# Windows only detects 2.75GB RAM



## beefers1 (Aug 23, 2007)

i've installed four 1gb sticks of DDR2 667MHz RAM, but XP only detects 2.75GB. i know that 32bit OS's can't recognize a full 4GB, but 2.75 seems unrealistically low. does anyone have any possible answers? thanks


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## Guest (Dec 22, 2007)

Sometimes weird things happens when you, use 4 Gbs of RAM on the 32 bit OS. Try it with 3 Gbs on it, your system can just be using 2.75 and it is coming up with that.


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## beefers1 (Aug 23, 2007)

well, the system's still using page files on my PC. couldn't it have just used more than 2.75GB RAM, instead of borrowing the hard drive's memory? and: if i only install 3GB, it won't even recognize that, so won't it still say 2.75?


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## Guest (Dec 23, 2007)

Also run Memtest on your RAM, here is the speech for it:

We are going to check you RAM with the program *Memtest86+*. Choose the choice I have put down in the picture below and download it to your desktop.










Once you have downloaded it to your desktop, extract the file from the Zip folder and place the ISO file on your desktop. I would then like you to burn the ISO onto a CD-R, DVD-R, CD+R, or DVD+R using programs such as Nero, or a burning studio software. If you do not have such a program, then you can download and install the free program *Active ISO Burner*. You can then burn the ISO to the disk with this new program or your old program.

After you have burnt it to a disk you will have to set your BIOS to make you boot up from the CD Drive first. Restart your computer and at the first loading screen keep tapping either the F1, F2, F4, F6, F8, F10, F11, F12, or Delete keys to access the BIOS. If you can not get into the BIOS refer back to system documentation for further help with accessing it. When successfully accessed the BIOS look for something that says Boot Device Priority, or Boot Sequence. Set your CD Drive as first using the arrow keys or + and - keys.

After setting it to first insert your disk and restart the system. Start the test and let it run as it will take approximately one day. If you have more then one stick of RAM then please follow the below instructions:



> *If You Have More than One Stick of RAM*
> 
> If you have more than one stick of RAM, then remove all of the sticks except for one and do the test on them individually. This test will be 1 day per stick of RAM so if you have 2 sticks of RAM then the tests will take about two days. Change each stick when each stick test is finished with the other ones that have to be tested. You can remove a RAM stick by pressing down on the 2 clenches at its sides. Here is an example picture:


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

is any shared by the video bringing it down from the 3. it sees to what your are seeing


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## beefers1 (Aug 23, 2007)

umm... can't i just get some software that'll let me find out what there is in my memory slots?


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

the first will give you that information
thesecond will give you everything in the computer
http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php
http://www.cpuid.com/pcwizard.php


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## beefers1 (Aug 23, 2007)

thanks very much. although it says that i have 1GB RAM installed in all four memory slots. and, like i mentioned at the beginning, is it possible that this is only due to the use of a 32bit OS? also, will disabling turbocache help? and if so, how?


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## Guest (Dec 24, 2007)

What video card do you have? As Dai said before, your video card is probably taking 256 Mb of its RAM for itself. This could also be use of 4 Gb on the 32 Bit OS.


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## beefers1 (Aug 23, 2007)

it's posted on my specs list. it's an 8400GS. if turbocache can be disabled, then i would very much like to.


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## Guest (Dec 24, 2007)

It only shows that because your graphics card uses 256 Mb or that 3 Gb. If you didn't have any RAM shared by the graphics card, it would show as 3 Gb. Also, it only shows 3 Gb because you are at 32 bit Windows OS. I am not sure on the turbocache question, so I will allow Dai to tell you if or if not it can be done :smile:


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## Ramileous (Oct 21, 2007)

so will a 32 bit OS ever be able to use 4gb of Ram in the future or will we have to upgrade our OS to 64bit to get past 3gb ram?


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## sobeit (Nov 11, 2007)

Ramileous said:


> so will a 32 bit OS ever be able to use 4gb of Ram in the future or will we have to upgrade our OS to 64bit to get past 3gb ram?


never know. Most likely not.


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## Guest (Dec 24, 2007)

Ramileous said:


> so will a 32 bit OS ever be able to use 4gb of Ram in the future or will we have to upgrade our OS to 64bit to get past 3gb ram?


This is a limitation of the bus, as sobiet has said, it might happen but it will probably not. That wouldn't make any money, thats a main reason while people buy the 64 bit OS's :grin:.


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## dai (Jul 2, 2004)

when vista sp1 is released i believe it will report 4g from what has been posted on the blogs


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## beefers1 (Aug 23, 2007)

ok, thanks.


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## FreoHeaveho (Aug 22, 2006)

I doubt a 32bit system will ever really USE more than 3.2GB due to the instruciton set and how the CPU handles information. It may REPORT 4GB but it probably cannot address it due to this instruction set. You probably have a 512MB worth of memory being shared off the 3.2GB system mem. In actual fact, installing 4GB can slow down a machine compared to 3 GB.


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