Tom's Hardware > Forum > Motherboards & Memory > Memory > Magnets over RAM
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cowsled   11-21-2007 at 03:58:10 AM

Guys, any chance that a magnet (say an earth magnet) can harm ram? (Outside of computer and inactive)

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jaculum   11-21-2007 at 04:17:29 AM
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Pretty sure it can't. There might be an issue if it were operting with a magnet nearby, but it would most likely be data corruption, and that's no harm to the RAM itself.

The reason you aren't suppossed to get magnets near hard drves is because they use magnetism to store data, and introducing another magnet could possibly corrupt the data and make it useless, but it doesn't actually harm the hard drive in that case either. Since RAM doesn't store data in this way, it should be safe.

Magnets can also alter the data in a flash medium, supposedly, but I can't vouch for the accuracy of that since I don't know how it works.

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ohiou_grad_06   11-21-2007 at 04:25:28 AM
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Possibly. If I would not test it myself, but for example, that's why you never put a tape, or video tape on a tv or computer monitor because the magnetic field it produces can erase them. I don't know that they would do anything to ram, but with all the transistors and what not you never know.

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darkguset   11-21-2007 at 05:04:15 AM
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No, no and... no!
Simple as that

------------------------------ With great power comes great responsibility
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mustardman24   11-21-2007 at 05:22:39 AM
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The best thing if your don't know is to stay on the safe side and keep it away.

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altazi   11-21-2007 at 05:38:06 AM
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A changing magnetic field could run the risk of disturbing or damaging nearby electronic components, since a changing (e.g., magnet spinning rapidly) magnetic field would induce electric current in nearby conductors. A static magnetic field (of that magnitude) would have no effect.

Why would you want to put a magnet near your RAM, anyway?

Regards,

Altazi

(Electronic Engineer)

------------------------------ Perfect is almost good enough.
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cruiseoveride   11-21-2007 at 06:10:50 AM
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ram sitting outside with a magnet on top will not affect it.

Unless your magnet is so amazingly strong that it magnetises some sort of fero magnetic material on the pcb, which will then cause a current bias when its powered on, as the charge carriers will move towards the magnetic field instead..

When powered on, dont put any sort of external magnetic field near an electronic device, because magnetic fields are capable of producing current each time its feild is crossed.

Message quoted 1 times
Message edited by cruiseoveride on 11-21-2007 at 06:11:36 AM
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Scotteq   11-21-2007 at 01:34:08 PM
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cruiseoveride wrote :

...Unless your magnet is so amazingly strong that it magnetises some sort of fero magnetic material on the pcb, which will then cause a current bias when its powered on, as the charge carriers will move towards the magnetic field instead...




I got it.... So, when we go to our jobs at the scrap yard, DON'T LEAVE THE DIMMS SITTING ON THE GIGANTIC ELECTROMAGNET/CRANE THING..... That could be bad. :lol:


Message edited by Scotteq on 11-21-2007 at 01:34:33 PM
------------------------------ Which Chip? Well, it depends on which set of thieving b@stardz you choose to support: The ones who use insider trading to enrich themselves while running their company into the ground? Or the ones who illegally pay vendors to not support the first group?
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cowsled   11-22-2007 at 01:22:41 AM
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Thanks guys :) I accidentally placed my ram beside a magnet a few days ago. Good to know that its all still good :)

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