Turn Direct Memory Access (DMA) on or off

Applies to all editions of Windows Vista.
Which edition of Windows Vista am I using?

You must be logged on as an administrator to perform these steps.

Direct memory access (DMA) is usually turned on by default for devices such as hard disks and CD or DVD drives that support DMA. However, you might need to turn on DMA manually if the device was improperly installed or if a system error occurred.

1.	Open Device Manager by clicking the Start button , clicking Control Panel, clicking System and Maintenance, and then clicking Device Manager.‌ If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.
2.	In the left pane, click the plus sign next to IDE ATA/ATAPI controllers to expand it.
3.	For each icon that has the word Channel as part of its label, right-click the icon, and then click Properties.
4.	Click the Advanced Settings tab, and then, under Device Properties, select or clear the Enable DMA check box.
5.	Click OK.

Turn Direct Memory Access (DMA) on or off

See also