Why does Windows 11 keep using more and more ram the longer it's on?

[Armageus]

I disagreed and also Microsoft disagreed with you.

Microsoft have posted numerous conflicting advice on this over the years but yet you couldn't even quote them?

250GB is not enough if you got 128GB RAM.

Since back to Windows XP, Microsoft recommended to set page file 1.5 to 2 times the size of total system RAM.

How to Manage Your Virtual Memory (Page File) In Windows

Introduction A Page File acts as an overflow for your system memory (RAM) when you have too many applications running at one time. However, it is constantly being used by Windows to store temporary data regardless of how much RAM you have instal...

dovetailgames.freshdesk.com

And you'd be wrong because the 1.5-2x ram thing for paging file is rubbish and has been debunked numerous times.

I have servers at work with 512Gb of RAM, they run 24/7 without having a 2TB paging file.


Here's what Mark Russinovich (of sysinternals and now Azure CTO fame amongst other things) had to say:

How Big Should I Make the Paging File?
Perhaps one of the most commonly asked questions related to virtual memory is, how big should I make the paging file? There’s no end of ridiculous advice out on the web and in the newsstand magazines that cover Windows, and even Microsoft has published misleading recommendations. Almost all the suggestions are based on multiplying RAM size by some factor, with common values being 1.2, 1.5 and 2. Now that you understand the role that the paging file plays in defining a system’s commit limit and how processes contribute to the commit charge, you’re well positioned to see how useless such formulas truly are.

Pushing the Limits of Windows: Virtual Memory

learn.microsoft.com

My previous system had 32GB with completed memory dump but when I upgraded to current system with massive 128GB RAM, Windows changed settings and I noticed system used small memory dump (256KB) instead.

What happened when I tried to changed to completed memory dump?

I received a warning message.

Full memory dump is of no use to anyone other than people debugging and has nothing to do with paging file.

 

[Armageus]

My previous system had 32GB with completed memory dump but when I upgraded to current system with massive 128GB RAM,

Try setting your page file to 4Gb. Honestly I bet it will still run absolutely fine.

Think about it logically, why would you need more slow page file if you have more ram?

And equally if you only have 4Gb RAM, why is 6Gb or 8Gb page file enough? What if I run something that needs 12Gb of memory.
If you need memory then you need memory, whether physical or virtual. Setting a bigger page file does exactly what you'd expect and allows Windows to swap into that space when you run out of physical RAM.

 

[Armageus]

More recent Microsoft advice:

Introduction to the page file - Windows Client

Learn about the page files in Windows. A page file is an optional, hidden system file on a hard disk.

learn.microsoft.com

Page files in Windows with large physical memory
When large physical memory is installed, a page file might not be required to support the system commit charge during peak usage. For example, 64-bit versions of Windows and Windows Server support more physical memory (RAM) than 32-bit versions support. The available physical memory alone might be large enough.

However, the reason to configure the page file size hasn't changed. It has always been about supporting a system crash dump, if it's necessary, or extending the system commit limit, if it's necessary. For example, when a lot of physical memory is installed, a page file might not be required to back the system commit charge during peak usage. The available physical memory alone might be large enough to do this. However, a page file or a dedicated dump file might still be required to back a system crash dump.

So unless you need a full crash dump (which 99% of people don't) and aren't massively exceeding your physical memory, you don't need a huge page file if you already have plenty of ram

 

[Name]

What would be good is allowing me to flush the cache instead of having to restart.

Have you looked into intelligent standby list cleaner? You can set limits on how much ram gets eaten up and it forces a memory flush when it reaches the cap iirc.