How much RAM is needed for Windows and games. How to find out the amount of RAM: the concept of RAM, maximum, minimum and used memory, ways to view the amount of memory and step-by-step instructions

Users interested in “what affects a computer” and asking similar questions have come to the right address. The article covers all these topics. But before we move on to solving problems, let's understand what RAM is and how much RAM is needed. Random access memory or random access memory (RAM) is a volatile (short-term, non-permanent) memory.

When the computer is turned off, it is reset to zero, which is why it is called volatile. It is needed for temporary storage of intermediate data that is processed by the processor and currently executing machine code. RAM stores running applications, services and intermediate results of their operation.

RAM for a computer is made in the form of so-called “slats” with an incredible number of transistors (dynamic) or transistors and capacitors (static). Any user can install RAM in the appropriate slot with which the motherboard is equipped.

You can’t install it incorrectly - various models of brackets are equipped with keys - cuts, for which similar shaped convexities are located on the motherboard. Thanks to this implementation, the user will be able to increase the computer’s RAM or replace a non-working “bar” in a matter of seconds.

How much RAM do you need on your computer?

Let's figure out how much RAM is needed for a modern computer to cope with its tasks.

There is no optimal amount of RAM in nature, and there are two main reasons for this.

Computers are used to solve various problems (one user just needs to launch the player, browser and office applications, another works with resource-intensive applications for video editing, 3D and other modeling, a third plays new games).
Moore's Law. Although its operation has been questioned over the past couple of years (it stops working), the amount of RAM required for normal computer operation is constantly increasing.

Let's consider the amount of RAM required for 2016.

2 GB

Let's start with the fact that installations of Windows operating systems require 2 GB of RAM. For smaller volumes, you need to use only XP.

A computer with 2 GB of RAM is considered an office computer - it is comfortable to work with office applications, the Internet, and watch movies.

In this case, use a page file or virtual memory (analogous to RAM, in which currently unused data is written to the hard drive). It's been around since Vista.

4 GB

This amount of memory is now optimal. A Windows 7 -10 user will be able to work without problems in graphic and video editors, and with web applications. What you need for normal operation, periodic file conversion and video processing.

8 GB

Almost every game released in the last year and a half consumes at least 4 GB of RAM. Therefore, gamers are recommended to use at least 8 GB of RAM. Remember that the speed of games depends primarily on the performance of the video card, and only then on the RAM.

In 2017, the amount of required RAM can be increased by 1.5 times. And for the latest new games, 12 GB will be enough.

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How to find out the amount of RAM?

We figured out what RAM is. Now let's move on to methods that will help determine its volume on a computer or laptop. The operating system tools are enough for this. But to obtain detailed data (for those who want to increase the RAM on the computer), you will have to resort to using third-party utilities.

Checking the amount of RAM using Windows

The first method is the simplest and fastest. To see data about the amount of RAM, go to the “System” information window. This is done using the following methods:

through the “Properties” item of the “My Computer” directory;
go to “My Computer” using the “Win + E” keys and click “System” in the top menu;
go to the “Control Panel”, where we find the required item.
When grouping items, the item is located in the “System and Security” menu.

In the window that opens, find the line “Installed memory (RAM)”
Similar information will be displayed after entering the command “msinfo32” into the search bar of the “Start” menu or the “Run” window, called up using the combination “Win + R”
The last way to find out the amount of RAM through the graphical interface is the “dxdiag” command entered into the same “Run” window or search line

The last option to see the number of bytes of RAM on your computer is to use the Windows command interpreter tools.

Launch the command line.
Type “cmd” into the search or “Run” box and click “Enter.”
Enter the command “winsat mem -v” in the text line.
Press "Enter".

We are looking for the line “Total physical mem available to the OS”

Find out the amount of RAM using third-party utilities

Alas, Windows developers did not provide the ability to view the frequency of RAM using OS tools. To do this, we will resort to the help of free utilities Speccy from Piriform and HWinfo.

To see the detailed characteristics of the RAM, run the HWinfo utility.

Although it is distributed in English, it will not cause any difficulties in operation.

The left frame displays a tree structure of the PC hardware.
Go to the “Memory” item.
The right frame contains detailed RAM data - the first line: “TotalMemorySize” displays its total volume.
Just below, in the “CurrentMemoryClock” line, the current (operating) frequency of the RAM is indicated.

In the free Speccy program, actions are carried out in a similar way: launch the utility and go to the appropriate section.

The right information panel displays information about the computer's memory.

Another option to determine the amount of RAM is to unscrew the side panel of the computer and look at the stickers on the RAM strip or strips. Viewing laptop memory in this way is a little more difficult, so it’s better to use software methods.

Types of RAM

RAM is classified according to several indicators. One we mentioned earlier is dynamic DRAM and static SRAM memory (depending on the elements on which the memory cells are made).

