is there a difference between CPU usage and Memory usage?

Question

the desktop gadget total cpu says my cpu usage is at around 2% yet the memory usage is around 24%

what is the difference??

Answer 1

cpu usage=the number of functions that processor can do with a specific IRQ ...if you do copy/paste or compiling any program then the all these functions come under cpu usage

SO,"CPU Usage" is referring to your processor and how much work it is doing. Your processor can handle a number of different processes at the same time. When you have a lot of programs running it uses up more of the processor's available processing power, which means you may not be able to run anything else.



When that meter gets close to 100% it means that your processor is working really hard and you can't do much else. If it's closer to the low end, that means it's not very busy and it can handle more applications.



The meter will fluctuate, sometimes a lot, as processing power used by programs goes up and down while they're running. They may use a lot when they're starting, for instance, but then go down to using next to nothing once they're running. Games and processor-intensive applications like video editing software will usually stay steady at the higher end.



memory usage=this is usually called as RAM(RANDOM ACCESS MEMORY)in this memory this stores only temporary files that program uses..

suppose let say you have opened a document in an ms-word then the program ms-word temporary files will be stored in RAM

if you open so many programs like ms-word,vlc player,adobe photoshop,mozilla firefox...when you start executing the more number of programs the ram will be filled with those program temporary files

if you have more number of program running same time then your ram usage will be very high..

there are so many capacitors in the ram..The capacitor in a dynamic RAM memory cell is like a leaky bucket. It needs to be refreshed periodically or it will discharge to 0. that means the temporary program files that are stored in the ram is to be cleared so that the usage will be come less...good luck take care :)

Answer 2

CPU refers to the processor of the computer, where the actual "running" of a program takes place. Memory refers to a storage area where the program and data are loaded and then transferred in small pieces to the processor as they are needed.



Your main concern with a processor is how many commands it can process in a microsecond. Your main concern with memory is how much information can it hold.



CPU usage refers to how much of the TIME your processor is being used. While the memory usages refers to the amount of storage SPACE is full. So they are very different pieces of information.



In your case, the processor is "in use" about 2% of the time. The other 98% of the time it is waiting for other things to happen that your PC needs to do (move information, save files, put an image on the screen, etc.) While the memory has about 24% of is storage space in use.

Answer 3

The best way is to download Ccleaner here http://bitly.com/UrALrK



Or you can go on Windows operating system locate the command prompt and go there to do the following:

Create a Recovery file of system and date it today.



Then begin by;

delete the 'Temp' folders..they have hidden subfolders so you need to set the attributes in order to bypass this. For each subfolder delete all cookies and rubbish left behnd after install-uninstalled programs. Do a 'dir' command to check your progress. Make sure the 'Temp' file is empty.



goto c:\windows\prefetch and delete everything in there..no exceptions



goto c:\windows folder and delete all the '$' files that have been installed by updates. They can all be succesfully deleted and just take up disk space.



Locate the Internet Temporary Files..Check to see how high the saving level is..some have it set at 30 days..but that stores faaaar tooo much data..though it slows down the system overal. Keep this to a minimum..suggest 2 or 5 at most.



Delete all 'cookies' all those you don't need.



Locate the windows directory and go through the folders you know and those you don't need. Check this once a week at least. Some programs will install under XP as NT and older systems where there is no check of systems weight.



Check to see that system files have not changed since last booting. Things like .ini files or .bat are important items.





Check for 'Hidden Directories' all over the disk...do this at the command prompt:



dir *.* /ah wil show these hidden directories



Check the 'dir' command for all parameters

Answer 4

The CPU usage tells the percentage of time that the processor has spent on specific applications, including Windows functions.



RAM is found in modules that are plugged into the computer's motherboard.

Each open application takes up a certain amount of RAM.



The CPU is responsible for the actual management of the files, whereas RAM is simply the place the files are temporarily placed.

Answer 5

The CPU processes (performs instructions on things, such as adding) stuff in memory. RAM is just part of the memory pyramid . So when you are processing lots of data, that data ( or maybe large portions of it) will likely get loaded into RAM so it is ready for the cpu, this is to speed things up because RAM is faster to access than storage devices. So CPU usage and RAM can often correlate, but don't have to.

Answer 6

Hi there,

You can speed up your pc and get rid of viruses, worms and trojans by cleaning up your register. A good free program is CCleaner. Link here http://bit.ly/UrAqFv

It's surely the leader program of its type

Cheers.

Answer 7

WoW! You're stupid