# [SOLVED] 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb



## troubledgamer (Mar 7, 2010)

Well as the title says, I have 6Gb of RAM installed, triple channel, on a Sabertoothe X58 mobo. The BIOS indicates I have only 4Gb installed, as does the system information. 

I've downloaded CPU-Z and it indicates I have 6Gb.

I've tried adjusting the max RAM used using msconfig>boot>advanced options.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.


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## VirGnarus (Jun 28, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

What version of Windows are you using? Also, is it x32 or x64?


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## epshatto (Dec 23, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

If you're using a 32-bit OS it won't be able to address more than 4GB of RAM. So that's all it will be able to see.


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## VirGnarus (Jun 28, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Sorry, just realized this is also a BIOS problem, not just Windows.

You may wanna re-seat your RAM a couple times as that can cause it. Also, check for BIOS updates for your mobo. Test RAM in single slots to ensure each slot is correctly reading RAM. If all this doesn't seem to work, then you may have a buggered RAM slot.


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## i MaRk i (Dec 29, 2009)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

HI-

It is also possible that your motherboard does not support anything over 4GB of RAM.

Regards,

Mark


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## jenae (Jun 17, 2008)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Hi, welcome to the forums very good MB only a little over a year old, I wonder why Vista and not seven, can handle 24gb Ram, 64 bit of course. Ram DDR3 66/1800/1600/1333/1066, what have you got and what combination, there should be a BIOS upgrade by now last one was around sept 2010.


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## troubledgamer (Mar 7, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

ASUSTeK Computer Inc. - Motherboards- ASUS SABERTOOTH X58

The above link contains the full specs of my motherboard. As for the OS I'm running on 64-bit Windows 7 Ultimate.

I've also updated my BIOS just yesterday, unfortunately that didn't help me though. I've even tried re-seating my RAM as VirGarnus suggested and at one point even read 2Gb instead, then tried re-seating them randomly again and managed to get it read 4Gb instead.

And how could I have a problem with one of my RAM slots if CPU-Z actually manages to read the entire 6Gb?

Also, the RAM I'm using has a higher frequency than the motherboard requires but I was told it is backwards compatible when I was about to buy it, so I did.

Attached is a jpeg with two screenshots, one from CPU-Z and one from RAM Memory Upgrade: Dell, Mac, Apple, HP, Compaq. USB drives, SSD at Crucial.com (RAM tester).


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## LMiller7 (Jun 21, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

CPU-Z and similar utilities identify RAM size by reading the identifying data from the memory chips. This doesn't necessarily mean the memory is good or even if it is fully compatible with your system. The BIOS works differently, requiring that the memory actually be accessible, but not necessarily good. Unfortunately, none of this is foolproof.

It appears to be some form of incompatibility or possibly a problem with the motherboard or RAM.


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## shawnpb (May 30, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

What version of WIndows 32bit or 64 as asked?

Only 64bit versions of Windows will access 4GB of RAM or More.

If you only have 32bit Windows OS 6GB of RAM is a waste.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Post #7 


> As for the OS I'm running on 64-bit Windows 7 Ultimate.


Is the ram installed in the same color slots?
Does the bios recognize all 6 gigs?
Try turning quick boot off in the bios and see if the screen counts up all 6gig on boot.


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## shawnpb (May 30, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Try swapping out the RAM Modules.


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## troubledgamer (Mar 7, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

BIOS is still reading 4gb ram.
The RAM is placed in channels A1 B1 C1 (they all do have the same colour).

Yesterday I tried swapping about the RAM and today suddenly the computer is 
"attempting to turn on"... It starts up for 2 or 3 seconds but then turns off again, then restarts on it's own. So far it's doing it once before actually starting up with no problems...

Does this mean I have incompatible RAM or a faulty RAM slot?


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Try installing 1 stick at a time in slot A1(1st lighter colored slot) see it it boots with all 3 sticks and each reads 2 gig in the bios, then try 1 stick at in B1 then C1 this will tell you if it's a stick or a slot, make sure there is nothing in any of the slots, I've seen manufacturing debris left behind before.


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## Technodean (Oct 30, 2011)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

I had this, it was a faulty stick, would run okay for days then it would restart itself, and as my luck is bad the next set i had another faulty stick lol. run your pc one stick at a time.


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## shawnpb (May 30, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

You need to look for documented motherboard specs for your machine.

