Mac mini wont boot after Ram upgrade

**Chestery** · 08-01-2010

Hi, I have a Mac mini which is installed with Mac OS X snow leopard. Earlier it had 512mb Ram which i thought was quite insufficient therefore i went for a RAM upgrade. I inserted two more Ram chips each of 1gb to the Mac mini. But now the Mac mini wont boot after Ram upgradation. Whenever i try to boot the Macmini by pressing power button, all the LED's glow but nothing happens. Please help as I am in a real fix. If anybody knows how to get the Mac mini working again, then please let me know.

**Wiro** · 08-01-2010

Check the maximum system memory that is supported by Mac mini. As you have inserted two more Ram chips of 1gb each, the total memory of the Mac mini is now 2.4gb which i dont think is supported by the Mac mini. If the system memory of the Mac mini is increased above its capacity then the laptop does not boot. This happens because the operating system wants to access all the system memory but the motherboard architecture does not allow it. Hence there is conflict between hardware and software which prevents it from booting. Remove the 512mb Ram chip and boot the Mini, It will start without any problems.

**Lambard** · 08-01-2010

If the system memory is increased beyond the limit which can be accessed by the laptop, it does not create problems as you are facing. The operating system and the laptop both will only access the amount of RAM which it can access and rest of the RAM will remain unused. If you go to system preferences and see the capacity of the RAM, it will only display the maximum memory which it is accessing while not showing the excess memory. In your case the system preferences should show about 1.9gb of RAM connected as it supports only 2gb. There is some other issue due to which your laptop is not starting.

**Deep23** · 08-01-2010

I think the RAM which you have installed lately are not fixed properly in the slots. Open the laptop again and remove all the RAM chips. Clean the connecting terminal (golden) with a clean cloth. Now replace one RAM at a time in the slots and secure it using the locks. Like this replace all the RAM chips and then try to boot the Laptop. If the RAM are placed correctly and there is no other problem with the Mac mini, it will boot. You can also try to boot the laptop by inserting one RAM chip at a time. In this way you will come to know if any of the RAM chips are faulty or not.

**Simond** · 08-01-2010

Doing PRAM and PSU reset might help you in booting the laptop. PRAM reset removes all the entries which are there in the physical memory of the system. Hence if there is any invalid entry in the RAM which is not letting the Mac mini boot will be removed. To perform the PRAM reset follow the steps :-
[1] Locate the following keys Apple, Option, R and P
[2] Now press and hold the above mentioned keys while turning on the laptop
[3] Keep these keys pressed till three start up chimes are heard.
[4] When the 3rd Start up chime is heard release these buttons and let the system boot normally.
To perform a PSU reset follow these steps.
[1] Remove the AC main power from the Laptop
[2] Remove the battery of the laptop
[3] Now Locate and press the PSU reset button on the laptop and dont touch the laptop for 1 min.
[4] After 1 minute replace the battery and see if the Laptop boots.

**Halina** · 08-01-2010

I was also facing the same problem when i upgraded the RAM on my Mac Mini. The MacMini was not booting at all after the Ram upgrade. I searched a lot for the answer as my Mini was out of the warranty. Finally I found a solution which helped me in getting my MacMini working. Open the laptop and locate the button cell on the motherboard. Remove the battery and check the voltage across it using Digital multimeter. If the voltage is below 2.5 volts, replace the battery. Replacing the motherboard battery worked for me and I hope it works for you too.