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Is it correct that we cannot use more than 3GB ram in Windows XP Pro. I have some additional ram with me. I have 2x2GB ram and a single stick of 1GB. Can I connect both 2GB ram. It will give my system a bit more performance compared to the existing one. I can remove the single 1GB stick and replace that with 2GB. Thanks.
Yes it is correct. Windows XP cannot read ram over 3GB. I had installed 4GB in my system. In My Computer > Properties I can only see 3GB ram listed. My system has two OS. Windows XP and Vista. The same when I check in Vista I can see all the ram. It looks to be the limitation of Windows XP. But this thing does not appear in 64Bit system.
There are thousands of article on web which clearly explains the 3GB limit of Windows XP. This is mostly the limit of a 32bit system. If your motherboard still supports it then also you need install latest OS to take benefit of full 4GB ram. I had got this issue before. I am having a Vista system in which I installed XP. There is no hardware or any software which can fix the issue. It is called as 3GB RAM barrier. This is the limitation of 32 bit system which are running on x86 processor. The hardware limitation does not allow the OS to use more than 3GB of ram. Somehow your system might boot, but ample of them did not turn on when additional ram is inserted.
Windows XP lacks PAE facility. This is some kind of cpu instruction which is used to use 4GB ram in XP. Windows XP might not be able to read that much amount of RAM but still I had seen many people using the same in a 64bit system. The virtual address limit lies to 4GB. There is a 3GB switch which allows the application to utilize full ram. Mostly 2GB is the maximum ram that is occupied by the software while other is left. For performance you can add a good video card also with 2GB physical ram.
Does the issue lies with 32Bit system. That simply means all 32Bit systems are not capable of reading 4GB ram. I had seen in old systems. The ram is shows around 3.1GB if it is actually 4GB physical ram. Somehow upgrading the system hardware is more recommended. I had seen some better boards which are capable of giving you better
4GB ram is worthless if your system is not 64 bit. That is the hardware limitation and it is complicated to explain here. Many of us aware that Windows is capable of handling 8GB ram but that works only on the high end hardware. I had seen a bit article on the web. The ram was limited so to some extent it is not at all worth to add extra sticks in the same.
Recently I had seen a number of ways by which you can force XP to use that amount of ram. But all of those are a failure. A number of users complained me about the ram issue. According to them they can only see 3GB ram if 4 is installed and they ask for replacement. It is not easy to explain them about this limitation. The only way to make 6GB ram work is to buy a 64bit hardware. That includes your motherboard and processor. In that you can increase upto 8GB ram which makes your system quiet fast. Maximum 32bit system comes with a common address space. This space limits the ram usage and by no means you can increase that.
I has checked on some forums which speak about a 4GB switch. Through this can make Windows XP to recognize 4GB RAM. But that is fake. I had tried to find the solution for that on number of sites, and none of them offer answer for it. It is in the hardware where you cannot get 4GB ram to work. The process or ram mapping to virtual space is internal and that cannot be modified with any tool.
In Windows 2000 or Server 2003 you cannot make 3GB RAM to perform well. I had seen some switch but they are worthless. Even if you manage to detect those ram it will not be utilize by the OS for number of different process. It is recommended that you use less resource intensive software. Those who love to play games or work on graphic software must add a video card as additional support. That makes your system more better in performance. It is a illusion that more ram makes your system to perform in more better. There are different kind of requirement of different software's.
There is nothing you can do to exceed that limit. I had seen a number of articles on the same which says clearly that a 32bit system cannot utilize higher amount of ram. Basically we can expect to get a better hardware in the coming time that can provide us more RAM support. Sometime Windows might show you 3.5GB ram but that is the actual limit. A 64bit system is bit costlier but quiet recommended for those mostly expect performance.
I mostly work on a regular system which has some application used for video edition and some graphic software. I have a scanner and a nice editor. Now my ram is around 2GB. I was not aware that Windows XP did not support 4GB RAM. I was expecting to get more new upgrades. My vendor said me to add more rams and according to him it is going to work. In task manager I can almost find a quiet 70% of amount engaged. To free the same I have to end my video editing process. It takes quiet a nice amount of resource to process the same. I need some upgrades that can allow me to perform more action within less time and that can be done through a good hardware only.
We cannot fix the ram address issue by a software. If you need more performance you have to upgrade your system. Buy a better system. That will give you a bit more of power to carry more operations. 3GB ram is mostly utilized while others stay quiet in the background. The same amount of limitation is also applicable for storage space. After some extent you cannot addup more storage space in Windows XP. The RAM Addressable is limited and that is the hardware limitation.
I am here a bit stucked with buying between 32 and 64 bit system. In 32 bit it is a bit complicated to increase the hardware. I am looking for a better server system in which I can automate a backup process. My vendor suggest me to go with the higher end as it will be better for future also. You will not need to worry about upgrades there. My RAM requirement lies between 3 to 4GB. I think it is more than enough. Currently I have a system that has 3GB ram and it performs the backup process very well. So should I go with a 64Bit system which will allow me to pay more or 32Bit is quiet enough.
According to me instead of getting a a 64bit system you must add a good gpu in your system. 3GB ram is quiet enough. A gpu manage the graphical requirement which makes your ram more free. So more processes can work at a single time. Other than this your cpu must also be capable of giving you multitasking operation. Backup process is not so resource hungry. For that you need a system which works properly and on a constant rate. There are number of traditional gpu available that you can go for.
It is right that a 32bit system limit your ram usage to 3.1GB. But it is enough for home or office usage. Adding a good gpu is right recommendation given above. It is possible to use 4GB address space in 32Bit system but that is possible through a shard device. The system cannot entirely use the 4GB ram on its own.