Find out how much RAM it can hold and what type and features allowed.

Buffered or none buffered registered RAM or non registered RAM ECC or non ECC.

Also the allowed MHZ e.g. 4200 or 4600 etc....


ECC Vs. Non ECC

I had this problem once on a Dell Dimension 2350.


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## MPR (Aug 28, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Here is another possible problem area: bent CPU socket pins (note the last post in the thread). 

-Asus Sabertooth X58 MB...won't see all 6gb of RAM- - Asus - Motherboards-Memory


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## Rich-M (May 2, 2007)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Sounds to me that your ram is not compatible. Did you match it to the board with either a ram maker of board configurator ? Can you tell us make and model of ram?


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## shawnpb (May 30, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Always for best results match newly installed RAM with the existing installed RAM.

Steps
frequencies
ECC or Non ECC
Buffered or non buffered
Registered or non registered 
and Brand.


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## jcbdiago (Jun 15, 2011)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Try doing these steps:

Start > in the search box, type msconfig then click on the result.
On the System Configuration box, select the Boot Tab.
Click Advanced Options.
See if the Maximum Memory option is checked. If it is, uncheck it.
Once done, click OK.
Reboot
Let us know what happens.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Since the Bios is only reporting 4gig out of 6 it's not the max-memory windows "feature"


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## jcbdiago (Jun 15, 2011)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Oh.. Got it! Missed that. :grin:


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## troubledgamer (Mar 7, 2010)

*Re: 6Gb of RAM installed, reading only 4Gb*

Okay guys, I've taken the tower to the shop, and it looks like it's a faulty RAM slot. Hopefully going to get the motherboard replaced.

Thanks for helping me identify the problem.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Did they check the slot closely for debris in the bottom of the slot?
We've seen a couple of those lately.


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## troubledgamer (Mar 7, 2010)

Apparently it was bent CPU sockets... hopefully going to get them repaired without any further issues. Thanks people


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## troubledgamer (Mar 7, 2010)

yes they did wrench, but the problem was bent CPU pins. Guess I should've been more careful placing the CPU in its socket...


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## VirGnarus (Jun 28, 2010)

Ouch. That's why they call em ZIF (Zero Insertion Force) sockets 

Anyways, hope it works out for ya.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Yes most of the time a razor blade works to straighten the socket contacts.


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## Rich-M (May 2, 2007)

wrench97 said:


> Yes most of the time a razor blade works to straighten the socket contacts.


I like a narrow ball point pen with the refill up inside.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

Intel socket contacts?


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## MPR (Aug 28, 2010)

Those tiny 1155 socket contacts seem to have some problems associated with them. The link I posted before suggested that bent CPU socket contacts are the hidden cause of many "memory" problems because Sandy Bridge processors have the memory controller on the chip.

As the image below shows, bent contacts are not the only problem one may face with this socket -- some of these contacts have burned or melted.



Image from [Blog] “Socket burn” is back with Sandy Bridge?!? (UPDATED – Jan 18th) | TechREACTION


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## VirGnarus (Jun 28, 2010)

Fascinating. I especially wasn't aware of the memory controller being pushed onto the actual CPU itself instead of residing on the northbridge. That completely changes everything for me. I'll have to be conscientious of when people report they are using Sandy Bridge. Thanks for the heads up.


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## troubledgamer (Mar 7, 2010)

And there I was thinking I'd placed the CPU perfectly, having got it to work...
Thanks again for your help guys.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

VirGnarus said:


> Fascinating. I especially wasn't aware of the memory controller being pushed onto the actual CPU itself instead of residing on the northbridge. That completely changes everything for me. I'll have to be conscientious of when people report they are using Sandy Bridge. Thanks for the heads up.


All the newer Intel CPU's past the 775 socket are on the CPU


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## VirGnarus (Jun 28, 2010)

Wow, ok. A long-existing misunderstanding on my part. I always figured the memory controller has always been part of the northbridge (which in many cases is true), but has always existed in the northbridge chip on the motherboard, not on the actual package of the CPU. There's obviously a great disparity between what's on the CPU _package_, and what's on the actual CPU _die_.


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## Wrench97 (May 10, 2008)

This is one of the better explanations I've seen on the Sandy's> A quick primer on Sandy Bridge - The Tech Report - Page 1


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