Tag: system_memory

32-bit Windows Vista vs. 64-bit Windows Vista

August 31, 2007 by Jason

One of the core differences between 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Windows Vista is of course how much system memory the two variants of Microsoft’s latest operating systems can use. Users have to understand that Microsoft alone limited 32-bit Vista to a maximum of 4 GB of RAM while taking the high-end editions of 64-bit Vista up to 128 GB of RAM. The fact of the matter is that Microsoft could have tailor fitted both 32-bit Windows Vista and Windows XP to address well in excess of 4 GB of system memory, but didn’t. The best argument related to the possibility of introducing support for over 4 GB of RAM with x86 Vista and XP is the fact that Microsoft does feature 32-bit Window operating systems that do it. Case in point Windows Server 2003, Enterprise Edition (32 GB of physical RAM), Windows Server 2003, Datacenter Edition and Windows Server 2003 SP1, Enterprise Edition(64 GB of physical RAM) and Windows Server 2003 SP1, Datacenter Edition (128 GB of physical RAM). All these server side Windows operating systems are 32-bit platforms.

So why hasn’t the same been done with Windows Vista? Well, just because the 32-bit server operating systems can support in excess of 32-bit of RAM does not mean that it is the ideal solution. Far from it in fact, it is something more of a hack. Read More»

Windows Vista RAM Limitations

August 03, 2007 by Jason

Can’t get enough RAM installed? More RAM may make a better PC, but if you have a standard 32-bit system don’t bother getting more than 4GB as that the most the system will report to Windows. This is simply an architectural limitation of 32-bit Windows. In fact, it is more like 3GB!

A 32-bit version of Vista will never even use the full 4GB of RAM in your system. It’s because of the memory mapped IO reservations, which control how the onboard memory on your installed devices overwrites parts of the system memory, which lowers the total memory available to Vista itself. Read More»

Before You Buy Computer Memory Upgrades

July 24, 2007 by Jason

One of the easiest ways to boost performance for any PC is to add memory to the system. But before you go to get that memory upgrade, be sure to gather information about your computer to ensure you get the right memory for your system. You need to know what type of memory the computer uses, the memory module sizes and what already exists in the system.

How Much Memory Do I Have?
Find out how much memory is in the computer by examining the BIOS or operating system. For Windows, this can be located by opening up the System properties from the Control Panel. Also open up the case while the computer is off and find the memory Read More»

Windows Vista: Installing the Upgrade on a Blank Hard Drive

April 26, 2007 by Jason

Ok, I bought Windows Vista Business Upgrade the other day so I could start playing with it. Since I didnt want to mess up the configuration of my current computer, I thought I would install Vista on a blank hard drive.

Sounds easy enough, after all the previous versions of Windows required you to have a legitimate copy of an older Windows operating system and simply asked for that copy during the install so they could verify upgrade compliance.

Before installing Windows Vista, I ran the Windows Vista Upgrade Advisor on my current system. As I suspected, my video card was not up to Vista standards and the 512MB of RAM was on the low end of what Vista wanted. So, I purchased a NVIDIA chipset video controller with 256MB of RAM and increased the amount of system memory to 1GB before proceeding. These upgrades drained my pocketbook of another $120.00 beyond the cost of the Vista Business upgrade.

Now I was ready to proceed with installing Vista and seeing what all the “wow!” was about. Read More»

Memory Upgrades for Vista Operating Systems

February 26, 2007 by Jason

Now that Vista is officially out, many of you are dying to run out and buy it. I know that many will upgrade without first checking system requirements or system compatibility. This article is for you. When you try to install Vista, you may quickly find out that something will need to be upgraded. Most likely it will be RAM, video or both.

First we will look at memory. I am talking about system memory or RAM. Before we go further, my associate says I need to write about something more important. That is the peripherals, things like mice, cameras, scanners, printers. For most of these, you will find that there are no Vista compatible drivers available. The chain stores are going to be pushing Vista systems, but be patient and wait for the hardware to catch up. Here is where you will do better talking with your small neighborhood tech shops to find out if your computer will work with Vista. Read More»