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When ReadyBoost first came out for Windows it was a big deal, but it's rarely mentioned or discussed these days.

Even though the average Windows computer now likely comes with 8GB of RAM, the size of many applications has increased tremendously. For example, web browsers like Firefox, Chrome, and Opera can easily occupy 4-6GB of RAM on their own when a bunch of tabs are open (especially when extensions/add-ons are installed).

Also, not all computers have that much RAM. Many budget computers are still sold with 4-6GB of RAM.

Are there any downsides to using ReadyBoost in Windows 7-10?

RockPaperLz- Mask it or Casket
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  • It's not really that there's a downside, it's just that ReadyBoost was designed to supplement low RAM and poor paging performances on low-end, slow systems, years ago. I have a 2011 Lenovo laptop with only 6GB of RAM on it (posting from it now), and I'm satisfied with its overall level of performance because I don't do anything really CPU- or RAM-intensive on it, and I've disabled pagefile altogether, "replacing" it with a RAM disk. I'm happy the way it performs, but others with different needs would disagree or downright frown at my setup. ReadyBoost is a Band-Aid, really, not much more. –  Apr 14 '20 at 15:50
  • @Didier How do you replace a pagefile with a ramdisk? Would you like me to ask a separate question for that? – RockPaperLz- Mask it or Casket Apr 14 '20 at 15:54
  • No need. A RAM disk is just a part of your RAM you devote to storing temporary data that your programs need to work. The purpose of it is the prevent swapping (copying to disk), which, in the case of an SSD, can go a long way to make it last longer and in better condition. A modern OS needs space to store that amount of data, because it might need it at a later time, but doesn't want/need to clog active RAM with it. In my case, a RAM disk works better than a regular pagefile, regardless of its size, location, etc... But again, that's just me. If you have 64GB of RAM, you need neither, I think. –  Apr 14 '20 at 16:05
  • @Didier A RAM disk takes away from RAM that could be used for memory paging. What are you actually storing on it that makes it more efficient than not having one at all? – RockPaperLz- Mask it or Casket Apr 14 '20 at 16:10
  • I point my user profile temp folders to it, along with my browsers'. A lot of Windows applications (and even Windows's own programs and services) work best if they have a folder to fall back on, as opposed to "ask RAM to make room for you". Take Firefox, for example: point a regular folder inside your RAM disk at it and say, "see, this is your temp folder". It'll perform better because it was coded to store temp data in one place, for easier retrieval and disposal. Tell it to store in RAM, period, and it works slower. It's marginal, I'll grant you that, but noticeable on my (old) PC... –  Apr 14 '20 at 16:34
  • There is also a maximum amount of memory a system can have before Windows will simply ignore a ReadyBoost drive. The limitations and requirements of ReadyBoost are well documented. – Ramhound Apr 14 '20 at 16:50
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    More on readyboost here, some good answers>>>>https://superuser.com/questions/197690/readyboost-in-windows-7?rq=1 – Moab Apr 14 '20 at 20:43
  • @Moab Thank you. I'll read them. – RockPaperLz- Mask it or Casket Apr 15 '20 at 06:21

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ReadyBoost was introduced before SSDs in laptops and desktops became common. Your SSD (especially if NVMe) with a pagefile enabled is likely much faster than most if not all USB flash drives/SD cards that are Readyboost compatible.

Some extremely low-budget laptops come with an eMMC drive. These are slower than SSDs but probably at the very least just as fast as an external flash drive or SD card.

LawrenceC
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    Although your answer is certainly applicable to machines equipped with SSDs, I think a majority of computers in use today are still using mechanical platter-based drives. – RockPaperLz- Mask it or Casket Apr 14 '20 at 16:06
  • Yes, but less and less. Regular, "angular" HDDs are mostly used for storage these days, with the advent of hybrid SSD+HDD drives where the system partition is set on the SSD, and the HDD is used to store users personal data. @LawrenceC is right when he says that modern-day SSDs, even low-end ones, are faster at caching data than even the fastest USB 3.1 sticks, because the limiting factor in reading-writing data onto and from them is the bus speed. If you have 8+GB of RAM and a good SSD, you don't need ReadyBoost at all, and you can even disable it in Services to save resources. –  Apr 14 '20 at 16:10