Survey after survey tells united states of america that It professionals and decision-making executives all over the world who piece of work in enterprises of all sizes are most oft concerned about security and protecting information. Whether it is enacting draconian access hallmark procedures, deploying extraordinary efforts to shut security vulnerabilities, or implementing unproven artificial intelligence (AI) systems, those IT pros say something must be washed to protect the huge amount of data generated by modern businesses.

One oftentimes disregarded potential security vulnerability, admitting a small one, is the existence of the Microsoft Windows ten paging file on simply about every PC in an enterprise. Typically, the paging file (pagefile.sys) takes up space on your chief hard drive and acts every bit a class of virtual memory for the operating system, freeing upwards the physical RAM for higher priority applications, drivers, files, etc. Unless you change information technology, the Windows 10 paging file remains on your hard drive fifty-fifty later shutting downwardly.

Come across: 10 tricks and tweaks for customizing Windows 10 (costless PDF) (TechRepublic)

This how-to tutorial shows you how to tweak the Windows 10 Registry file to forcefulness the deletion of pagefile.sys every fourth dimension you lot shut down your figurer, thereby removing any potential security vulnerabilities. With this method, the next fourth dimension you start your Windows x computer, the paging file volition be recreated with new data.

Disclaimer: Editing the Windows Registry file is a serious undertaking. A corrupted Windows Registry file could return your estimator inoperable, requiring a reinstallation of the Windows 10 operating organisation and potential loss of data. Back up the Windows 10 Registry file and create a valid restore point before you proceed.

How to delete the pagefile.sys file in Windows ten

To see what your current paging file settings are, follow these steps:

1. Open File Explorer and right-click Computer.

2. Select Backdrop.

3. Click on Avant-garde organisation settings (Figure A).

iv. Click the Settings button under the Performance section and and then click the Advanced tab. You should run into a screen similar to Figure B. Your current settings for the Windows x paging file volition exist displayed nether the Virtual Memory department. In the instance, the paging file is currently prepare to be about sixteen GB.

five. Click OK a couple of times to shut those screens.

six. Beginning the Registry file tweaking process by typing "regedit" into the Cortana search box on the Windows 10 desktop.

vii. Click the entry in the search results that refer to the Registry Editor program (regedit.exe).

eight. With the app open, navigate to this specific key (Effigy C):

Estimator\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Organisation\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management

ix. In the correct-hand window, double-click the ClearPageFileAtShutdown key and change the current default value from zero ("0") to "ane" (Figure D).

From this point on, until you modify it back to zippo ("0"), the paging file will exist completely deleted on shutdown and and so restarted fresh each time you start Windows 10.