I’m having this weird issue where Windows XP only recognizes my 1gb of RAM some of the time. Other times, I will boot up, and it will only notice 256mb or 512mb of “physical memory” (according to System Information). It’s very strange. Any suggestions?
Remove and reseat each memory module.
do you mean physically remove the memory from the motherboard? I already did that-- twice. The modules are properly fitted into their slots (it’s a laptop, and the modules can’t really be loosely put in), but yet the problem persists! :mad:
Test the memory:
[ul]
[li]Download the ISO file of Memtest86 from here[/li][li]Use your CD writing program to turn the ISO file into a CD (if you don’t have a program that does this, try this one)[/li][li]Boot your computer with the CD in the drive (you might need to press something or possibly tweak the BIOS settings to make it boot the CD)[/li][/ul]
It can only be a hardware issue. Were any hardware changes made recently?
No, I changed nothing relating to hardware.
I have a pc downstairs with 2 sticks of 512MB. Sometimes when it powers up it will register 816MB, other times 1036MB (or whatever). When i tested 1 at a time, one of the sticks would sometimes time up short. So it might just be a silly stick but it works so i kept it. I’d say you have a silly stick also.
Thanks. What kind of results should I get when I do this?
Ideally, none at all. It should look like one of the screenshots here.
If it detects a problem, the screen will (IIRC) turn red and start to fill up with the addresses of problem areas. In most situations involving bad ram it will detect problems almost instantly, but I’ve seen at least one case where it had to be run overnight for a problem to show up.
Here’s a link that seems pretty basic and helpful.
Have you tried cleaning the modules? Just run down the connector on both sides with an eraser.
What Nanoda said.
If it reports problems in the same area of RAM on each scan, make a note of the addresses, then swap the memory modules around - if it then happens in a different area, it indicates a faulty module - if it happens in the same area, it’s something wrong with the motherboard (could be as simple as the physical connectors not working properly, or it could be a fault with one of the controller components.
I know you said you tried reseating them, but something you said there (“the modules can’t really be loosely put in”) made me wonder if you really did reinsert them properly. Connector designs vary from model to model and have changed a bit over time, but I installed some RAM in a laptop recently and managed to get it wrong the first time - it was to be inserted on the slant (and there was a bit of resistance, then it went home with a sort of mushy click), then pressed down flat to enable the spring clips to hold it steady.
In my case, it was possible to insert them loosely, it just didn’t seem like it - I was able to insert the module without pushing it fully into the connector - and it caused weirdly intermittent memory problems.
I will look again, but I found that I could only get the spring clips to come up if I inserted the modules all the way in.
Also, how is it that sometimes it will register 256mb when all I have is two 512mb memory modules?
Erk. That does sound like the memory controller on the motherboard might be on the way out.
One more (remote) possibility is that the CMOS settings for the memory refresh rate (or something like that) are set wrong, causing the modules to be right on the edge of their range of functionality - these settings can get inadvertently set wrong if you have had occasion to reset the CMOS settings to their defaults, either deliberately or through removing or replacing the CMOS battery.
That’s a good point.
Your BIOS probably has a “Reset to Defaults” option that should provide lowest-common-denominator settings if that’s the issue.
You might also try updating your BIOS, in case you have an early, flaky version that doesn’t know about newer module types and gets things wrong often.