Net Tech Term: commit charge

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In the Windows operating system, the name for the amount of physical memory (RAM) and virtual memory that is allocated to all running programs, or applications, and the operating system itself.

Windows Task Manager displays the commit charge in its Performance tab. There are three memory readings, measured in kilobytes:

Total: refers to the total amount of physical and virtual memory the computer is using at that moment.

Limit: refers to the combined limit of both the physical memory and the allocated virtual memory.

Peak: refers to the highest total system memory usage during the session in which you are using the computer.

The commit charge will increase when applications are opened and used and decrease when applications are closed.