocadguy]

Don't know where the thread is but here's how:

Start
Control Panel
System
Advanced
Start up and Recovery Settings
Click edit
add the /3GB
save
reboot

[jeffh]

This solution at the Autodesk website covers how to do this.

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet...linkID=9243099

[rken.laws]

Is AutoCAD Architecture and Revit Architecture different? If so will the 3GB switch help AutoCAD Architecture also? I have AutoCAD and noticed I do not have the "journal" directory as shown in the information in the link above.

[gandocadguy]

This depends on your system and it's uses. Maybe yes and maybe no.

Do you have 3GB's or more RAM? If not then the 3GB switch will be useless.

I've also heard (though not experianced) it can cause other windows problems.

[jeffh]

Is AutoCAD Architecture and Revit Architecture different? If so will the 3GB switch help AutoCAD Architecture also? I have AutoCAD and noticed I do not have the "journal" directory as shown in the information in the link above.

The 3gb switch is going to give more memory to ANY application so it may help AutoCAD Architecture as well but AutoCAD Architecture does not typically use as many system resources as Revit does because of the multiple file sturcture it uses.

The path for the journals is slightly different in the most recent version of Revit. The solution needs to be updated to read:

C:\Program Files\Revit Architecture xxxx\Journals

[cdatechguy]

FYI....some systems will break if you use the /3gb switch.... Mostly on Duo processors and above... They work for a week or two then something happens and the computer won't boot at all. You can still boot into safe mode though, where you can change your boot.ini back to what is was before, reboot and all is well again!

So I suggest if you do add it to copy the boot.ini and the make the change there so if it does break all you have to do is to delete the boot.ini and enable the old one again. (Like change the extension or something)

[gandocadguy]

FYI....some systems will break if you use the /3gb switch.... Mostly on Duo processors and above...

I have a Core 2 Duo E6850 @ 3.0Ghz and have never had an issue with the /3GB switch going on a year now since it was set.

[cdatechguy]

Yeah, it seems to be certain computers....some work, some don't....but when they do stop working and you disable the switch all is well again.

[rken.laws]

I tried it and it seems to work. I was getting a fatal error every time I clicked on anything inside a certain viewport. Now I am not getting that problem and that is all I have tried to do to fix it. I copied the lines in the boot.ini file as well as saving a copy so I have the option at startup to use 3GB or not. Hopefully I wont have any windows issues. Thanks.