6 GB RAM, Only 3,24 GB Available...

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aragis

aragis

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Apr 21, 2012
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I recently upgraded my office PC which only had 3gb RAM. I bought a 4gb RAM stick, replaced it with the old 1gb one. So now I have a 2gb and a 4gb stick.

However, Windows shows that only 3.24gb is available. 2825mb is "Hardware Reserved"

I did some research and here are some things I already tried:

- Made sure Maximum Memory is off on msconfig.
- Ran Memtest86+, the rams appear to be fine.
- Made sure chipset drivers and BIOS is up to date.

The new RAM is not in the motherboard's supported memory list. Most people say that doesn't really matter. Could that be the problem and what can I do to utilize full memory?

Edit: I'm running Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit
 
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aragis

aragis

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Apr 21, 2012
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view


It's not 32 bit...

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5uc5ZQ5NkA0T2R5alpSTURMcGM/view?usp=sharing
 
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McDuncun

McDuncun

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May 6, 2013
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Dude then the problem is your running two different sizes(maybe even different brands) of ram which is not a good idea in the best of scenarios... And yes I know you did it before but its not the right way of doing things...
 
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aragis

aragis

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Apr 21, 2012
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The mobo does support 4gb. However, when I try to use the 4gb stick by itself, Windows won't load and gives a blue screen.

I installed my old 1gb stick so now I have 3gb just like before. Everything is back to normal; the system utilizes all 3 gb and only 73 mb is Hardware Reserved.

The motherboard just won't accept the new 4gb stick for some reason.
 
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aragis

aragis

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Apr 21, 2012
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The stick is fine. Memtest86+ showed no errors. And I tried it in a newer PC to make sure. It works as it should.

Piece of advice for people who want to add RAM to an old motherboard: Make sure to check the supported memory list of your mobo.

I checked the list for my mobo to see if my RAM is supported (It's a Corsair XMS3 4GB 1333mhz). The list didn't even have a single Corsair model. I heard that it usually doesn't matter and the RAM will work even if it isn't on the list. However, if you have a really old motherboard like mine (5 years), you better play it safe and get a brand/model that it will support.

UPDATE: I returned the 4gb RAM and got a 2gb Gskill instead (it was in the list of supported rams). Well, guess what? The problem still persists. The system still shows 3.24 gb usable out of 4gb... Windows is acting like it's 32-bit.

I tried turning on memory mapping in BIOS. Whenever I do it, Windows gives me a blue screen on startup. There is an error message telling me to revert any recent changes made regarding memory.

I'm really lost here. I haven't tried removing the mobo's battery, but I'm doubtful that it would do any good. Any expert opinions/ideas?
 
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O

ojakokko

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Feb 16, 2015
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I have an similar problem; built an computer with 3 4GB memory sticks so it makes 12 GB. Nvidia control panel and windows both say that there is 12GB memory but only 3.48 avaible. I have asus B85 PRO GAMER motherboard, 3x grucial ballistix sport 4 GB memory, intel core i7-47771 processor and nvidia geforce gtx 750ti graphics card. I use 32- bit windows 8.1 operating system
 
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aragis

aragis

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Apr 21, 2012
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I returned the 4gb RAM and got a 2gb Gskill instead (it was in the list of supported rams). Well, guess what? The problem still persists. The system still shows 3.24 gb usable out of 4gb... Windows is acting like it's 32-bit.

I tried turning on memory mapping in BIOS. Whenever I do it, Windows gives me a blue screen on startup. There is an error message telling me to revert any recent changes made regarding memory.

I'm really lost here. I haven't tried removing the mobo's battery, but I'm doubtful that it would do any good. Any expert opinions/ideas?

Bumping threads is against forum rules. - SS
 
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aragis

aragis

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Apr 21, 2012
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I didn't know it's against the forum rules. I bumped it to make sure it's visible to other members. Nothing to do with impatience.

I have a dedicated AMD GPU with latest drivers installed.
 
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