How do I get my Computer to Recognize all my Ram?

[dgasca]

As the title says,

I am running Windows 7 64bit with all the appropriate drivers installed.

I have 32gigs of ram equipped. But, my computer does not see it or show it. How do I change this?

Bios shows the ram equipped and the number correctly displayed.

Does my computer actually use all 32 even when showing 16? Or does it need to display 32 for it to use it?

How do I display it under my computer properties?

dgasca

Thank you in advance.

 

[PhoenixEnigma]

Which version of Windows 7 do you have? Premium is limited to 16GB, to make use of all 32GB you'd need Professional or Ultimate.

 

[dgasca]

Hrmmm I only have W7 Home edition.. I presume its probably just the regular version.

That the only way to make use of it?

dgasca

 

[fstime]

No, you need either the Professional or Ultimate version.

Home Premium and Home Basic are limited to 16 gb and 8 gb respectively.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_7#Physical_memory_limits

 

[fstime]

Click on the link.

All versions of Windows 7 32 bit are limited to 4 gb. We are referring only to 64 bit versions.

 

[Ketchup]

Sounds like somebody will soon be taking advantage of Windows Anytime upgrade.

 

[mv2devnull]

Ditch MS Windows altogether? Alas, OP surely has 64-bit Windows applications that actually can make use of available memory?

 

[jacktesterson]

What do you need 32GB of Ram for?

It just seems odd since you didn't know Win 7 x64 Home only works with 16GB.

As others stated, you need Win 7 x64 Pro or Ultimate.

 

[Silenus]

Everyone above is correct. Pro or Ultimate to get over 16GB. The anytime upgrade is super easy though. You can do it right from within Windows.

Control Panel --> System and Security --> Windows Anytime Upgrade

You can buy the pro upgrade directly through the built in dialogs.

 

[Nothinman]

Hrmmm I only have W7 Home edition.. I presume its probably just the regular version.

That the only way to make use of it?

dgasca

You haven't paid enough yet, MS demands more money in order to actually use your hardware.

 

[dgasca]

All of these responses are helpful. Some of them down right funny.

Great info to know about the system limitations for Windows 7 Newbie edition it would seem.

Ill upgrade down the road. After reading the responses though I upgraded the ram in my Ladies computer too 16gigs. Splitting mine in half and maximizing the use of the hardware. Works out in the end.

To whomever mentioned why do I need 32 and did not know about the Windows 7 limitation? Because I can, it was a great deal and If I never use it all great. But, building a Power PC is about the always needed. Better to have it and not always need it maxed out then to need it and not have it at all .

Appreciate the information from everyone who replied.

dgasca

P.S. = Learn something new everyday, otherwise the day would be a waste!

 

[darkxshade]

Better to have it and not always need it maxed out then to need it and not have it at all .

Using the same argument, better to upgrade to Pro/Ultimate and then not need 32gb than to need it and not have it at all

 

[TemjinGold]

OP: In that case, to answer your original question, your computer will not use all 32gb whether or not you have the right windows. Unless you run a ton of VMs or use a ramdrive, it won't ever use more than 4-8gbs of your ram period.

Upgrading would be a waste because all that will do is SHOW 32gb. It won't USE any more than it is now.

 

[Nothinman]

OP: In that case, to answer your original question, your computer will not use all 32gb whether or not you have the right windows. Unless you run a ton of VMs or use a ramdrive, it won't ever use more than 4-8gbs of your ram period.

Upgrading would be a waste because all that will do is SHOW 32gb. It won't USE any more than it is now.

That's just downright ignorant. Do you really know every application that the OP uses and that none of them will ever use more than a gig or so of memory? And even without a demanding app, Windows will use all available memory for filesystem caching to improve performance.

 

[Ketchup]

That's just downright ignorant. Do you really know every application that the OP uses and that none of them will ever use more than a gig or so of memory? And even without a demanding app, Windows will use all available memory for filesystem caching to improve performance.

This. Windows 7 is better than any other OS at using RAM. Don't believe me? Look at how much of your RAM is free, vs. available. I run two VMs on occasion and could totally see using 16 gigs of RAM.

DDR3 is so cheap now it's silly. The 'why not' argument definitely applies.