rMBP 8GB vs 16GB for virtual Machine + autoCad

[Bnorton]

My company gave me a rMBR 2.3ghz, 8GB, 512ssd. When in Windows 7 running MS Outlook, I am consuming 7.85GB? Is this normal? Will I be able to run Autocad or Solidworks?

 

[chrslbrt]

My company gave me a rMBR 2.3ghz, 8GB, 512ssd. When in Windows 7 running MS Outlook, I am consuming 7.85GB? Is this normal? Will I be able to run Autocad or Solidworks?

I always recommend that people upgrade their RAM as much as possible when they use VMWare or Parallels. Even more so when you run a professional grrade program.

I wouldn't be able to comment on whether 7.85 GB's is normal, but it makes sense. You have to allocate RAM for each VM in addition to running what's currently on your native OS. So it doesn't surprise me, but I'm not sure what's normal because I don't personally use it.

If you add Autocad on, worst case scenario, you're computer would page out and use your SSD as virtual memory. It's not a good thing though, because those SSD's apparently have a lifespan related to the number of writes they perform, and I heard pageouts kill alot of those writes. This is second hand info, so don't hold me to it.

TL;DR version: I'd recommend upgrading to the 16GB version if possible.

 

[tenshu2k]

How much memory did you allocate to the VM.

It sounds reasonable to me showing nearly 8gb used. If you have an option from work, I'd opt for the 16gb.

 

[Bnorton]

My IT dept. allocated 4Gb to virtual