Vista sees only 2GB of RAM with 4GB installed

S

Secondhandloser

New Member
System recognizes 4GB of RAM installed, but total physical memory is only 2GB. I'm aware that I should only see around 3.3 GB when it is all up and running, but 2GB?
What do I need to do to fix this? I have BIOS A07.


Note- I have tried installing each module into each slot- both modules are good, both slots are good.
BIOS recognized 4096 MB of installed RAM, with 33xx available for system use.








OS Name Microsoft® Windows Vista™ Business
Version 6.0.6001 Service Pack 1 Build 6001
Other OS Description Not Available
OS Manufacturer Microsoft Corporation
System Name DD31T2D1
System Manufacturer Dell Inc.
System Model Latitude D820
System Type X86-based PC
Processor Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU T7600 @ 2.33GHz, 2333 Mhz, 2 Core(s), 2 Logical Processor(s)
BIOS Version/Date Dell Inc. A07, 6/15/2007
SMBIOS Version 2.4
Windows Directory C:\Windows
System Directory C:\Windows\system32
Boot Device \Device\HarddiskVolume2
Locale United States
Hardware Abstraction Layer Version = "6.0.6001.18000"
User Name DD31T2D1\Student
Time Zone Easte rn Daylight Time
Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 4.00 GB
Total Physical Memory 2.00 GB
Available Physical Memory 1.14 GB
Total Virtual Memory 4.23 GB
Available Virtual Memory 3.39 GB
Page File Space 2.29 GB
Page File C:\pagefile.sys[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]

Thanks.


[/FONT]
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell D820
    CPU
    T7600
    Graphics card(s)
    NVidia Quadro 120
Are you using a laptop or intergrated graphics?
Update your system spec in User CP (top left)
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Self Built
    CPU
    I5 3570K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte Z77-DS3H
    Memory
    4 x 4GB corsair ballistix sport DDR3 1600 Mhz
    Graphics card(s)
    Gigabyte Geforce GTX 660 TI
    Sound Card
    creative x-fi
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Primary CiBox 22" Widescreen LCD ,Secondary Dell 22" Widescreen
    Screen Resolution
    Both 1680 x 1050
    Hard Drives
    2 x 500G HD (SATA) 1 x 2TB USB
    PSU
    Corsair HX 620W ATX2.2 Modular SLI Complient PSU
    Case
    Antec 900 Ultimate Gaming Case
    Cooling
    3 x 80mm tri led front, 120mm side 120mm back, 200mm top
    Mouse
    Technika TKOPTM2
    Keyboard
    Logik
    Internet Speed
    288 / 4000
    Other Info
    Creative Inspire 7.1 T7900 Speakers Trust Graphics Tablet
Please check this:
Go to Start and type in "msconfig" (without the quotes) and press Enter
Click on the Boot tab, then on the Advanced Options button
Is the Maximum memory box checked?
If so, what does it specify for the number immediately beneath it?

If this is the case, try unchecking the maximum memory box, then click OK to exit the dialogs. Reboot to see if it fixes the issue.
 

My Computer

System One

usasma said:
Please check this:
Go to Start and type in "msconfig" (without the quotes) and press Enter
Click on the Boot tab, then on the Advanced Options button
Is the Maximum memory box checked?
If so, what does it specify for the number immediately beneath it?

If this is the case, try unchecking the maximum memory box, then click OK to exit the dialogs. Reboot to see if it fixes the issue.
Click to expand...


It is unchecked. I also tried booting it checked, set to 4096, to no avail.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell D820
    CPU
    T7600
    Graphics card(s)
    NVidia Quadro 120
this what microsoft have to say on the issue

This behavior is the expected result of certain hardware and software factors.

Various devices in a typical computer require memory-mapped access. This is known as memory-mapped I/O (MMIO). For the MMIO space to be available to 32-bit operating systems, the MMIO space must reside within the first 4 GB of address space.

For example, if you have a video card that has 256 MB of onboard memory, that memory must be mapped within the first 4 GB of address space. If 4 GB of system memory is already installed, part of that address space must be reserved by the graphics memory mapping. Graphics memory mapping overwrites a part of the system memory. These conditions reduce the total amount of system memory that is available to the operating system.

The reduction in available system memory depends on the devices that are installed in the computer. However, to avoid potential driver compatibility issues, the 32-bit versions of Windows Vista limit the total available memory to 3.12 GB. See the "More information" section for information about potential driver compatibility issues.

