The Windows policy Lock Pages in Memory option is disabled by default. This privilege must be enabled to configure Address Windowing Extensions (AWE). This policy determines which accounts can use a process to keep data in physical memory, preventing the system from paging the data to virtual memory on disk. On 32-bit operating systems, setting this privilege when not using AWE can significantly impair system performance. Locking pages in memory is not required on 64-bit operating systems.
Use the Windows Group Policy tool (gpedit.msc) to enable this policy for the account used by SQL Server. You must be a system administrator to change this policy.
For a table that lists the maximum server memory values, see Memory Architecture.
To enable the lock pages in memory option
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On the Start menu, click Run. In the Open box, type gpedit.msc.
The Group Policy dialog box opens.
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On the Group Policy console, expand Computer Configuration, and then expand Windows Settings.
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Expand Security Settings, and then expand Local Policies.
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Select the User Rights Assignment folder.
The policies will be displayed in the details pane.
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In the pane, double-click Lock pages in memory.
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In the Local Security Policy Setting dialog box, click Add.
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In the Select Users or Groups dialog box, add an account with privileges to run sqlservr.exe.
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On the Start menu, click Run. In the Open box, type gpedit.msc.
The Group Policy dialog box opens.
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On the Group Policy console, expand Computer Configuration, and then expand Windows Settings.
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Expand Security Settings, and then expand Local Policies.
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Select the User Rights Assignment folder.
The policies will be displayed in the details pane.
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In the pane, double-click Lock pages in memory.
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In the Local Security Policy Setting dialog box, click Add.
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In the Select Users or Groups dialog box, add an account with privileges to run sqlservr.exe.
See Also