Windows 7: Geforce 7300 dedicated video memory

Hi people

I have a Geforce 7300 Le video card with memory i think 512 mb , in Windows xp it read the memory size correctly , on win 7 i got all confused as it reads only 256

I copied info from nvidia control panel



Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU E4500 @ 2.20GHz (2194 MHz)
Operating System: Windows 7 Ultimate, 64-bit
DirectX version: 11.0
GPU processor: GeForce 7300 LE
Driver version: 191.07
Core clock: 450 MHz
Memory clock: 648 MHz (1296 MHz data rate)
Memory interface: 64-bit
Total available graphics memory: 1023 MB
Dedicated video memory: 256 MB
System video memory: 0 MB
Shared system memory: 767 MB
Video BIOS version: 5.72.22.43.32
IRQ: 16
Bus: PCI Express x16



Now how come the total memory is 1023 and 256 is only dedicated , i searched bios for any editable options for Video card but found nothing.

How can I edit dedicated video memory, as it affects Games performances Huge GTAiv is running so slooooooowly with screen glitches.



Thanks in advance.

makamiko, welcome to the forums.

Short and simple answer is you can't as dedicated memory on a video card is actual physical memory. The only way it is possible to alter this is if your video card uses what Nvidia calls TurboCache which takes system memory and uses it as extra video memory; great in theory, but unless you have 2 GB or more of system memory it will cause additional slowdowns.

As for what most of those numbers you posted mean this should help explain it,

Video Memory Virtualization - A Brief Guide

One reason for that is from the system requirements for that game,

Grand Theft Auto IV - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

your 7300 LE doesn't make the grade as far as the minimum requirements go. Unfortunately for the most part if you want to game you're going to need a new video card.