If a computer has many installed devices, the available memory may be reduced to 3 GB or less. However, the maximum memory available in 32-bit versions of Windows Vista is typically 3.12 GB.
Click to expand...
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 @ 4Gig / Titan Fenir
    Motherboard
    XFX 780i
    Memory
    4GB OCZ PC2-8500C5 DDR2
    Graphics card(s)
    Gainward GTX260/216 SLI
    Sound Card
    Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell UltraSharp 2209WA 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    western digital raptor 10000rpm sata
    PSU
    OCZ Modstream 700w
    Cooling
    Titan Fenir
    Mouse
    Logitech G5 Gamer
    Keyboard
    Razer Reclusa
    Internet Speed
    8mb
why do you think its differant?
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 @ 4Gig / Titan Fenir
    Motherboard
    XFX 780i
    Memory
    4GB OCZ PC2-8500C5 DDR2
    Graphics card(s)
    Gainward GTX260/216 SLI
    Sound Card
    Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell UltraSharp 2209WA 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    western digital raptor 10000rpm sata
    PSU
    OCZ Modstream 700w
    Cooling
    Titan Fenir
    Mouse
    Logitech G5 Gamer
    Keyboard
    Razer Reclusa
    Internet Speed
    8mb
BIOS recognized 4096 MB of installed RAM, with 33xx available for system use
Click to expand...
This shows that it's a Windows error (because the BIOS recognizes the correct amount.

BTW - nice quote archie123! Do you have the link to it? I haven't seen that explanation before.

There are issues noted about the web where it seems that there's an error in the display of these numbers. I personally believe that it's an unresolved issue between the latest version of WDDM and the change that changed the display from Available memory to Installed memory (Vista SP1)

To check this out, please open up Task Manager and go to the Performance tab. Let us know the numbers in each of the categories there.

Also, did you get the system specs from "systeminfo"? If not, please open a Command Prompt and type "systeminfo" (without the quotes) and press Enter - then compare the numbers in the two reports (this isn't essential, it's more of a curiosity).

If you find the correct numbers in the Performance tab of Task Manager, then the advice on the web has been to ignore the incorrect info.
 

My Computer

System One

no it doesnt work like that mate you only have a maximum of 3.12 gig to begin with (available for windows to play with)

add up your total physical memory and available physical memory and what do you get?

edit.....YOU ACTUALLY GET 3.14 GIG HA HA BUT YOU GET THE PICTURE ;)

it all gets screwed up sometimes when you put 4 gig in a 32 bit system
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 @ 4Gig / Titan Fenir
    Motherboard
    XFX 780i
    Memory
    4GB OCZ PC2-8500C5 DDR2
    Graphics card(s)
    Gainward GTX260/216 SLI
    Sound Card
    Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell UltraSharp 2209WA 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    western digital raptor 10000rpm sata
    PSU
    OCZ Modstream 700w
    Cooling
    Titan Fenir
    Mouse
    Logitech G5 Gamer
    Keyboard
    Razer Reclusa
    Internet Speed
    8mb

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 @ 4Gig / Titan Fenir
    Motherboard
    XFX 780i
    Memory
    4GB OCZ PC2-8500C5 DDR2
    Graphics card(s)
    Gainward GTX260/216 SLI
    Sound Card
    Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell UltraSharp 2209WA 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    western digital raptor 10000rpm sata
    PSU
    OCZ Modstream 700w
    Cooling
    Titan Fenir
    Mouse
    Logitech G5 Gamer
    Keyboard
    Razer Reclusa
    Internet Speed
    8mb
archie123 said:
no it doesnt work like that mate you only have a maximum of 3.12 gig to begin with (available for windows to play with)

add up your total physical memory and available physical memory and what do you get?

edit.....YOU ACTUALLY GET 3.14 GIG HA HA BUT YOU GET THE PICTURE ;)

it all gets screwed up sometimes when you put 4 gig in a 32 bit system
Click to expand...


That is actually not true. Google "why don't I see 4gb of ram in vista" and you will see hundreds of pages of people whining about their system showing 3.5 GB, or 3.3, or 3.2.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Dell D820
    CPU
    T7600
    Graphics card(s)
    NVidia Quadro 120
Secondhandloser said:
archie123 said:
no it doesnt work like that mate you only have a maximum of 3.12 gig to begin with (available for windows to play with)

add up your total physical memory and available physical memory and what do you get?

edit.....YOU ACTUALLY GET 3.14 GIG HA HA BUT YOU GET THE PICTURE ;)

it all gets screwed up sometimes when you put 4 gig in a 32 bit system
Click to expand...


