Do you notice your system periodically stalling while the hard  
 drive thrashes? This phenomenon is often caused by the  
 Windows virtual cache feature. Like onboard caching, this  
 cache is designed to reduce disk access, but it can easily grow  
 large enough to put a dent in your performance. If you've got  
 32MB of RAM or more, try setting the cache size at a fixed  
 number. We recommend 4MB for systems with less than 48MB  
 of RAM and 8MB for those with 48MB or more. Here's how to  
 set it up:  

 1. Run SysEdit. (Select Run in your Start menu, type SysEdit  
 in the text box, and press Enter.)  
 2. Click the system.ini window.  
 3. Scroll down to the [vcache] section. If you don't see one, type  
 in [vcache] as a new heading.  
 4. If you have 48MB of RAM or less, enter these two lines:  

 MinFileCache=0  
 MaxFileCache=4096  

 5. If you have more than 48MB of RAM, enter these two lines:  

 MinFileCache=0  
 MaxFileCache=8192  

 6. Close SysEdit, saving changes on the way out, and restart  
 Windows.  

 Warning: Tweaking the Registry is risky; you're taking your  
 system into your own hands. To be safe, manually back up the  
 Registry before you make any changes.  

To be safe, manually back up the Registry before you make any changes. Go to  
     Start/Programs/Accessories/System Tools/System Information. Once you have opened the System Information  
     application, click Tools in the menu and select Registry Checker. After a quick scan of your system, Registry  
     Checker will offer to make a backup. Click Yes to replace the oldest backup file with a fresh one.