Windows 7: can i get full 4 Gb RAM for my specifications?

taralmehta15 · 18 Jul 2010

Hi,
My 1st post so sorry if m wrong somewhere..

I installed windows 7 ultimate x64..its a dual boot along with windows xp sp3.
in system it shows - 4 gb ram (3 gb usable).i saw dat in windows7, my 1 Gb Graphics card is shown as 1778 Mb in dxdiag (in xp sp3 it shows 1024Mb only,vich is correct) while with cpu-z it shows 512 Mb only..BIOS shows 3 Gb RAM..

Max. memory in msconfig is already unticked..it dint help.

M attaching pics for clearity wid problems marked in red, specifications and BIOS to know if any change is needed in it.

Plz help coz i installed 4 Gb RAM just b4 few days n installed windows7 x64 to use full 4 Gb.. I wouldnt mind if uninstalling xp sp3 n keeping only Windows 7 can really solve d prob.

Thanx...

logicearth · 18 Jul 2010

You need is most cases "Memory Remapping" provided by the BIOS...not all have this feature, however.

The system memory that is reported in the System Information dialog box in Windows Vista is less than you expect if 4 GB of RAM is installed

Quote:

The BIOS must support the memory remapping feature. The memory remapping feature allows for the segment of system memory that was previously overwritten by the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) configuration space to be remapped above the 4 GB address line. This feature must be enabled in the BIOS configuration utility on the computer. View your computer product documentation for instructions that explain how to enable this feature. Many consumer-oriented computers may not support the memory remapping feature. No standard terminology is used in documentation or in BIOS configuration utilities for this feature. Therefore, you may have to read the descriptions of the various BIOS configuration settings that are available to determine whether any of the settings enable the memory remapping feature.

Solarstarshines · 18 Jul 2010

ussually with any windows they leave 1 gig unused especially when you have the max recommended im using 8 gigs but only 6.83 are usable some memory gets shifted to the gpu but ultimatly windows will all ways leave one gig unusable

logicearth · 18 Jul 2010

Quote: Originally Posted by Solarstarshines

ussually with any windows they leave 1 gig unused especially when you have the max recommended im using 8 gigs but only 6.83 are usable some memory gets shifted to the gpu but ultimatly windows will all ways leave one gig unusable

That would be your hardware that does that. Not Windows.

stormy13 · 18 Jul 2010

taralmehta15, welcome to the forums.

Same board with the same issue here,

Problem using 4gb in 64 bits

and this Microsoft KB article linked to in it,

The system memory that is reported in the System Information dialog box in Windows Vista is less than you expect if 4 GB of RAM is installed

that applies to Windows 7 as well as Vista. The explanation in the "Workarounds" section pretty much explains what is happening in your case. Basically comes down to whether the chipset/bios support memory remapping, and as logicearth said if it doesn't then even on 64 bit Windows the memory will still work the same as on 32 bit.

As for the memory reading in dxdiag, your card does not have 1778 MB. This,

Video Memory Virtualization - A Brief Guide

should help explain what it means.

taralmehta15 · 18 Jul 2010

Quote: Originally Posted by logicearth

You need is most cases "Memory Remapping" provided by the BIOS...not all have this feature, however.

The system memory that is reported in the System Information dialog box in Windows Vista is less than you expect if 4 GB of RAM is installed

Quote:

The BIOS must support the memory remapping feature. The memory remapping feature allows for the segment of system memory that was previously overwritten by the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) configuration space to be remapped above the 4 GB address line. This feature must be enabled in the BIOS configuration utility on the computer. View your computer product documentation for instructions that explain how to enable this feature. Many consumer-oriented computers may not support the memory remapping feature. No standard terminology is used in documentation or in BIOS configuration utilities for this feature. Therefore, you may have to read the descriptions of the various BIOS configuration settings that are available to determine whether any of the settings enable the memory remapping feature.

Thanx for such quick reply..can u plz tel from the pics of BIOS dat i have attached,how to do memory remapping? its 2 yrs since i bought d pc so i dunno where the manuals would be..

and if there is no such option, what would i have to do? update BIOS? For that, to contact Gigabyte( as motherboard is of gigabyte) or intel (coz chipset is intel)?

taralmehta15 · 18 Jul 2010

why is it showing dedicated video memory 512 Mb only,even though i have 1Gb Card?

Petey7 · 18 Jul 2010

A quick search on Google shows that the Geforce 210 is a 512MB card, not 1GB. Sorry if you ordered the wrong card, but it is not a 1GB card. Windows XP might share another 512MB with the graphics since you have 1GB that isn't used for anything else. After taking another look, it seems like 7 is doing the same. All I can figure is that it is a setting in the BIOS. Restore defaults in BIOS. I'm guessing you already tried re-seating the RAM a number of times.

I don't understand why your processor is highlighted in red in your first post. That is the speed of the E4500.

whs · 18 Jul 2010

Quote: Originally Posted by Solarstarshines

ussually with any windows they leave 1 gig unused especially when you have the max recommended im using 8 gigs but only 6.83 are usable some memory gets shifted to the gpu but ultimatly windows will all ways leave one gig unusable

I do not think this is a general rule. RAM is constrained

1. either because the system needs some address space for other functions - typically graphics, the BIOS, IO cards, networking, PCI hubs, bus bridges, PCI-Express, etc. But that only applies to 32bit systems.

2. or there is a need for some real memory e.g. by an on-board graphic, the BIOS, etc. That applies to both 32 and 64bit.

Here is the example of one of my systems. As you can see, there are only 2MBs reserved.

taralmehta15 · 18 Jul 2010

Quote: Originally Posted by Petey7

A quick search on Google shows that the Geforce 210 is a 512MB card, not 1GB. Sorry if you ordered the wrong card, but it is not a 1GB card. Windows XP might share another 512MB with the graphics since you have 1GB that isn't used for anything else. After taking another look, it seems like 7 is doing the same. All I can figure is that it is a setting in the BIOS. Restore defaults in BIOS. I'm guessing you already tried re-seating the RAM a number of times.

I don't understand why your processor is highlighted in red in your first post. That is the speed of the E4500.

its a 1Gb card.. M attaching d pic i took in xp..Windows 7 sees it as 512 Mb card..

Windows 7: can i get full 4 Gb RAM for my specifications?

can i get full 4 Gb RAM for my specifications? problems?