The next classification of RAM is the execution architecture and, accordingly, operating frequency, bandwidth. Types of RAM depending on the architecture:

DDR is an outdated RAM standard operating at frequencies up to 400 MHz.
DDR2 is a widely used, but being replaced in recent years, RAM operating at frequencies from 533 to 1066 MHz.
DDR3 is a new standard that is gaining popularity (operating frequency from 1 to 2 GHz). The performance increase compared to DDR 2 is 5-10%.
DDR4 is a model that appeared in 2014, the operating frequency of which exceeds 2 GHz.

It is not popular yet and is intended for gamers, overclockers and other enthusiasts

There are also types of RAM that have gone out of use (with rare exceptions): SIMM, DIMM, SDRAM.

Due to the fact that RAM is made in the form of quick-removable modules, increasing the computer’s RAM will not be difficult for any user. When choosing RAM, be sure to pay attention to the architecture and operating frequency.

Now you know how much RAM you need.

Random access memory (RAM) is computer memory, which is responsible for the rapid exchange of user and system data with the processor. RAM is no less important device in the system unit than the motherboard or processor. Choosing the right RAM is very difficult, since there are many types of them and they have many important features. That is why in this article we will try to tell you everything you need to know to choose the right RAM.

RAM Features

What is RAM needed for?

The purpose of RAM is to store information currently being used by the user or programs. RAM communicates with the processor directly or through the cache. The speed of RAM is tens or even hundreds of times higher than the speed of a hard drive. Let's give an example: the operating speed of DDR3 is 12800 Mb/sec, when the HDD speed is 80 Mb/sec. In this case, the difference is 160 times, which you will agree is very, very significant.

One of the features of RAM is its volatility, that is, it is able to retain information as long as the power is on; when the computer is turned off, all information is erased. There is really one exception - sleep mode, in this case all information from RAM is written to a special temporary file on the hard drive. Therefore, when you wake up your computer from sleep or standby mode, you can see applications, videos, music, documents that you haven’t closed and continue working from where you left off.

Why is the amount of RAM important?

The amount of RAM directly affects the performance of individual programs and the system as a whole. The larger the amount of RAM, the less the system will have to access the hard drive, and accordingly there will be no freezes or slight slowdowns.

In practice, RAM plays the role of a kind of buffer between the hard drive and the processor. For example, you decide to play a game. When the game has loaded, you see the game menu, which means that the data from the HDD has been transferred to RAM. Now you are working directly with RAM. Next, the game levels and your profile are loaded - this is also uploading data from the HDD to RAM. The gameplay itself is the interaction of RAM with the processor.

The same thing happens when you work with programs. The amount of RAM will determine how many documents you can work with at the same time, how many browser tabs you can open without freezing. If you have a large amount of RAM, then you can open all of the above together with the game, and you can also watch a movie in a small window in the corner of the screen. A large amount of RAM allows you to watch high-definition movies without freezing, as well as use various graphic effects.

Selecting RAM

RAM type

When choosing the type of RAM, be sure to pay attention to the features of your motherboard, since it is this that will dictate the conditions for you. Usually on the manufacturer's website you will find comprehensive information about what type of RAM the motherboard supports and its other features for which the memory will be selected.

All modern motherboard models support DDR3 RAM type. It is important to note that RAM is divided into: computer and laptop. That is, long panels are used for a computer, and short ones for a laptop, so they do not fit each other.

What amount of RAM to choose

If we are talking about a desktop computer, then today the most optimal amount of RAM is 8 GB. In tandem with well-balanced components, they are quite enough for most games, not to mention various programs and working with multimedia content.

A limitation in choosing the amount of RAM may become, since not all of them support large amounts of RAM. This is exactly what you need to find out first of all in the characteristics of the motherboard.

As for the laptop, first study its parameters: the number of RAM slots and supporting capacity. Thus, you should also find out whether there are free slots on the motherboard for installing additional RAM panels, and whether the motherboard will support this amount of RAM. For most laptops, 4 GB of RAM will be sufficient.

Also, when choosing RAM, remember that 32-bit operating systems do not support more than 4 GB of RAM, or even less. Therefore, there is no point in increasing its volume. It is worth buying larger RAM if you install a 64-bit operating system, which supports up to 64 GB of RAM. But for this you must have a powerful computer.

Number of slats

Computers in which the total amount of RAM is divided into an equal number of sticks for the slots available for them are the best option. Two 4 GB sticks are better than one 8 GB stick. The fact is that motherboards support two or more channel modes of working with RAM. In theory, by activating this mode, throughput increases by 2 times. In practice it is a little less, but it is quite noticeable. Therefore, try to distribute the total amount of RAM among the slots, but be prudent at the same time.

