file extension SFCACHE

Microsoft Windows Vista is a line of graphical operating systems used on personal computers, including home and business desktops, notebook computers, Tablet PCs, and media centers.

On January 30, 2007, it was released worldwide to the general public and was made available for purchase and downloading from Microsoft's web site. The release of Windows Vista comes more than five years after the introduction of its predecessor, Windows XP, making it the longest time span between two releases of Microsoft Windows.

Windows Vista contains hundreds of new features; some of the most significant include an updated graphical user interface and visual style dubbed Windows Aero, improved searching features, new multimedia creation tools such as Windows DVD Maker, and completely redesigned networking, audio, print, and display sub-systems. Vista also aims to increase the level of communication between machines on a home network using peer-to-peer technology, making it easier to share files and digital media between computers and devices. For developers, Vista includes version 3.0 of the .NET Framework, which aims to make it significantly easier for developers to write high-quality applications than with the traditional Windows API.

There are several editions of Windows Vista:
- Windows Vista Starter
- Windows Vista HomeBasic
- Windows Vista Home Premium
- Window Vista Business
- Windows Vista Enterprise
- Windows Vista Ultimate

ReadyBoost is a new disk caching technology included in Windows Vista that uses flash memory to boost your system performance. It can use any form of flash memory such as a USB 2.0 drive, SD card or CompactFlash.

ReadyBoost functions as a complement for SuperFetch, giving SuperFetch another place to cache data. SuperFetch is a technology included in Windows Vista which prioritizes the programs you are currently using over background tasks and adapts to the way you work. This technology tracks your computer usage behavior and intelligently preloads applications into memory. This helps improving the general performance of your system and the loading times of your core applications. While SuperFetch loads by default all the necessary files into the main memory, ReadyBoost complements it by loading data into alternate storage devices such as USB 2.0 flash memory sticks.

While the USB flash drives are not as fast as the main memory, they can be faster than a hard disk drive and enabling ReadyBoost can free up some of the main memory which could be used for other tasks and applications.