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/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=8018966&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.

[cdatechguy]

Disabling "Use OpenGL Hardware Acceleration" helps as well. I think it only works if you have a vid card that is mainly OpenGL, like a ATI FireGL card or something like that. But I always have issues when that is enabled.

[patricks]

I have OpenGL Hardware Acceleration turned on, and 3GB switch enabled, and I haven't had any problems.

system running 2 dual-core Xeon 2.66 GHz processors.

[DaveP]

We found that some machines that have a lot of Video RAM don't play nice with the 3GB switch.
There is yet another switch that limits how much of the 3GB gets allocated
Here's a link to the hardware forum that explains better:
http://forums.augi.com/showthread.php?t=85172&highlight=userva

And here's what our BOOT.INI looks like:
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP Professional 3GB" /3GB /USERVA=2950 /fastdetect

[cdatechguy]

I have OpenGL Hardware Acceleration turned on, and 3GB switch enabled, and I haven't had any problems.

system running 2 dual-core Xeon 2.66 GHz processors.
Not all of us is lucky enough to have dual Xeon's... ;)

[sthedens]

We have HP workstations that have been acquired during various capital expenditures. As such they are various models and configurations. Some older workstations came with 2 - 512MB HP memory DIMMs. Newer ones came with 2 - 1GB HP memory DIMMs. As we upgraded memory on the workstations, we replaced the 512MB DIMMs with 4 - 1GB Kingston DIMMs. For the workstations that already had 2 1GB DIMMs, we just added 2 - 1GB Kingston DIMMs. Everything was fine until Revit 2009 and we started having "Out of Memory" problems on a 200Mb project. AutoDesk's solution is to enble the /3GB switch.
The workstations that had some original HP memory work fine with the /3GB switch enabled. The workstations that have all Kingston memory reboot upon user login. Thus, the user can never login. As soon as they do, the workstation restarts leaving them at a ctrl-alt-del prompt.

[eric.piotrowicz]

You may want to try swapping ram modules around so each machine has all matching sticks, either all existing HP or new Kingston. I've seen mismatches cause problems in the past although I have not personally experienced the login reboot problem.

[sthedens]

The mix-matched workstations are working fine (at least as far as the /3GB switch is concerned). It's the workstations that have just Kingston that I'm having problems with.

[eric.piotrowicz]

Sorry I should have re read that before posting. Try this instead
http://forums11.itrc.hp.com/service/forums/bizsupport/questionanswer.do?admit=109447626+1228170680896+28353475&threadId=1254133
And alittle more info on that /userva switch
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/316739
hope this is more helpful

[eric.piotrowicz]

Just out of curiousity, does anyone know if the 3GB switch could be another value? 4GB? 6GB? I was thinking of trying it out but thought I'd ask if anyone had done it before and what resulted.

Hmm now I found a thread say that if using the Worksharing Monitor (I am) then the 3GB switch should be disabled.
http://forums.augi.com/showthread.php?t=74143&page=2
Can someone explain this why this is? It seems totally backwards to me.

[trythefly]

Answer:

Run x64 with 8+ gigs of ram.

:mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen::mrgreen:

[eric.piotrowicz]

Sweet, you buying? PM me for my shipping info...:lol::beer:

[trythefly]

LOL yous funn4y---

my new rig is a dream come true....

Will post specs later once testing & benchmarking is complete.

[chodosh]

... using the Worksharing Monitor (I am) then the 3GB switch should be disabled.
Can someone explain this why this is? It seems totally backwards to me.

Sure, it's not that it should be disabled, but you can ignore the PC tracking widget because it cannot read/"see" what's going on with the system, either with a 3/1 switch or the 64bit OS. Issue or feature, Steve says, no one knows. The Worksharing Monitor Resources tab will report that your resources are maxed out, which is not true. Better to rely on Windows Task Manager (add VM to the view), use the Worksharing Monitor for what it's good at: watching all the users, hence the original name of the beta testing program, "Orwell." Airing dirty laundry again, I know. Ah, well... :mrgreen:

HTH,
LC

[chodosh]

my new rig is a dream come true....

Will post specs later once testing & benchmarking is complete.

Please do... it's a nice rig, I've run a few of those... lotsa fun. Could use more benchmarks to explain the extra 4GB, always. :)

[trythefly]

Check the hardware forums soon.....

Waiting on one more part to ship then its on.

[chodosh]

Awesome. I realize I should have said "justify" and "perceived as extra." :P Ah, well.

[DoTheBIM]

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

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/item?siteID=123112&id=8018966&linkID=9243099 That link is no longer valid...

Use this one now.

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/ps/dl/item?siteID=123112&id=8018966&linkID=9240937