Sooner or later, you will need to upgrade your computer, so give yourself the opportunity to increase the amount of RAM in the future. For example, if you have 4 slots for RAM, buy two 4 GB panels, in the future you can buy 2 more 4 GB each - and thus correctly increase the volume. If you buy slats of a smaller volume, then later you will have to put them in a box and buy new ones, since they will be of no use. More RAM is welcome, but illogical.

RAM sticks can be sold individually or as a set. Buying RAM in a set is more profitable than buying one at a time.

Clock speed, bandwidth and supply voltage

When you choose RAM, make sure that the clock speed, bandwidth, and supply voltage are supported by the motherboard. By the way, the higher the value of the listed parameters, the more powerful the RAM.

Radiator

Website experts strongly recommend giving preference to RAM models with a heatsink. The RAM heatsink is a metal plate that is located on the socket chips. Radiators are used to improve heat transfer, mainly in models operating at high frequencies.

Which company is best to buy RAM?

The company that produces the RAM is also very important. Today, RAM sockets from such manufacturers as:

Corsair;

Kingston;

Hynix;

Patriot Memory;

Transcend.

When choosing RAM, try to ensure that all available sockets are not only from the same company, but also from the same model and with the same parameters, for high-quality and synchronous operation.

Price

RAM in comparison with other components, such as: motherboard, and others, is quite cheap. A pair of 4 GB DDR3 sticks (with a total capacity of 8 GB) costs from 2500 to 3000 rubles. If you buy the strips separately, they will cost a little more.

There is no need to buy the newly released RAM models (for example, 32 GB DDR3). Firstly, on average, one megabyte of memory in this case costs more, and secondly, you are unlikely to find a way to use the entire amount of memory. As a rule, 8 GB of RAM is enough for any user to work comfortably.

Random Access Memory, commonly referred to as RAM or RAM, is one of the most important parts of any computer. But how much is needed for the device to work well? Current new PCs and similar devices offer values from 2 GB to 16 GB or more.

The amount of memory required depends on two factors - what you intend to do and how much you are willing to spend.

Introduction to RAM

Memory capacity is often confused with the long-term storage offered by a solid state or mechanical hard drive. Sometimes even manufacturers or retailers confuse these concepts. To understand how much RAM is needed for normal operation of the device, you need to understand what its significance is.

A table is a useful analogy to consider the difference between RAM and memory. Think of RAM as the top of the table. The larger its surface, the more papers you can spread out and read at once. Hard drives are more like drawers under your desk, capable of storing documents you don't use.

The larger your system, the more programs it can handle simultaneously. RAM is not the only determining factor, and you could technically have dozens of programs open at once with even very little RAM and it would slow down your system. Now imagine the table again. If it's too small, it becomes cluttered and your work will slow down as you try to find whatever paper you need at any given moment. You will often be forced to dig through drawers to place things that won't fit on the desk surface, as well as to get out the necessary papers.

A computer with more RAM runs noticeably faster, but only up to a certain point. Having a large desk won't help you if you only have a few articles to read.

Optimal ratio

How much RAM does your device need? Your goal is to have enough RAM for all the apps you use on that particular device. If there is too little of it, work slows down. Too much RAM can only mean that you've paid a lot of money for something you'll never be able to use.

Difference from other characteristics

Standard RAM should not be confused with video memory, but the two concepts are closely related to computer graphics cards. High-performance 3D games rely on video memory (VRAM), often expressed as GDDR5, while standard memory is called RAM or DDR3. In fact, most manufacturers are very good at identifying VRAM and not confusing it with other parameters. Therefore, to determine how much RAM is needed for GTA 5, for example, you need to consider both of the above indicators together.

Heavy Applications

The biggest services on most home computers are the operating system itself and the web browser. You can't make Windows or MacOS use less memory, but more RAM on your computer means you can open more tabs in Chrome, Firefox, Internet Explorer, etc. Plus, some websites use more RAM memory than others. Simple text news takes up almost no resources, while something like Gmail or Netflix requires a little more power.

Programs are generally used because they increase the complexity of the job. A chat program or game (like Minesweeper) will use almost no RAM, while a giant Excel spreadsheet or a huge Photoshop project might use more than one gigabyte. Professional and engineering software are built to handle very complex projects and tend to consume the majority of RAM of all programs. Modern 3D games can also use quite a lot of RAM and VRAM. In other words, your need for how much RAM to install depends on the programs you use.

2GB RAM: Good for tablets and netbooks only.
4 GB RAM: Minimum for budget Windows and MacOS systems.
8GB: Great for Windows and MacOS systems.
16 GB: Probably too much; Ideal for mid-range workstations.
32 GB or more: For enthusiasts and dedicated workstations only.

