Server Properties - Memory Page

Applies to: SQL Server

Use this page to view or modify your server memory options. When Minimum server memory is set to 0 and Maximum server memory is set to 2147483647 MB, SQL Server can take advantage of the optimum amount of memory at any given time, subject to how much memory the operating system and other applications are currently using. As the load on the computer and SQL Server changes, so does the memory allocated. You can further limit this dynamic memory allocation to the minimum and maximum values specified below.

Options

Minimum server memory (in MB)
Specifies that SQL Server should start with at least the minimum amount of allocated memory and not release memory below this value. Set this value based on the size and activity of your instance of SQL Server. Always set the option to a reasonable value to ensure that the operating system does not request too much memory from SQL Server and inhibit Windows performance.

Maximum server memory (in MB)
Specifies the maximum amount of memory SQL Server can allocate when it starts and while it runs. This configuration option can be set to a specific value if you know there are multiple applications running at the same time as SQL Server and you want to guarantee that these applications have sufficient memory to run. If these other applications, such as Web or e-mail servers, request memory only as needed, then do not set the option, because SQL Server will release memory to them as needed. However, applications often use whatever memory is available when they start and do not request more if needed. If an application that behaves in this manner runs on the same computer at the same time as SQL Server, set the option to a value that guarantees that the memory required by the application is not allocated by SQL Server. The minimum amounts of memory you can specify for max server memory is 128 MB. (64 megabytes (MB) for older 32-bit systems.)

Index creation memory (in KB, 0 = dynamic memory)
Specifies the amount of memory (in KB) to use during index creation sorts. The default value of zero enables dynamic allocation and should work in most cases without additional adjustment; however, the user can enter a different value from 704 to 2147483647.

Minimum memory per query (in KB)
Specifies the amount of memory (in KB) to allocate for the execution of a query. The user can set the value from 512 to 2147483647 KB. The default value is 1024 KB.

Configured Values
Displays the configured values for the options on this pane. If you change these values, click Running Values to see whether the changes have taken effect. If they have not, the instance of SQL Server must be restarted first.

Running Values
Shows the currently running values for the options on this pane. These values are read-only.

See Also

Server Configuration Options (SQL Server)
Server Memory Server Configuration Options