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Windows won't see all of my 4GB of RAM but BIOS does! Why?
Specs:
Computer: Gateway GT5040 (new)
Motherboard: Intell d945gcz
RAM: 4 GB of RAM is installed (a 1 GB DDR2 RAM stick in each of the 4 RAM
slots)
All RAM is the same speed (533)/same brand of RAM bought/installed at once
OS: Windows Server 2003 Enterprise x64 Edition with SP1 installed
Problem Description:
After installing the RAM and I look in the BIOS, it sees 4GB of ram (1024MB
x 4 sticks) - good stuff.
However, I boot into Windows and look via either winver or winmsd and it
shows: 3,397,500 kB
Question:
What happened to the remaining half GB of RAM? How can I make Windows see
all 4GB?
Dell 1600SC Server with 2 Intel Xeon 2400 Mhz Processors, Win2K Service Pack 4. My computer properties only 261,552KB ram informed. At booting only 264 MB RAM allowed message line on boot black screen. Is there anything I can do?
Re: Windows won't see all of my 4GB of RAM but BIOS does!...
Windows xp will usually only see 3.5 gbs of ram even in your motherboard can support more. WIndowns vista does recognize more RAM or i also believe windows xp 64bit recognizes more ram. Nothing wrong with ram or your computer its just your operating system.
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This model Gateway desktop computer has a built-in video card. Connect the monitor to the Gateway motherboard video port and the boot up and go into the BIOS and select disable the built-in video. Shut down then connect the monitor to the 8800GTX video card and boot up the Gateway computer. The video should then appear in the monitor.
Windows doesnt like hardware changes. and specially if your useing a 32bit windows it doesnt support more than 3.0-9GB of ram. you need 64bit windows to work on 4GB or more.
Your BIOS should automatically detect your new RAM when your computer starts, try starting your computer after removing your old RAM module, if it starts, you need to update your BIOS to use 4GB. If it doesn't start, you either have a faulty RAM module or a faulty connector on your motherboard. Insert the new RAM module into the slot the old RAM module was in, if your computer still refuses to start, you have a faulty RAM module which should be returned, if it does start, it's the connector on the motherboard, and only replacing the entire board will fix the problem. However, it's worth noting that your motherboard will only support RAM modules of 2GB or less, the above was written with the assumption you're adding an additional 2GB module to your Dell computer.
Are you absolutely certain that the new module is compatible with your system? Go into the BIOS and see if it is recognized there.
Crucial shows that your computer takes DDR2 memory with support for DDR2 PC2-5300, DDR2 PC2-6400 speeds.
Make sure it is not ECC memory. ECC is not compatible.
If you are sure of the compatibility, I would try to install the old one by itself first and make sure the system boots. Then I would remove the old one and install the new one by itself. Try booting. If it doesn't work, you may have gotten a bad module. (It happens.)
Just FYI, here is the crucial link for your computer:
You can't fix RAM. You didn't say what the problem is. If the RAM is bad, you replace it. If your computer doesn't see the total of 4GB, it's the BIOS of the motherboard. If Windows doesn't see the full 4GB, then you are not running the 64-bit version.
1. There is a problem with your new RAM even though it supports up to 4 GB it doesn't mean that 1 GB of RAM is compatible. It's possible that the 1 GB DDR2 that you have installed is not supported by the system bus of the motherboard and won't make it through startup because of compatibility issues.
2. Try getting RAM from this dealer because its compatible with your motherboard and supports the system bus http://www.pcmemorystore.com/Intel-Intel_Motherboards-D945GCZ-ram.htm
it sounds as if your MoBo is seeing the video adapter as a source of ram. if that is the case, then installing memory in units of 1Gb will cause a stick to not be seen, therefore utilized. you may want to refer to you manual for memory limits and poosible comparibility issues. they are usually quite in depth. also, make sure that they are all the same make model and speed. these issues have wreaked havoc on the prettiest of pc's.
YES THE FREQUENCY OF BOTH RAMS DO NOT MATCH ... THATS BOOTING WITH EACH BUT ONLY ONE BY ONE ... YOU NEED RAMS OF SAME FREQUENCY AND SYSTEM WILL SUPPORT BOTH OF THEM TOGETHER ...
If you are running 32-bit Windows, you must live with it. You will not ever see all 4GB of RAM you've paid for.
If you are running 64-bit Windows, you may have to live with it. Depending on your motherboard's chipset, your system may support memory remapping. If so, you will be able to use all 4GB of RAM.
Detailed: Due to an architectural decision made long ago, if you have 4GB of physical RAM installed, Windows is only able to report a portion of the physical 4GB of RAM (ranges from ~2.75GB to 3.5GB depending on the devices installed, motherboard's chipset & BIOS).
This behavior is due to "memory mapped IO reservations". Those reservations overlay the physical address space and mask out those physical addresses so that they cannot be used for working memory. This is independent of the OS running on the machine.
Significant chunks of address space below 4GB (the highest address accessible via 32-bit) get reserved for use by system hardware:
• BIOS – including ACPI and legacy video support
• PCI bus including bridges etc.
• PCI Express support will reserve at least 256MB, up to 768MB depending on graphics card installed memory
What this means is a typical system may see between ~256MB and 1GB of address space below 4GB reserved for hardware use that the OS cannot access. Intel chipset specs are pretty good at explaining what address ranges gets reserved by default and in some cases call out that 1.5GB is always reserved and thus inaccessible to Windows.
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