How To Enable Direct Memory Access (DMA)

What is the advantage when we enable DMA on our Windows PC?

DMA (also referred to as bus mastering) is a technique that some components and devices use to transfer data directly to and from memory without passing through the Central Processing Unit (CPU). DMA reduces CPU overhead by providing a mechanism for data transfers that do not require monitoring by the CPU. The number associated with DMA indicates the direct memory access channel that the component or device uses to transfer data to and from memory.

Without DMA, the CPU is typically fully occupied for the entire duration of the read or write operation, and is thus unavailable to perform other work.

Source: Microsoft and Wikipedia

How to enable Direct Access Memory Access:

1. Open My Computer, right-click and click Properties.

2. Select the Hardware tab and click the Device Manager button.

3. Double-click IDE/ATAPI controllers and double-click on the Primary IDE Channel.

4. Click on the Advanced Settings tab; the tab may or may not be available for each option. It is only available in Primary and Secondary Channels.

5. Set the Transfer Mode to “DMA if Available” both for Device 1 and 0 and click OK.

6. Perform the same operation for other items in the list, if applicable.

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