For tablet

Tablets are not expected to deal with complex software tasks, so their RAM requirements tend to be quite low. However, as multi-tab browsers and more complex software continue to evolve, the needs of tablets are becoming more similar to those of laptops. Current specification options typically range from 2GB to 16GB of RAM, with processor speed playing a major role in determining the range.

For example, the iPad Air 2, which has about 2GB of RAM, places a lot of emphasis on its all-in-one processor. And a device like the Microsoft Surface Pro can accommodate up to 16GB of RAM because users of this device may want to run a lot of professional software as well as a desktop OS.

And it gives you guidelines for choosing RAM - what do you use your tablet for? If you only browse one site at a time and don't use the device for any large projects or work software, then 4GB RAM will probably be sufficient. However, if you also use your tablet as your main PC, you must equip it with the necessary RAM. Typically, this means you will need between 4 and 8 GB.

Choosing RAM for laptops

How much do you need? New laptops have between 2GB and 16GB of RAM, while high-end gaming models offer up to 32GB. As mentioned earlier, the needs of tablets and laptops converge, but most users feel comfortable running more complex programs on laptops, which means RAM plays a more important role here.

For something like a Chromebook, which runs primarily in the cloud and has very little storage space, you won't need much RAM. Opting for 4GB of RAM is enough, especially since you can use the Google Play Store to download Android apps directly on your computer.

How much RAM is needed for Windows 10 and new MacBook modifications? You should consider increasing this number to the standard 8GB. Most of the best laptops come with this value for good reason. Of course, if you do a lot of graphic work or want to have multiple tabs open at once, it might be worth considering upping the RAM to 16GB. This is especially true for gamers - the question of how much RAM is needed for games always remains relevant.

Desktop computers

RAM in desktop computers is cheap, so it's fairly easy to find PCs with more memory at lower prices. Additionally, more RAM on PCs can be beneficial as people tend to use them for longer periods of time than tablets or laptops.

How much RAM does a PC need? 8 GB is a good value to start with. Upgrading to 16GB is recommended for enthusiasts, hardcore gamers, and the average workstation user. Serious workstation users can upgrade to 32GB. Even when talking about how much RAM is needed for games, you can make sure that too significant parameters are not required.

Anything more is the edge of extreme specialties, equipped to handle huge amounts of data, huge video files or niche programs intended for researchers, corporations or government.

Please note that the amount of RAM and the type and speed supported by your system will depend on your motherboard.

It's no secret that having a large amount of RAM has a beneficial effect on the speed of many applications. In this material we will talk about the interaction between RAM and the Windows system, and also answer many common questions on this topic.

Introduction

Technological progress does not stand still and every year computers become more and more perfect. At the same time, with the growth of technical characteristics, the price of components inexorably decreases and today PCs, which three years ago cost several thousand dollars, are sold for several hundred.

This trend has not bypassed RAM, which has recently become much cheaper. About 15 years ago, a memory module with a capacity of four megabytes (just think about it!) cost about $100, and today the cost of four gigabytes of RAM (RAM - random access memory or random access memory) is only about 700 rubles. It is no secret that the presence of a large amount of RAM has a beneficial effect on the speed of many applications, so this volume is the minimum for most modern computers, even entry-level ones. More advanced systems contain 8, 16 or more gigabytes of RAM.

And everything would be fine, but many users have probably encountered one problem: if the computer has four or more gigabytes of RAM installed, the 32-bit Windows operating system simply does not see them.

In this article, you will learn how the operating system works with RAM, what amounts of RAM are supported by different editions of Windows, why in some cases the OS does not see all the installed memory, why this happens and whether something can be done in this situation. what is a paging file, and much more. But first, let's make a short excursion into the theory of organizing the physical memory of a computer, and also figure out how RAM generally affects system performance.

Address space

The basic unit of measurement for the amount of information is bit, which can only take two values - zero and one. In modern computing architectures, the minimum unit of information processing and storage is byte, equal to eight bits. Essentially, computer memory is a huge array of bytes.

One byte can store one of 256 values (2 8), which, depending on their interpretation, can be either numbers, symbols or letters. For example, the value 56 can represent either a regular number or the ASCII letter "V". In a few bytes, you can store much larger values. For example, three bytes can already take 16,777,216 values (256 3), in which an entire short word can be encoded.

In order for any device or program to be able to access a specific byte in memory (address it) in order to write there or receive data from there, it is assigned a unique index called address. The range of addresses from zero to maximum is called address space.

Physical and virtual memory

In the first computers, the size of the address space was identically equal to the size of the installed RAM. That is, if the computer had 128 KB of memory installed, then the maximum amount of memory that the program could use during operation was 128 KB. In this case, the address of any application object was equal to the address of the physical cell of the storage device.

