Speed up your computer using Readyboost in Windows Vista

Windows ReadyBoost is a new feature introduced in Windows Vista which can use storage space on some of the removable media devices, such as USB flash drives, to speed up your computer. You can only select faster USB flash drives which support USB 2.0 and 3.0. You can choose which USB flash disk to be used and how much memory space can be used on a device for accelerating your computer using Readyboost. Here is how :

  1. Insert a USB flash disk in the USB port of your computer. You would immediately see an AutoPlay window popup as shown.

    AutoPlay dialog when you insert a USB disk

  2. Click on the item labeled Speed up my system.
  3. After scanning your USB flash disk for available free space, Windows will open a dialog as shown.

    Using a USB disk for Windows Readyboost

  4. Select Use this device option. Then choose how much free space on the USB disk is to be used for Readyboost using the slider. Then click the OK button to start the Readyboost.

The recommended amount of memory to use for ReadyBoost acceleration is 1 to 3 times the amount of random access memory (RAM) installed in your computer. For example, if your computer has 512MB of RAM and you plug in a 4GB USB flash drive, setting aside from 512 MB to 1.5 GB of that drive will offer the best performance boost.