Installation

SoftPerfect RAM Disk runs on Windows, macOS and Linux. Each installer sets up the application, a kernel driver and a small background service. The steps below cover the installation process itself and the one-time approvals that macOS and Linux require.

Windows

Run ramdisk_setup.exe and follow the prompts. The installer adds the application and its kernel driver. When the driver is updated you may be asked to restart the computer once. After installation the application opens and you can create your first RAM disk.

macOS

Open ramdisk_setup.pkg and run the installer. It places the application in your Applications folder, installs a kernel extension and a background service, and adds the ramdiskctl command line tool. Both Intel and Apple silicon processors are supported.

Because the driver is a kernel extension from an external developer (SoftPerfect), macOS blocks it the first time it tries to load. To approve it, open System Settings, go to Privacy & Security, scroll down to the Security section, and click Allow next to the message stating that system software from SoftPerfect was blocked. Restart the Mac when prompted. In older macOS versions the same option is under System Preferences, then Security & Privacy, then General.

On Apple silicon Macs (M1, M2, M3 and later) kernel extensions are not permitted under the default Full Security policy, so there is one extra step the first time:

1. Shut down the Mac. Press and hold the power button until Loading startup options appears, then click Options and Continue to enter Recovery.
2. Choose Utilities, then Startup Security Utility, and select your startup disk.
3. Select Reduced Security and tick Allow user management of kernel extensions from identified developers.
4. Restart, then complete the Allow step in Privacy & Security described above.

Apple documents the full procedure in its support article Change security settings on the startup disk of a Mac with Apple silicon.

Linux

Install the package that matches your distribution. Use the .deb package on Debian, Ubuntu and their derivatives, and the .rpm package on Fedora, RHEL, openSUSE and their derivatives. Both Intel/AMD (amd64) and ARM (arm64) builds are provided. The package installs the application, the ramdiskctl command line tool, a systemd background service and the kernel module source.

Kernel module (DKMS). The kernel module, named sprd, is built on your computer through DKMS and is rebuilt automatically whenever you update the kernel. For this to work, the matching kernel headers must be installed, for example linux-headers on Debian and Ubuntu, or kernel-devel on Fedora and RHEL.

Secure Boot. When Secure Boot is enabled, the kernel refuses to load the freshly built module until you enrol a signing key, known as a Machine Owner Key (MOK). The package includes a helper, softperfect-ramdisk-mok-setup, that generates a key and signs the module. Run it, follow the prompt to set a one-time password, and restart. During the next boot the blue MOK Manager screen appears: choose Enroll MOK, enter the password, and continue. After enrolment the module loads on every boot. If a RAM disk does not appear, run softperfect-ramdisk-troubleshoot, which checks Secure Boot and the module status and explains what to do next.

Uninstalling

Before you uninstall, revert any system folders, caches and temporary directories that you redirected to a RAM disk, otherwise the system and other applications may fail when the RAM disk is removed. Save any image-backed disk contents that you want to keep.

• Windows: remove the application through Settings, then Apps (or Add or Remove Programs).
• macOS: open the Uninstall command supplied with the application, which removes the kernel extension, the background service and the application.
• Linux: remove the package with your package manager, for example apt remove softperfect-ramdisk or dnf remove softperfect-ramdisk. DKMS unregisters the kernel module automatically.