This addressing method was very simple, but had a couple of significant drawbacks. Firstly, the memory of the running application was limited by RAM, which at that time was very expensive and was installed on the computer in very small quantities. Secondly, all running programs were executed in the same address space, which led to the possibility of multiple applications erroneously writing data to the same cell. If such a situation arises, it is not difficult to guess the consequences.

In modern computers, devices and programs do not work with real ( physical) memory, and virtual, which imitates it. This allows the application to assume that the machine has the maximum theoretically possible amount of RAM installed, and also that it is the only program running on the computer.

Thus, the address space of a computer today is no longer limited by the size of its physical (RAM) memory and has its maximum possible size, depending on the working environment, which is the operating system.

Today, the Windows operating system has both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. The first, as the name suggests, uses a 32-bit address space for addressing, the maximum size of which is 2 32 = 4,294,967,296 bytes or 4 GB (gigabytes). The 64-bit version of the operating system increases the size of the address space to an incredible 2,64 = 18,446,744,073,709,551,616 bytes - over 18 quintillion bytes or 16 EB (exabytes). However, it is worth noting that modern client operating systems Windows 7 x64, for objective reasons, support a maximum address space of 16 TB (2 44).

At the same time, volumes of 4 GB and 16 TB, depending on the system, are allocated to each running application! That is, any running program receives its own address space, which does not overlap with others.

The influence of RAM volume on system speed

But what happens when the entries in the address space begin to exceed the actual amount of physical memory? In this case, part of the temporarily unused data is transferred from RAM to the hard drive in the so-called swap file or "swap". If programs need this data again, the system, upon request, will return it back from the disk to RAM.

If your computer has a small amount of RAM installed, then the OS may often have to move data from RAM to the page file and back, as a result of which the load on the hard drive greatly increases, which in turn leads to a slowdown of the entire system. If several applications are launched at once, it may turn out that the system begins to spend all its time exchanging information between memory and disk, instead of executing programs. Visually, at this moment, the system “freezes”, that is, it stops responding to user commands.

The larger the actual amount of RAM, the less often the hard drive is accessed, and as a result, the overall performance of the computer increases. That is why increasing the size of RAM almost always has a positive effect on the speed of the system, and taking into account current memory prices, many users can easily install 8, 16 or even 32 GB of RAM. A large amount of memory is especially beneficial when working with graphic applications (including modern 3D games) and video editing programs.

It is worth knowing that different versions of the 64-bit Windows operating system may support different maximum amounts of RAM. And if users of older editions of Vista or 7 (Professional, Enterprise, Ultimate), supporting up to 192 GB of memory, have nothing to worry about, since such a volume is practically unattainable on home computers, then those who have the Home Basic and Home Premium versions installed something to think about. The capabilities of these editions are greatly reduced, and if Premium supports up to 16 GB of RAM, then Basic only 8 GB. The maximum available amount of RAM supported by the outdated Windows XP (64-bit version) is 16 GB.

Why 32-bit systemWindowsdoes not see 4 GB of RAM

Surely, many users want to take advantage of falling memory prices and increase its volume in their own computers. This procedure is simple - you can remove the old strips from the system board and insert new ones in a matter of minutes without any special tools. Next, we turn on the computer, quietly rejoice when, when loading, the self-test program displays the new amount of installed RAM (although there may be problems here, but more on that below). Then, we wait for Windows to load, go to the computer properties and... we see that in the “Installed memory” section there is a figure of more than three gigabytes, instead of, for example, the actually installed four. So what happened and can it be fixed?

As we already know, theoretically, up to 4 gigabytes of RAM (2 32) are available to a 32-bit system without any additional tricks, but Windows cannot use all of this volume, since part of it is allocated for computer devices.

Now, it's time to make a short excursion into history. The first desktop PCs, released in the early 1980s, had their physical memory address space divided into two parts at a ratio of five to three. The first part was allocated for random access memory (RAM), and the second was intended to accommodate the self-test program (POST), the basic input/output system (BIOS) and device memory. At the same time, that part of the address space that was allocated for devices could not be simultaneously used for the computer’s RAM.

Everything changed when Intel launched the 80386 processor in 1985. Then two decisions were made at once to change the distribution of physical memory in computers based on the new chips. The distribution of addresses in the first megabyte of memory was left unchanged for compatibility with older software and previous computer models. For computer devices that require memory use, a fourth gigabyte was now allocated. All remaining space was allocated for RAM.

Perhaps today this decision may not seem entirely correct to many, but at that time several gigabytes of RAM seemed simply fantastic! And hardly anyone imagined that the architecture itself and this order of address distribution would survive for so many years. But to this day, in all modern computers, RAM begins to occupy addresses starting from zero, and equipment - starting from the 4 GB mark in the opposite direction.

