Win 7 only 3.25 gb ram

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  1. Posts : 123
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit
       #1

    Win 7 only 3.25 gb ram


    Hello. I installed windows 7 a week ago,updates all drivers etc. When i go to my computer at options it sais 4 gb(3.25 gb usable), but i would like to use them all. I searched the internet and it sais i should go to system configuration, to boot/advanced options, and set maximum memory to 4096 mb. I dont know if this is safe(or if it works) so I ask you if it is safe to do this(without damaging my computer), and if it doesnt work, what should i do to return to the last value(maximum memory is uncheched at advanced options, and the value is 0 inside). Thank you in advance,
    Emilyan
      My Computer


  2. Posts : 722
    Windows 7 Professional 64bit
       #2

    I have the same issue with the same amount of Ram

    its not really an issue.

    The reason why it can only use 3.25gb of your ram is because you are using a 32bit OS

    to use all 4gb of ram you must move to a 64bit OS
      My Computer


  3. Posts : 123
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit
    Thread Starter
       #3

    Mitch656 said:
    I have the same issue with the same amount of Ram

    its not really an issue.

    The reason why it can only use 3.25gb of your ram is because you are using a 32bit OS

    to use all 4gb of ram you must move to a 64bit OS
    Well, but before buying it, i saw on windows forum windows 7 32 bits uses 4gb ram, not 3.25, and 64 uses a lot more. Then why is it using only 3.25? Was it a false advertisement?
      My Computer


  4. Posts : 5,642
    Windows 10 Pro (x64)
       #4

    emilyan2010 said:
    Well, but before buying it, i saw on windows forum windows 7 32 bits uses 4gb ram, not 3.25, and 64 uses a lot more. Then why is it using only 3.25? Was it a false advertisement?
    The hardware takes up the other 0.75 GB of memory. You can view this in Resource Manager. Start > type "resource" > Open Resource Manager > Memory Tab > Physical Memory. It has always been this way, always.
      My Computer


  5. Posts : 9,582
    Windows 8.1 Pro RTM x64
       #5

    Hi emilyan2010 and welcome to Windows 7 Forums

    A 32-bit OS can only access (address) a total of 4GB of memory space. Included in that space is your RAM and also the rest of your hardware I/O devices, which take priority.

    On a typical system, excluding graphics, this accounts for about 256MB. Graphics can account for between 256MB to 768MB. These amounts are hardware dependant. Adding these together gives a typical value of 768MB (0.75GB). This amount has to be fitted into the total available address space - in effect, the area of RAM that is mapped to the same address locations will not be available for use. So we have the following:

    Total Address Space (4GB) - Reserved Address Space (~0.75GB) = Available RAM Address Space (~3.25GB)

    Note that the total amount of reserved address space is dependant on your hardware configuration. You can recover some of this, although not a great deal, and make it available for RAM use by disabling unused hardware in your BIOS. This is usually limited to your parallel and serial ports.
      My Computer


  6. Posts : 123
    Windows 7 Ultimate 32 bit
    Thread Starter
       #6

    Now I got it. I thought the system only uses 3.25 Gb, and 750 mb are useless,because it couldnt see more. Now I understand that those 750 mb are used by hardware and video memory. Thank you for your advices :)
    Yours,
    Emilyan
      My Computer


  7. Posts : 9,582
    Windows 8.1 Pro RTM x64
       #7

    You're welcome, Emilyan. :)
      My Computer


  8. ski
    Posts : 111
    windows 7
       #8

    emilyan2010 said:
    Now I got it. I thought the system only uses 3.25 Gb, and 750 mb are useless,because it couldnt see more. Now I understand that those 750 mb are used by hardware and video memory. Thank you for your advices :)
    Yours,
    Emilyan
    FWIW, you can always install an inexpensive video card(assuming you're not a gamer) if you ever need to free up that 750MB of memory, e.g., your applications are using up all of the installed RAM causing your HD's swap file to frequently activate and slowing down your system's performance.
    For example, my system has 2GB of RAM and an inexpensive ATI 4350 vid card(512MB) installed, and only a measly 1MB of RAM is reserved for the hardware with the OS having access to the remaining 1999MB.
      My Computer


  9. Posts : 21
    Windows 7 x86, Mac OS 8.6
       #9

    ski said:
    FWIW, you can always install an inexpensive video card(assuming you're not a gamer)
    And assuming this computer isn't a laptop... gets a little hard to cram the video card into the case :P
      My Computer


  10. ski
    Posts : 111
    windows 7
       #10

    Pentium3 FTW said:
    And assuming this computer isn't a laptop... gets a little hard to cram the video card into the case :P
    It is possible with some laptops.
      My Computer


 
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