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Whaaaaa? RAM not being used.

post #1 of 34
11/15/11 at 5:12am
Thread Starter 
Ok, this may have going on awhile, but I'm just now noticing. I have 6GB of RAM in my system and only 4 is being used. I'm using Win 7 64-bit. I know that previously the RAM did register all 6 as usable and "was" used. I'm fine tuning for Skyrim and noticed this just now.

My first thought was that perhaps the I have a bad memory piece, but that would crash the system not just show as unusable, right? Could one of the memory slots been turned off some how on the mobo??

Please help.
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post #2 of 34
11/15/11 at 5:49am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tomfoolery_79 View Post

Ok, this may have going on awhile, but I'm just now noticing. I have 6GB of RAM in my system and only 4 is being used. I'm using Win 7 64-bit. I know that previously the RAM did register all 6 as usable and "was" used. I'm fine tuning for Skyrim and noticed this just now.

My first thought was that perhaps the I have a bad memory piece, but that would crash the system not just show as unusable, right? Could one of the memory slots been turned off some how on the mobo??

Please help.

What you describe is possible though it sounds more like the memory is not seated, the memory is dead, or the memory slot itself is dead. Check your memory to make sure it is properly seated in the slot. If it looks right, use your motherboard's onboard diagnostics in the BIOS or via the boot command window.
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post #3 of 34
11/15/11 at 6:12am
Thread Starter 
Well, I left out an important piece of info. Windows 7 actually says:

"Installed memory (RAM): 6.00 GB (4.00 GB usable)"

If a dimm was bad or slot was dead I'd think it would say 4.00 GB installed (2.00 GB usable) would it not?

My computer is in a secure spot where it can't be bumped or hit, so it wiggling (unseating) doesn't seem plausible.
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post #4 of 34
11/15/11 at 7:03am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tomfoolery_79 View Post

Well, I left out an important piece of info. Windows 7 actually says:

"Installed memory (RAM): 6.00 GB (4.00 GB usable)"

If a dimm was bad or slot was dead I'd think it would say 4.00 GB installed (2.00 GB usable) would it not?

My computer is in a secure spot where it can't be bumped or hit, so it wiggling (unseating) doesn't seem plausible.

That's mighty strange for a 64-bit Windows 7 installation. Which readout or control panel does it say that in? Poke the Task Manager and look at the numbers under the Performance tab.
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post #5 of 34
11/15/11 at 8:23am
Thread Starter 
Under performance tab it says:
Hardware Reserved: 2050MB
In Use: 2284MB
Modified: 79MB
Standby: 1256MB
Free: 514MB

What I put in the previous post is what is listed under Control Panel --> System
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post #6 of 34
11/15/11 at 8:42am
From the first 10 mods for Skyrim... thing.

3. Large Address Aware patch
Like previous Bethesda games, Skyrim doesn’t use more than 2gb of RAM, regardless of how much you actually have. Using a large address aware patch will fix that, allowing Skyrim to make full use of your system’s abilities. Simply follow the tutorial here. It won’t automatically make your screenshots look as good as Dead End Thrills, but it’s a start.

Ugh. There was a link in there but I can't even get it to load at all. It's in the other Skyrim thread though if you wanna check it out.
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post #7 of 34
11/15/11 at 9:02am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Scott Simonian View Post

From the first 10 mods for Skyrim... thing.

3. Large Address Aware patch
Like previous Bethesda games, Skyrim doesn't use more than 2gb of RAM, regardless of how much you actually have. Using a large address aware patch will fix that, allowing Skyrim to make full use of your system's abilities. Simply follow the tutorial here. It won't automatically make your screenshots look as good as Dead End Thrills, but it's a start.

Ugh. There was a link in there but I can't even get it to load at all. It's in the other Skyrim thread though if you wanna check it out.

I'm actually already using that Scott, do you think somehow that "patch" is screwing things up?
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post #8 of 34
11/15/11 at 10:28am
I had that problem [or a similar one] where my new install of windows somehow used my previous memory limitation set in "msconfig", which i set because of problems with X-fi hardware.
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post #9 of 34
11/15/11 at 10:42am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tomfoolery_79 View Post

I'm actually already using that Scott, do you think somehow that "patch" is screwing things up?

Ah. I have no idea. This is supposed to be a brand new engine, yes? Don't know much about it tech-wise. How is the game running for you? If it runs fine, I wouldn't worry about it.
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post #10 of 34
11/15/11 at 12:36pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Scott Simonian View Post

Ah. I have no idea. This is supposed to be a brand new engine, yes? Don't know much about it tech-wise. How is the game running for you? If it runs fine, I wouldn't worry about it.

Yeah, to clarify...this problem isn't just when I'm running Skyrim, it's all the time. In game and out.
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post #11 of 34
11/15/11 at 1:58pm
Ooohhh. I must have glanced over the whole first sentence.