Now let's take a more clear look at how memory is distributed from the moment the computer starts booting. It is important to remember here that all programs and computer devices do not work with physical memory directly, but with an address space, the size of which does not depend in any way on the actual amount of installed RAM. That is, if you remove from the computer all the RAM installed in it, the size of the address space will not change one bit. Let us remember that for 32-bit systems it is equal to 4 GB.

Immediately after turning on the machine, a special program called BIOS begins accessing installed devices. Its task is to first collect information about which address ranges a particular device can use, and then distribute memory so that they do not interfere with each other during operation. After the necessary virtual addresses for the equipment become reserved in the address space (from the fourth gigabyte from top to bottom), the loading of the operating system begins.

As we said earlier, address space is allocated for the installed RAM from bottom to top - from zero onwards. Thus, after the system boots, the physical memory is “projected” onto the address space (from 0 to 2 GB) and Windows, without seeing any conflicts with the addresses reserved for devices, shows you the entire installed amount of RAM.

Thus, as long as the amount of RAM does not exceed two or three gigabytes, in most cases no problems arise, but as soon as this limit is exceeded, conflicts may arise. In the fourth gigabyte, it is quite likely that a situation will arise where both a RAM cell and a memory cell of a device, for example a video card, will claim the same address. If RAM data is written there, this will lead to distortion of the image on the screen, but if the picture on the monitor changes, the contents of the memory will be distorted. To prevent such conflicts, the operating system does not use for RAM that part of the physical memory that is allocated for device addresses.

After installing 4 GB of physical memory, theoretically its addresses will occupy all the available address space for 32-bit systems. But only those that fall into the area not reserved by devices will remain available. In our example, Windows will assume that the amount of installed RAM is 3.5 GB.

For quite a long time, no one was particularly worried about the problem of the fourth gigabyte. Very little space was used for the needs of the devices - tens of kilobytes for disk controllers and a network adapter, plus a few megabytes for video card memory. The volumes of RAM themselves were also small, which means that the intersection of addresses used by RAM and devices in the available address space was almost impossible.

The first alarm bell rang with the advent of AGP technology. At that time, video adapters with hardware acceleration of 3D graphics sharply increased their need to use their own RAM. And AGP made it possible for graphics adapters to use part of the computer’s memory for their own needs, in case of lack of their own. In this case, regardless of the type of adapter and the amount of its own memory, 256 MB of addresses are reserved, since this size is set not by the video card itself, but by the AGP bus equipment. With the advent of PCI-Express technology, the situation has not changed fundamentally and the size of the reserved space remains the same.

In addition to the increased appetite for graphics subsystems, the number of integrated devices on the motherboard has also constantly grown. To these were added high-speed network interfaces, multi-channel sound cards and various types of controllers. In addition, address space is allocated for devices not in the exact required quantity, but in blocks determined by their characteristics specified by the manufacturers. Because of this, free gaps appear between the addresses of different devices, which further increase the reserved memory space.

In some cases, although quite rare, the amount of address space allocated for devices can reach two gigabytes. In most cases, space from 500 MB to 1 GB is blocked.

TechnologyPAE

So is it still possible to see all 4 GB of memory in 32-bit Windows? Yes, if you have a server OS installed, such as Windows Server 2003 or Server 2008.

In the mid-90s, a technology was developed to expand the available amount of RAM, called PAE (Physical Address Extension). It was first implemented in Intel Pentium Pro processors, as a result of which they were able to use not a 32, but a 36-bit address bus, which theoretically made it possible to use a maximum of not 4, but 64 GB of RAM.

But what is most remarkable is that some features of the use of this technology in memory controllers provide the opportunity not only to use it for its intended purpose, but also to transfer some memory areas to other addresses. Thus, it becomes possible to move to an area above 4 GB, for example, to the fifth gigabyte of address space, that part of the RAM that was blocked due to the possibility of conflicts with devices, after which it becomes available again. True, for this two conditions must be met.

First, the processor must be installed on a motherboard equipped with a special memory manager that supports physical address expansion. As a rule, in the BIOS Setup firmware (BIOS), which runs immediately after turning on the computer, there is a special setting that prohibits or allows redirection. In different models of motherboards, its name may be different, for example: Memory Remap, 64-bit OS, Memory Hole and others. The exact name of this option can be found in the manual of your specific motherboard. By the way, older motherboards may not support address expansion mode at all (this can also be found out from the instructions).

Second, PAE mode must be enabled in the operating system. So in server systems it is enabled by default. Therefore, if you have a 32-bit Windows of this type installed and a computer that is not too old (there are no above-mentioned hardware restrictions), then thanks to the use of PAE technology, all 4 GB of RAM will be available.

It is quite logical that this technology could be used in client systems and is used, but with some restrictions.

