Win 7 recognizes 8GBs of RAM

Well, my RC finally expired yesterday and I was getting the dreaded pop-up to upgrade. A friend had gotten me a copy of RTM Ultimate but I had been procrastinating the installation of it.

I was not able to upgrade from RC to RTM so I had to a clean install. Smooth install and extremely fast... I have yet to recall a fresh installation being this quick to install.

Now, my problem is that after checking the installation, I noticed that my OS is a 32 bit and not a 64 bit like I wanted or thought I had but... that's is not the strange thing of it all.

The strange thing is that Win 7 Ultimate 32 bit is recognizing the 8 GB's of RAM that I have. It was my understanding that a 32 bit OS was only capable of recognizing 2.5 to 3.6 GB's of RAM so... what's the scoop here?

Does it recognize it or is it capable of reading it but it will only use up to 3.6 max?

I need to know guys because, if it doesn't I want to see if I can get a hold of a 64 bit Ultimate version instead.

Ahhhhh, ok, it is what I thought... dang it!

Win 7 Ultmate 64 bit is easily available in the UK from the likes of Amazon. Is it not so in the US?

Just found this, you can buy direct from Microsoft here:
Windows 7: Get ready to buy Windows 7 for your own PC or a new one
Hope this helps

Just re-install with the 64bit version and activate. You do not need to buy Windows again to use 64bit.

All you need is access to a 64bit installation DVD. If you can borrow one from a friend or something would be fine.
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The Key itself is the same for 32 & 64 bit variatiions. So the Key you have will still work to activate the 64bit bit version,
as long as it is the same type of Win7 (Basic, Home Premium, Ultimate etc.) that your key is for.

Wishmaster said:

Just re-install with the 64bit version and activate. You do not need to buy Windows again to use 64bit.

All you need is access to a 64bit installation DVD. If you can borrow one from a friend or something would be fine.
.
The Key itself is the same for 32 & 64 bit variatiions. So the Key you have will still work to activate the 64bit bit version,
as long as it is the same type of Win7 (Basic, Home Premium, Ultimate etc.) that your key is for.

Unfortunately, I don't know anybody in my neighborhood with a Win 7 RTM version and I doubt that my Valid CD-Key will work with the Win 7 Retail version... I know 2 friends who got them.

Am I correct to believe this?

Is the RTM 64 bit readily available on the net for download still?

You should actually see in system properties under Insttalled Memory, something like "8.00 GB (3.xx usable)" The usable may vary depending on if you are using onboard graphics that use shared memory.