BIOS only recognizing half RAM

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bvcderrttyyhjjjk

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Dec 24, 2013
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Hello everyone, I need help with this big issue I'm having. I recently got an ASUS Maximus III Gene and built my old system on it. Everything is good, except BIOS only reads 8GB of RAM even though I installed 16GB. But there is more. My OS (Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit) says I've got 16GB of RAM but only 8GB are usable. CPU-Z properly detects all 4 DIMMs installed and 16GB total memory. My RAM is Corsair XMS3 1333MHz (4x4GB) and it worked just fine on my other board. Individual test of RAM sticks proves they all work fine. The weird thing is that the BIOS seems to only read the two left slots. Installing only one DIMM in slots a1 or a2 works properly, while slots b1 and b2 are just not detected by BIOS and system doesn't boot with only one stick in b1 or b2. Yet OS sees all the RAM.
So here's all I've tried:
msconfig maximum memory is unchecked;
I tried increasing and decreasing both RAM voltage and frequency, no success;
I tried every single version of motherboard's BIOS, no success;
I triedswapping memory order in any possible way, no success;
I reseated CPU 4 times, no success;
I blew air in the DIMM slots, no success;
I ran all kinds of memory tests, they detect no errors;
I don't understand this whole thing and I have run out of ideas on what to try out. Please if anyone can help me with this, let me know!!! Thank you in advance.
 
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The manual I was looking at was one available from the ASUS website. I likely grabbed a different one from the printed one you have.
What I was looking for was if somehow the Motherboard was reserving 8GB for its own use, and the onboard RAMDrive was the only thing I could think of. Hunt around in your manual or BIOS software to see if you can see anything, but it is a longshot.

I suspect something isn't quite right with the board if the BIOS can't see all 16GB. That is why I think you should talk to ASUS.

In the meantime it sounds like you have a functional system (minus the 8GB) so at least it is usable.
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2x4b

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Oct 28, 2013
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Did you reserve some of the memory for a RAMDisk (section 4.7 of the motherboard's manual)?
Otherwise it sounds like there is something wrong with slots b1 and b2 of the motherboard. Call Asus support line. They will be able to help you determine that.
If you bought the board from a local retailer, they will have the resources to very quicly diagnose what is wrong. If you bought the equipment from them they may not even charge you to get it working.
 
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photonboy

photonboy

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1) Install the latest BIOS update (2103 is the latest with Memory profile updates)

2) Then, run MEMTEST and confirm:
a) how MUCH is shown (may be in MB or roughly 1024xGB)
b) if any errors (finish at least one full loop, roughly 30min per 8GB)

You've apparently TESTED already, but confirm how MUCH is shown and being tested.
 
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bvcderrttyyhjjjk

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Dec 24, 2013
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Thank you for your answers. So 2x4b, my motherboard manual actually does not have a 4.7 section nor can I find anything like that. I initially suspected the two slots to be faulty, but since my OS and CPU-Z read all the memory, I don't think that's the case. I wrote an e-mail to ASUS though, and I'm waiting for an answer as I write this. Unfortunately I bought this board used on eBay, so I don't think I have right to any warranty, yet if they can fix it, I'll be glad to pay them for it actually. Now in regard to photonboy's suggestion, I actually already installed the latest BIOS (v. 2202) but that didn't help. I ran MEMTEST very briefly to verify memory amount and it reports 8GB. I'll run a complete test this night for any errors. The weird thing here seems that everything pre-OS start (BIOS, memtest, and ASUS' memory test function) only detect 8GB while after entering the OS it detects 16GB although it only uses 8GB. Thank you all for the advice, I'll keep you update with memtest results. Also, if anyone else's got suggestions, please let me know!
 
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2x4b

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Oct 28, 2013
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The manual I was looking at was one available from the ASUS website. I likely grabbed a different one from the printed one you have.
What I was looking for was if somehow the Motherboard was reserving 8GB for its own use, and the onboard RAMDrive was the only thing I could think of. Hunt around in your manual or BIOS software to see if you can see anything, but it is a longshot.

I suspect something isn't quite right with the board if the BIOS can't see all 16GB. That is why I think you should talk to ASUS.

In the meantime it sounds like you have a functional system (minus the 8GB) so at least it is usable.
 
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