Initially, in the first version of Windows XP, this mode was disabled, since in 2001 the average amount of RAM in personal computers was 128 - 256 MB, and there was no need to enable it. Perhaps the state of affairs would have remained this way for quite some time, but in 2003, Microsoft began developing a second patch package for XP, designed to significantly reduce the number of vulnerabilities in the system. One of the innovations brought by the second service pack was the use of hardware and software technologies that prevent the execution of malicious code by additionally checking the contents of memory. At the hardware level, this check is performed by the processor. At the same time, at Intel this function is called Execute Disable bit, and at AMD it is called No-execute page-protection.

However, for such hardware protection to become possible, the processor must be switched to PAE mode. That is why, starting with Windows XP SP2, this mode, if there is a suitable processor, is turned on automatically. But the most important thing is that in 32-bit Windows XP with service packs SP2 and SP3, as well as the subsequent Windows Vista and Windows 7, physical address extension is only partially implemented. These systems do not support 36-bit memory addressing and PAE mode is enabled, does not add a single byte of address space at their disposal, which makes it impossible to transfer locked RAM addresses to the upper sections. The reason for this implementation is to ensure compatibility with device drivers.

As we remember, the operating system and all programs use virtual address spaces and, accordingly, virtual addresses, which are subsequently converted into physical ones. This procedure occurs in two stages when PAE mode is turned off and in three stages when physical address extension is turned on. Drivers, unlike conventional programs, work directly with real addresses and to work correctly in PAE mode they must understand the complicated procedure of address translation. After all, the 32-bit address generated by the driver may change after the additional (third) stage of translation, and in order for the command it issues to achieve its goal, this must be taken into account.

The developers of drivers intended for server systems took this into account, but drivers for client Windows installed on ordinary home PCs were in many cases written without taking into account the algorithm for working with PAE enabled. After all, it was simpler - less time was spent on programming and testing, and the driver itself took up less space. Moreover, by that time, before the release of Windows XP SP2, the PAE mode was not used in desktop systems, and the equipment that was produced for “personal devices” was in many cases not intended for servers (for example, sound cards). So there was no pressing need to complicate the drivers and manufacturers did not have to release server versions of them.

It was with these unadapted drivers that serious problems arose in Windows with the second update package. Despite the fact that the total number of drivers that caused crashes or system crashes was not that large, the number of devices using them was in the millions. As a result, a huge number of users, after installing the second service pack, could encounter troubles and subsequently refuse to use it. So Microsoft had to make a compromise.

To ensure compatibility with incorrectly written drivers, it was decided to cut off the PAE functionality in Windows XP SP2. This was expressed in the fact that at the third stage of address translation, the same addresses that were submitted to the input were transmitted to the output. Thus, no expansion of the address space occurred, and the system continued to operate with the same four gigabytes.

As mentioned above, this truncated PAE mode is inherited by all modern 32-bit systems, including Windows 7 and Windows 8. But if you install the original Windows XP or XP SP1 on your computer for the sake of experiment and enable PAE mode (it is disabled by default there) ), you will see with your own eyes that the system will have access to all 4 GB of RAM.

RAM and 64-bit systemsWindows

It would seem that 64-bit systems should not have any problems with installing large amounts of memory. How much RAM is installed, that’s how much the operating system will see. And yet there are pitfalls here.

Despite the fact that 64-bit Windows can use address space and RAM, the volume of which far exceeds four gigabytes, the rule for placing device addresses here is exactly the same as in 32-bit systems, that is, devices occupy cells in the fourth gig from top to bottom. Preserving this principle again ensures the normal operation of any equipment intended for ordinary PCs, which should work equally well in both a 32-bit system and a 64-bit one.

It turns out that all the restrictions imposed on physical memory in a 32-bit system must remain in a 64-bit system, which means that the visible amount of RAM will again be incomplete if your motherboard does not support redirection or it is disabled in the settings. Of course, such motherboards are no longer produced, but are still used in many computers.

Another “surprise” can await you if the maximum supported amount of memory is installed in the motherboard. For example, the recently popular Intel G41 chipset for budget solutions allows you to install up to 8 GB of RAM. As a rule, in this case, 33 address lines are routed on the motherboard (2 33 = 8,589,934,592 bytes = 8 GB). From the manufacturer's point of view, this is quite understandable - why make a bus of a higher capacity if the system logic set still does not support large amounts of memory? But because of this, even if the memory controller can transfer the blocked section of RAM to the ninth gigabyte, it will not be able to do this, since this will require a 34-bit bus, and not 33, as in our case. As a result, only seven and a little gigabytes of RAM will be available to the user. The same applies to boards supporting 16 and 32 GB.

In some cases, even with redirection working on a 64-bit system, several tens or hundreds of megabytes may still be blocked by the system for hardware. The reason for this may be the technological features of the motherboard, which in any situation will reserve some amount of memory, for example, for the needs of the built-in video adapter or RAID controller.