That is actually not true. Google "why don't I see 4gb of ram in vista" and you will see hundreds of pages of people whining about their system showing 3.5 GB, or 3.3, or 3.2.
Click to expand...

yes mate i know , but ultimately there is no problem with any of them , if you put 4gb in a 32 bit operating system it throws up allsorts of differant ammounts of ram , after research i found that it can differ from system to system depending on the hardware even

but the main thing is its just a bug , all your ram is there and 3.12 gig will be available to yuor os when and if its needed , its just a glitch :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 @ 4Gig / Titan Fenir
    Motherboard
    XFX 780i
    Memory
    4GB OCZ PC2-8500C5 DDR2
    Graphics card(s)
    Gainward GTX260/216 SLI
    Sound Card
    Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell UltraSharp 2209WA 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    western digital raptor 10000rpm sata
    PSU
    OCZ Modstream 700w
    Cooling
    Titan Fenir
    Mouse
    Logitech G5 Gamer
    Keyboard
    Razer Reclusa
    Internet Speed
    8mb
Not really a bug, rather a limitation in a 32 bit OS.
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Sager NG2096
    CPU
    Intel P8700
    Memory
    4 Gigs
    Graphics card(s)
    9600M GT
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung PN50A550
    Screen Resolution
    Primary 1680 X 1050, Secondary 1920 X 1080
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Revolution
    Internet Speed
    Satalite :-(
    Other Info
    Running SUSE, Solaris, Kalyware, and BSD through vmware whenever the mood strikes
usasma said:
Added it to my blog here ( The 4gB Memory Limit (originally posted 30Mar09) - Vox ) with credit to you!

Thanks again!
Click to expand...

i come across these things during bits of research i do into various problems i see on these forums , im such a nerd i save them all into archived folders incase i need them in the future to help someone............nobody knows this about me untill now.........even the wife thinks im surfing pron , she'd leave me if she found out what i was really up to ;) ;)
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 @ 4Gig / Titan Fenir
    Motherboard
    XFX 780i
    Memory
    4GB OCZ PC2-8500C5 DDR2
    Graphics card(s)
    Gainward GTX260/216 SLI
    Sound Card
    Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell UltraSharp 2209WA 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    western digital raptor 10000rpm sata
    PSU
    OCZ Modstream 700w
    Cooling
    Titan Fenir
    Mouse
    Logitech G5 Gamer
    Keyboard
    Razer Reclusa
    Internet Speed
    8mb

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 @ 4Gig / Titan Fenir
    Motherboard
    XFX 780i
    Memory
    4GB OCZ PC2-8500C5 DDR2
    Graphics card(s)
    Gainward GTX260/216 SLI
    Sound Card
    Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell UltraSharp 2209WA 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    western digital raptor 10000rpm sata
    PSU
    OCZ Modstream 700w
    Cooling
    Titan Fenir
    Mouse
    Logitech G5 Gamer
    Keyboard
    Razer Reclusa
    Internet Speed
    8mb
archie123 said:
truthkid said:
Not really a bug, rather a limitation in a 32 bit OS.
Click to expand...

we been into all this , we kinda know :) ;)
Click to expand...

I'm not sure why you said it was a glitch, that would be like saying putting a DL blank DVD in a single layer DVD burner and it not recognizing layer 2 is a glitch
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Sager NG2096
    CPU
    Intel P8700
    Memory
    4 Gigs
    Graphics card(s)
    9600M GT
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Samsung PN50A550
    Screen Resolution
    Primary 1680 X 1050, Secondary 1920 X 1080
    Mouse
    Logitech MX Revolution
    Internet Speed
    Satalite :-(
    Other Info
    Running SUSE, Solaris, Kalyware, and BSD through vmware whenever the mood strikes
truthkid said:
archie123 said:
truthkid said:
Not really a bug, rather a limitation in a 32 bit OS.
Click to expand...

we been into all this , we kinda know :) ;)
Click to expand...

I'm not sure why you said it was a glitch, that would be like saying putting a DL blank DVD in a single layer DVD burner and it not recognizing layer 2 is a glitch
Click to expand...

no mate read the entire thread we are aware of the limitation of a 32 bit operating system we even posted microsofts explanation of the problem , thats not the issue he's having :)
 

My Computer

System One

  • Manufacturer/Model
    Custom Build
    CPU
    Intel Q9550 @ 4Gig / Titan Fenir
    Motherboard
    XFX 780i
    Memory
    4GB OCZ PC2-8500C5 DDR2
    Graphics card(s)
    Gainward GTX260/216 SLI
    Sound Card
    Creative X-FI Xtreme Gamer
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Dell UltraSharp 2209WA 22"
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    western digital raptor 10000rpm sata
    PSU
    OCZ Modstream 700w
    Cooling
    Titan Fenir
    Mouse
    Logitech G5 Gamer
    Keyboard
    Razer Reclusa
    Internet Speed
    8mb
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