Yes, even those little helpful icons at the top of your browser can be culprits of memory hogging. Speedier multitasking might just be an update away. Outdated software often requires more RAM, making updates essential to improved RAM allocation. Software updates may feel like a bother, but you’ll be glad you kept your computer and programs up to date in the long run. If you’ve already restarted your computer and experimented with other browsers, try clearing your cache to free up RAM. Your cache is highly dependent on RAM, as it uses short-term memory to reload pages that you’ve recently visited. While this helps you navigate the web more quickly, it can demand a lot of RAM, giving you minimal memory to complete other important tasks. If you rely heavily on one browser and have noticed it running slowly, it might be time to return to the market for a smarter browser. Some browsers are better designed to effectively allocate and manage RAM usage than others. Some processes may be running in the background without your knowledge, and a restart is a sure way to tell those processes to stop and give your RAM a break. Since RAM is short-term data that only exists for programs that are currently running, restarting your device will clear your RAM. Just as with most other issues your devices encounter, a great first troubleshooting step for reducing RAM usage is simply restarting your computer. If you’re wondering how to clear RAM, the answer is probably easier than you think. Regardless of whether you use a Windows or Mac, there are a few steps you’ll want to try before you take drastic measures to free up your computer’s RAM. How to lower RAM on Windows and PC: Initial steps Read on for tips to free up RAM on both Windows and Mac computers. When your computer slows down, it may be because your programs are taking up more space than your RAM can handle.įreeing up RAM is an essential part of computer maintenance, because using your computer can become incredibly frustrating when it runs low. The more RAM you have, the more tasks your computer can complete at once. RAM is the ultimate multitasker, allowing you to be active on one program while simultaneously loading up another. It’s stored in a memory chip on your computer’s motherboard, which operates as the primary memory hub of your device.

For this reason, your computer can access RAM incredibly quickly. RAM stands for Random-Access Memory and is essentially the short-term memory that a computer uses for its active, moment-to-moment processes.

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