I was told by a computer technician that my windows xp sp2 can only take 2gb ram and if i want to use 3gb i have to use a patch, is this true? I have a core 2 quad and am trying to find out the maximum amount of ram i can use but am not sure if this technician is right about needing a patch for 3gb. If anyone can help i would appreciate it, thanks.
If your mobo supports 4gig of ram then according to M$, all is fine. Apparently filling up all dimm slots will make overclocking difficult, that's the only drawback I know of. Patching to have 3gig is a new one to me, sorry can't help with that one.
The easiest thing to do is check the model of your motherboard. Then search the manufacturers website to find the soecs. You're likely using a 32-bit versions of Windows SP2 which will allow up to 4GB of memory.
However, it actually isn't 4GB. Due to memory allocation of other computer components it will only recognize roughly 3.5GB of memory. The other .5GB is lost (kinda).
But if your motherboard can support 4GB of memory, then yes you can.
I'm with onya, that patching bit is new to me and I've been repairing PCs for over 7 years.
You can run Lavasoft Everest to find out the model # of your mobo. It's not free, but I think there is a trial available.
Originally posted by dizzyduck: ....that patching bit is new to me and I've been repairing PCs for over 7 years.
I googled and found absolute 'nada'..zilch. Perhaps it's one of those "extra's" that some disreputable outlets charge to the unwary. It's sad that this may be the case, but I'm sure it happens.
I'm sure I speak for all Afterdawners in saying that if this patching business is pure and absolute bunkum, give that technician a wide berth....and let your friends know about it too.
Dizzyduck, I think it can actually only see 3.25GB of RAM not 3.5, but I could be wrong. The hardware will see the entire 4GB but the OS will only see the 3.25. You can get a 32 bit OS to utilize all 4GB of RAM by applying PAE (physical address extension). But that requires some coding and modifying the boot.ini file.
I have found the easiest way to determine how much and what kind of memory is to use Crucial.com. You can either type in your computer info or let it scan your system. No fuss, no muss!
