Hardware reserved memory

[c2mystic]

i5 750
asus p7p55d
g.skill ddr3 4(2x2)GB 1333mhz, 7-7-7-21, 1.5v
msi cyclone oc 4890
corsair 550vx psu
antec three hundred
WD caviar black 500GB
Windows 7 ultimate 64bit


http://img147.imageshack.us/img147/6581/wtfn.png


Problem is that half my ram is being reserved by 'hardware', which I assume is the videocard. I've already tried disabling/enabling memory remapping, as well as setting default bios settings; I've updated the bio to latest version. I can't seem to a solution. Even if the videocard 'requires' a reservoir of memory, does it really need an extra 2gb?

 

[hanspeter]

If bios says 4GB usable with remapping, try msconfig > maxmem

 

[c2mystic]

POST doesn't say 4gb, but windows and pcwizard does. Should I still try checking maxmemory in msconfig?

 

[tcsenter]

Originally posted by: c2mystic
Problem is that half my ram is being reserved by 'hardware', which I assume is the videocard. I've already tried disabling/enabling memory remapping, as well as setting default bios settings; I've updated the bio to latest version. I can't seem to a solution. Even if the videocard 'requires' a reservoir of memory, does it really need an extra 2gb?

Well you want memory remapping enabled for 64-bit OS. If you initially installed Win7 with memory remapping disabled, then try installing the OS with remapping enabled.

If the BIOS still isn't reporting 4GB installed with remapping enabled, there is a hardware problem somewhere (like a faulty memory module or slot).

 

[c2mystic]

It was enabled when I installed the OS. And why should it be enabled?

 

[Nothinman]

Remapping is how you get access to the lost memory. The range reserved for hardware I/O starts at the 4G mark and moves down, there's no way around that. So the BIOS has an option to remap the lost memory above the 4G mark so that it's still usable.

 

[tcsenter]

I was just gonna say because remapping is cool and hip. Everyone's doing it!

 

[c2mystic]

Thanks for everyone's help, the problem was that I actually didn't do a proper clean install. During windows 7 install I did not 'delete' my old partitions, but I used 'format' instead, so it did not perform a clean install. However, I still saw that my computer only recognized 3.24 GB after the clean install, so I enabled remapping and now it recognizes all 4.

Installing windows with or without remapping enabled doesn't seem to affect your computer's ability to recognize the ram though, this was good because I forgot to enable it before I reinstalled.

 

[tcsenter]

Originally posted by: c2mystic
Installing windows with or without remapping enabled doesn't seem to affect your computer's ability to recognize the ram though, this was good because I forgot to enable it before I reinstalled.

In theory, it shouldn't, but for whatever reason, in practice, sometimes the BIOS fails to pass an updated memory map to the OS or the OS fails to recognize the changed memory map.

 

[Throckmorton]

I have this problem. The thing is, I didn't until just now. My Windows Server 2008 R2 install worked fine with 4gb RAM until a few minutes ago....now all of a sudden 1028mb Hardware Reserved. My motherboard is an Intel DG45ID. There is no option for memory remapping in the BIOS.

Edit: I just tried setting Maximum Memory in msconfig, but it says it's unable to save the config file.

 

[Throckmorton]

Fixed it. I flashed the current BIOS and set the RAM options to automatic. Apparently this board doesn't support memory mapping in manual mode for some insane reason. I had been using manual to set the voltage to 1.92v to allow 4 sticks to work, but somehow it's fine now at default 1.8v

 

[abcxxx]

I have this exact problem fixed ! (Thanks to google search and online forums) With Gigabyte p55a ud3r and Kingston KHX1600C9D3K4/8GX.

When you buy ram, you get them in pairs, as it turned out each pair/memory stick can only work on memory channel 1 or memory channel 2.

If you put a pair of memory that designed to work only on channel 1, on channel 2 (like I did unknowingly). The Bios only recognizes them, "BUT" not made available to use.
Windows 7 can only see the total ram installed (in my case 8GB), but can't make use of the other 4GB on memory channel 2, and
Windows 7 thinks the 4GB memory are "HARDWARE RESERVED".

So I advices you to switch them up between the memory slots, like I did, and now I only have 5 MB HARDWARE RESERVED instead of 4GB like before when I put the ram sticks on the wrongs slots/channel.

And now, have a joyful day !