Conclusion

In conclusion, let's draw some fundamental conclusions based on all of the above.

Although 32-bit Windows systems can theoretically use up to 4 GB of RAM, some of it is always reserved for the needs of the devices, after which usually no more than 3-3.5 GB is available.

However, this problem has been resolved in 32-bit server OSes. Thanks to the use of Physical Address Extension (PAE) technology, the entire maximum installed amount of RAM (4 GB) can be visible in the system.

In 32-bit client versions of Windows, the PAE mode was cut down to ensure compatibility with device drivers, which is why in Windows XP SP2/SP3, Windows Vista, Windows 7, as well as Windows 8, it is impossible to see all the maximum allowable four gigabytes of RAM and this cannot be corrected.

Thus, if you are going to install more than three gigabytes of RAM into your computer, then you need to use 64-bit versions of operating systems that allow you to see up to 192 GB of RAM and have an uncut PAE mode. Otherwise, the rest of the memory will not be available for use.

It should also be remembered that for PAE to work, either the processor or motherboard must have a special memory controller that supports physical address extension technology.

(RAM, random access memory) is one of the most important components of a computer. It is she who decides whether your PC can handle a new game or whether it is better to immediately abandon this crazy idea. Like every computer component, RAM has its own classification and parameters. We will now try to understand its types and types.

What is RAM

Essentially, RAM is an “intermediary” between the hard drive and the processor. To ensure performance, those processes and tasks that the CPU needs to process at the moment are put into RAM. This is exactly what RAM does. The maximum RAM that can be installed on a computer will cope with these tasks many times faster.

The OP has its own characteristics. Bus frequency, volume, power consumption and much more. We will discuss all these parameters below. For now, let's move on to the types of RAM.

Types of RAM

Since time immemorial, there were such types of RAM as SIMM and DIMM. There is no point in dwelling on them now, since they have not been produced for a long time, and it has become impossible to find them. Let's start right away with DDR. The very first DDR memory was released back in 2001. It could not boast of high productivity and volume. The maximum operating frequency of the first DDR was 133 MHz. The result was not very “fast” RAM. The maximum RAM at that time was about 2 GB per stick.

With the development of technology, a new type of “RAM” has appeared. They called it DDR2. The main difference from conventional DDR was the operating frequency. Now it was 1066 MHz. A very nice performance boost. And a couple of years later, DDR3 was released - the most popular type of RAM at present. 2400 MHz is exactly the maximum frequency of RAM. There was no processor capable of supporting such frequencies at that time. Therefore, Intel and AMD had to urgently release something capable of working with such RAM.

Maximum volume

The amount of RAM plays an important role in its performance. The higher the volume of the “bar”, the more information it can accommodate. Nowadays the size of RAM is measured in gigabytes. It plays a decisive role in whether the computer can handle powerful software packages and games. But there are volume limitations on the part of the system. As an example, let's take the OS from Microsoft Windows 7. The maximum RAM that this system can work with should be 16 GB and no more. Windows 10, for example, is capable of working correctly with 128 GB of RAM. It is also worth noting that 32-bit OSes are not capable of interacting with more than 3 GB of RAM. If your RAM is 4 GB or more, then a 64-bit OS is definitely recommended for you.

Nowadays, the optimal amount of RAM for an average computer can be called 8-16 GB. However, if you need a powerful gaming machine, then you can’t do without 32 GB of RAM. If you decide to do video editing, then you need a very large RAM. The maximum RAM should be from 32 to 128 GB. Please note that this is quite an expensive pleasure.

As for laptops, it is not possible to increase the amount of RAM indefinitely. Typically, laptops and netbooks are equipped with only two slots for RAM. Therefore, increasing the RAM is quite difficult for them. In many ways, the maximum volume depends on the motherboard and processor used to assemble the laptop. Typically, motherboards are designed for 8-16 GB of RAM and there is no way to increase this limit.

RAM frequency

DDR3 RAM modules are capable of operating at frequencies of 1333-2100 MHz. To choose the best option for your computer, you need to know what frequencies are supported by the motherboard and processor. Most motherboards easily operate at frequencies of 1333-1600 MHz. If you choose a frequency of 2100 MHz, the performance increase will not be particularly noticeable given the extremely high price of the RAM and the motherboard that supports these frequencies. This is an option for really crazy gamers.

Among inexperienced users, the question often arises: “how to find out the maximum RAM.” There is an excellent program called AIDA 64. It will provide complete information about the computer's operating system. There will be a maximum frequency, volume, and type. The program provides equally comprehensive information about other computer components. Definitely, everyone should have such a product. Then many questions will disappear by themselves.

Conclusion

Now we know what RAM is, maximum RAM and its frequency. You can safely choose the OP for your computer yourself. Basic knowledge is enough to equip your PC with the most advanced RAM.