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XP 64bit Pro (Guru Help)
I have put 4 gigs into my system and my graphics card has 512 ram on it.
However the system only recognises approx 3 gigs of ram aka what I would expect xp 32bit to do.
Vista wasn't out when I bought this OS but I knew if I wanted more ram that I would need a 64 bit system.
My question is how do I get xp to recognise my 4 gigs.
Comments
check the ram isnt fried if it's not picking up a gig one of them is gone IMO
It's all Lies...
Ok maybe I am missing something here, are you running XP x64 now? If so then a stick of your memory isn't fully installed, reseat them all, and see what the bios says, forget about windows at the moment. If the BIOS reads 4xxx then you have 4 gigs and it is a windows problem, if it reads 3xxx then it is a memory module or board problem. If it is only showing 3Gig in the BIOS then shut off the PC and pull 1 stick of memory and power up the computer and check again. Keep doing this till you pull one stick that does not affect the BIOS 3Gig value. Once you determine which stick it is and what slot it was in, pull one of the other sticks and put it into that slot to make sure it isn't the slot, then if the good stick works in the slot you pulled the "bad" stick out of chances are you have a bad stick of memory. To prove further put it into the known good slot and if it doesn't work there then take it back.
Once you know the BIOS sees the 4Gig then look at windows, but I think you will find that:
A) One stick isn't fully seated or seated incorrectly
C) One slot is bad on the motherboard
D) You are still useing xp 32 and need to be smacked....LOL jk
I think it will be a-b-c let us know what you find out.
Heya folks thanks for your responses. Just so you know I have tried to google search this problem for a week a long time ago but I didn't come across the solution unless I was looking at the wrong sites.
Right.
I have booted up with one stick less and have switched the sticks around the memory test reads.
With 1 stick completely removed 314464 OK,
When I have all 4 in it reads 340678 OK.
Is it possible that my bios is limiting my ram by itself? Im sorry guys I know a bit about computers and build them myself as you can see but where it comes to this situation I am at a loss.
My motherboard global.msi.com.tw/index.php
My ram www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/3433903/OCZ-2GB-DDR2-PC2-6400-800MHz-Enhanced-Latency-Platinum-XTC-Edition-Revision-2-Dual-Channel-Kit-Memory/Product.html
Im really sorry if Im wasting peoples time but I would really love some help and appreciate the effort. Note as well the ram is 800 but comes out as 667 when auto detected, I have manually up'd the voltage to 2.1 as well.
Yes Zan I'm running 64 bit mate.
Does it matter which stick you remove or do removing any of the sticks result in the same memory count? Also have you tried just 3 sticks and then juggled them into all the slots to make sure the memory count does not change? Last thing do a BIOS flash make sure you have the latest version of the BIOS, maybe there is a glitch in there?
check the other gigs of ram is the same as the ones you have bought I.e 800 because if you use 2 different types of ram it will drop to the lesser speed by default. i'd say it def sounds like a compatability issue.
It's all Lies...
To get XP to recognise 4gigs you need XP 64bit , and counter to all logic - you should NOT enable BIOS function that recognises more than 2 gig ram. For some reason it clashes with windows.
However i dont think its worth the fuss.
Xp64bit needs seperate drivers for everything , and is generally less compatible.
With 32Bit you are getting 3.2gig ram , and that is quite ok for most everything
Again thanks for all the responses.
I think it is a bios issue the ram is counted the same when 4 are in but different when 3 are in as stated above.
My other problem is that MSI software seems to work better in 32 bit rather than 64 bit. Even trying to load their flash system to save to c:test doesnt work.
I will look into further on how to flash a bios. I know the basics but Im not in the know on this Im used to systems being a click update affair this one is more involved.
to Flash your bio's open it up and on your Mobo there should be a tin alkaline battery remove it for 5 mins put it back in <bios should be flashed.
It's all Lies...
WHAT??? that is not true. That will not flash your bios at all. All it will do is reset to factory conditions. And for that matter, it wont even effect the bios, just your bios settings.
If you want to flash the bios, you need the flashing program (some mobo's have it built into the bios), some use a dos program, some use a windows program. Then you need the flash file itself. This is a file created by the mobo manufacturer for that specific model mother board.
One word of caution, you can easily brick your mobo by performing an incorrect flash! However, you can order a bios chip pre-flashed from http://www.biosman.com/.
Ive read what other people have done with my mobo and I have the program and ISO file I just need a boot cd now.
right dont worry gang Im leaving it I dont want to end up breaking my system for perhaps a half a second gain.