4GB of RAM and 32bit Vista

speedyink · 01-25-2008, 12:42 AM

So 32 bit Vista doesn't recognize 4gb of RAM, right? It recognizes it as 3.25gb in the system properties, but is windows still using the full 4gb, or just 3.25gb?

JLV2k5 · 01-25-2008, 12:53 AM

Yes the 32 OS has the 4 gig barrier. I thought it was 3.5 but the barrier is true.

Cleric7x9 · 01-25-2008, 01:06 AM

32 bit OSs have a max of 4GB minus whatever other components you have that use memory (as all memory needs to be mapped). The official barrier is 4GB, however the real-life barrier depends on what other hardware is in your system. to answer the OP question, no, windows is only using 3.25.

nyhk · 01-25-2008, 01:40 AM

Microsoft has banned the address space above 4G in 32-bit xp and vista due to problems with bad drivers

speedyink · 01-25-2008, 01:51 AM

Ok, so I need 64 bit Vista to have it all be recognized. I still don't understand why the hardware would affect the size. What hardware would be taking the RAM? It's a dedicated video card, so thats ruled out.

So how is 64 bit Vista, is it just as stable as 32 bit?

Seth · 01-25-2008, 03:43 AM

Microsoft are JUST about to launch Service Pack 1 for vista which will allow 32bit versions to recognize the full 4gb of Ram. SO just wait on a few days and save yourself the effort of going to 64 bit.

nyhk · 01-25-2008, 03:46 AM

All they do in SP1 is fool the user. Instead of usable amount, the will display installed amount in various places

Cleric7x9 · 01-25-2008, 03:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nyhk

Microsoft has banned the address space above 4G in 32-bit xp and vista due to problems with bad drivers

lol that has nothing to do with it

[-0MEGA-] · 01-25-2008, 03:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nyhk

Microsoft has banned the address space above 4G in 32-bit xp and vista due to problems with bad drivers

Haha, that is completely false. It has nothing to do with a driver issue.

nyhk · 01-25-2008, 03:59 AM

Of course it is true. Why else would they say it in various articles?

Before SP2 they supported physical addresses above 4G. They revoked that support due to problems drivers and devices not being able to function properly

01-25-2008, 12:42 AM	#1 (permalink)
speedyink Diamond Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Vancouver Island, Canada Age: 21 Posts: 1,832	4GB of RAM and 32bit Vista So 32 bit Vista doesn't recognize 4gb of RAM, right? It recognizes it as 3.25gb in the system properties, but is windows still using the full 4gb, or just 3.25gb? __________________ Desktop/Laptop: Acer AM5100/Dell Inspiron 6400 AMD Phenom 9500 Quad core @ 2.2GHZ/Core 2 Duo T5300 @ 1.73ghz 4GB DDR2 RAM/2GB 533mhz RAM 750GB HDD/120 GB HDD 512mb Nvidia GeForce 8800GTS @ 800/2000/1050/256mb Radeon Mobility X1400 HM Vista Ultimate x64/Vista Home Premium Winner of Photo Tournament: Mountains, Cold, Spiders, Engineering My Deviantart

01-25-2008, 12:53 AM	#2 (permalink)
JLV2k5 Diamond Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: University of Delaware Age: 21 Posts: 1,291	Yes the 32 OS has the 4 gig barrier. I thought it was 3.5 but the barrier is true. __________________ Can't wait to finish college and build my system.

01-25-2008, 01:06 AM	#3 (permalink)
Cleric7x9 Diamond Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Palm Beach, FL Age: 23 Posts: 1,605	32 bit OSs have a max of 4GB minus whatever other components you have that use memory (as all memory needs to be mapped). The official barrier is 4GB, however the real-life barrier depends on what other hardware is in your system. to answer the OP question, no, windows is only using 3.25. __________________ CPU \|\| e8400 RAM \|\| 2GB corsair xms2 pc6400 800mhz HDD \|\| 2x WD Raptor 150GB 2x WD 500GB MBO \|\| EVGA 680i SE GPU \|\| Evga 8800GT Superclocked w/ Accelero PSU \|\| Silverstone 750 watt Case\|\| Antec p182

01-25-2008, 01:51 AM	#5 (permalink)
speedyink Diamond Member Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Vancouver Island, Canada Age: 21 Posts: 1,832	Ok, so I need 64 bit Vista to have it all be recognized. I still don't understand why the hardware would affect the size. What hardware would be taking the RAM? It's a dedicated video card, so thats ruled out. So how is 64 bit Vista, is it just as stable as 32 bit? __________________ Desktop/Laptop: Acer AM5100/Dell Inspiron 6400 AMD Phenom 9500 Quad core @ 2.2GHZ/Core 2 Duo T5300 @ 1.73ghz 4GB DDR2 RAM/2GB 533mhz RAM 750GB HDD/120 GB HDD 512mb Nvidia GeForce 8800GTS @ 800/2000/1050/256mb Radeon Mobility X1400 HM Vista Ultimate x64/Vista Home Premium Winner of Photo Tournament: Mountains, Cold, Spiders, Engineering My Deviantart

01-25-2008, 03:43 AM	#6 (permalink)
Seth Silver Member Join Date: Feb 2006 Posts: 235	Microsoft are JUST about to launch Service Pack 1 for vista which will allow 32bit versions to recognize the full 4gb of Ram. SO just wait on a few days and save yourself the effort of going to 64 bit. __________________ Desktop - NEW SYSTEM!! CPU: Intel E8200 @ 3.4Ghz Mobo: Gigabyte GA-P35-DS4 RAM: 2GB Corsair TwinX6400C4DHX GRAPHICS: eVGA 8800GT 512MB HDD: 500GB & 320GB = 820GB CASE & Cooling: Antec 900 & Zalman 9700NT Laptop - Asus F3E-AP183C CPU: Core2 Duo T7250 @ 2.2Ghz RAM: 2GB Kingston 667 HDD: 160GB Seagate

01-25-2008, 01:40 AM	#4 (permalink)
nyhk Silver Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 152	Microsoft has banned the address space above 4G in 32-bit xp and vista due to problems with bad drivers

01-25-2008, 03:46 AM	#7 (permalink)
nyhk Silver Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 152	All they do in SP1 is fool the user. Instead of usable amount, the will display installed amount in various places

01-25-2008, 03:59 AM	#10 (permalink)
nyhk Silver Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 152	Of course it is true. Why else would they say it in various articles? Before SP2 they supported physical addresses above 4G. They revoked that support due to problems drivers and devices not being able to function properly

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