Tech Help!!!

[kev lar]

Hi, everyone iam new to the site so hope iam doing this right. I have a question about my computer. I have a Asus A8N-VM CSM motherboard and 2gb ram until recentley I had a Nvidia 7800gtx card, however I have just put a Asus EN7960GX2 card. Its the one that has two cards together but fits into one PCI E slot. So here is the thing, I have carried out a system check and in each memory dimm slot it reads I have 1gb in each slot, however the combined memory is only 1.5gb. This puzzled me some what so I placed 4gb in the board just to check and the system check still reads 1.5gb. I have checked the spec of the motherboard and it can take up to 4gb if needed so I have come to a blank?? Any ideas would gratefully received. Great site by the way its already in my favs

[MadKad]

Hi and welcome

are you getting this reading from your BIOS or your OS?

[kev lar]

Hi MadKad, Thanks for your reply, The reading is from my OS & also a Belarc advisor system check, Both read the same in the total memory, Cheers

[MadKad]

Have you checked your BIOS to see what that reads?

also there might be a setting in there to change your RAM size

[kev lar]

Thanks MAD, I have checked my BIOS and going into the system tab it reads its running just under 2gb. So not sue what to do next???

[Whatcha]

Has you tried updateing the bios maybe a known issue with it, could also be an issue of slot placing maybe that they need to be set in certain pairs, Possible mobo jumper setting or bios bus settings

[Whatcha]

| | | |
1 2 3 4

1/2 blue, 3/4 black

What cofiguration are you installed the dimms in, and also are they matched or unmatched pair.

[kev lar]

Hi, I have them in slots 1&3 and they are a matched pair I have also tried different combo's and none seem to work??? This combo is the highest reading I can get all others will just read 1Gb

[Whatcha]

Okay strange but this is what i have found on the asus website,
If you installed total 4GB memory, the system will detect less than 4GB of total memory because of address space allocation for other critical functions, such as:

- System BIOS (including motherboard, add-on cards, etc..)
- Motherboards resources
- Memory mapped I/O
- configuration for AGP/PCI-Ex/PCI
- Other memory allocations for PCI devices

Different onboard devices and different add-on cards (devices) will result of different total memory size.
e.g. more PCI cards installed will require more memory resources, resulting of less memory free for other uses.

On a SLI system, since PCI-Ex graphic cards will occupy around 256MB, another 256MB will be occupied after you install a 2nd PCI-Ex graphic card. Hence, 2.75GB memory left only if two SLI cards installed on A8N-SLI Premium while 3.0GB memory left with one graphic card without other add-on devices.

This limitation applies to most chipsets & Windows XP 32-bit version operating system.

If you install Windows XP 32-bit version operating system, we recommend that you install less than 3GB of total memory. If more than 3GB memory is required for your system, then below two conditions must be met:
1. The memory controller which supports memory swap functionality is used. The latest chipsets like Intel 975X, 955X, Nvidia NF4 SLI Intel Edition, Nvidia NF4 SLI X16, and AMD K8 CPU architecture can support the memory swap function.
2. Windows XP Pro X64 Ed. (64-bit) or other OS which can address more than 4GB memory.

So sounds like it could just be a limitation, though it strange how the 4gb shows just 1.5 as i would expect it to show 3.5, What is showing in windows

[MadKad]

have you got the latest version of your BIOS?
also what is the BIOS you have?