Well now that's different. Oh, goody! Computer diagnosing time.
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post #12 of 34
11/16/11 at 10:14am
You'll probably have to root around in your BIOS looking for some setting that's providing legacy compatibility by limiting the RAM to that which can be addressed using 32-bit addressing (4 GB). The name of the setting may not be obvious, but it's likely that somewhere the BIOS is enforcing this limit.
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post #13 of 34
11/16/11 at 11:14am
If it was a 32-bit issue I don't think it would say "4gb usable", because 32-bit actually only addresses something like 3.53gb.

I remember when I had 32-bit Win 7 installed with 4gb it said "3.53gb of 4.0gb usable" or something.

4 of 6 usable sounds like something is wrong with one of the memory slots. (Assuming you are using 3x2 that is).
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post #14 of 34
11/16/11 at 11:58am
Can you look at the msconfig settings to see if it's limiting the available memory? Here's a description. I know it was mentioned earlier, but that should show you what to look for.

*EDIT*
Actually, this sounds more like your problem. 6GB is an odd number. Does your mobo require installing DIMMs 2 at a time and you've done that? I guess 2 2GB + 2 512 would get you there, but it's strange. Or is it a triple channel system?
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post #15 of 34
11/16/11 at 2:52pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by ferrisg View Post

Can you look at the msconfig settings to see if it's limiting the available memory? Here's a description. I know it was mentioned earlier, but that should show you what to look for.

*EDIT*
Actually, this sounds more like your problem. 6GB is an odd number. Does your mobo require installing DIMMs 2 at a time and you've done that? I guess 2 2GB + 2 512 would get you there, but it's strange. Or is it a triple channel system?

Triple.

Also, BIOS is now showing 4096 installed memory...ugg.

Says: "Hardware Reserved 2050 MB: Memory that is reserved for use by the BIOS and some drivers for other peripherals" WTH!?!?
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post #16 of 34
11/16/11 at 3:36pm
Thread Starter 
Also: According to MSFT's website.

On a computer that is running Windows 7, the usable memory (RAM) may be less than the installed memory.

For example, a 32-bit version of Windows 7 may report that there is only 3.5 GB of usable system memory on a computer that has 4 GB of memory installed.

Or, a 64-bit version of Windows 7 may report that there is only 7.1 GB of usable system memory on a computer that has 8 GB of memory installed.

Note The amount of usable memory in the examples are not exact amounts. Usable memory is a calculated amount of the total physical memory minus "hardware reserved" memory.

To view the installed memory and the usable memory in Windows 7, follow these steps:

Click Start
Start button
, right-click Computer, and then click Properties.
View the Installed memory (RAM) value under System. For example, if it displays 4.00 GB (3.5 GB usable), this means that you have 3.5 GB of usable memory out of 4 GB of installed memory.

Back to the top
CAUSE
This is expected behavior on computers that are running Windows 7. The reduction in available system memory depends on the configuration of the following:

The devices that are installed in the computer and the memory that is reserved by those devices
The ability of the motherboard to handle memory
The System BIOS version and settings
The version of Windows 7 that is installed (For example, Windows 7 Starter Edition only supports 2 GB of installed memory.)
Other system settings

For example, if you have a video card that has 256 MB of on-board memory, that memory must be mapped within the first 4 GB of address space. If 4 GB of system memory is already installed, part of that address space must be reserved by the graphics memory mapping. Graphics memory mapping overwrites a part of the system memory. These conditions reduce the total amount of system memory that is available to the operating system.

For more information about how to determine how memory is used on your computer, see the "Physical Memory Allocation in Windows 7" topic in the "More Information" section.


This makes sense EXCEPT, it never showed this way before. I haven't changed any hardware configuration. I updated my video card drivers recently...
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post #17 of 34
11/16/11 at 4:14pm
What motherboard are you using? Is it a Gigabyte by any chance?
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post #18 of 34
11/16/11 at 6:00pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by MSmith83 View Post

What motherboard are you using? Is it a Gigabyte by any chance?

Yes.

X58-UD5
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post #19 of 34
11/16/11 at 6:11pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tomfoolery_79 View Post

Yes.

X58-UD5

Go to the "Advanced Memory Settings" part of the BIOS. If "Performance Enhance" is set to the default value of "Turbo," then try setting it to "Standard."
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post #20 of 34
11/17/11 at 4:50am
Your GPU is using up the RAM.
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post #21 of 34
11/17/11 at 4:54am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DeltaDeuce View Post

Your GPU is using up the RAM.

I can buy this except, I've been using this exact setup for over a year now and never noticed this before. Could it be the Nvidia drivers? If so, I have 1GB on each video card (I have SLI) and therefore the video cards are taking up 2GB of system RAM too?? So they are taking up a total of 4GB? 2 on card, 2 of the system?

Thanks.
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post #22 of 34
11/17/11 at 5:57am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by MSmith83 View Post

Go to the "Advanced Memory Settings" part of the BIOS. If "Performance Enhance" is set to the default value of "Turbo," then try setting it to "Standard."


I knew another Smith would come through! YOU FIXED IT!!

THANKS!!

On a side note...not sure how the Turbo got turned on...
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post #23 of 34
11/17/11 at 6:25am
No. Each card is using 1GB.
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post #24 of 34
11/17/11 at 7:46am
Quote:
Originally Posted by tomfoolery_79 View Post

I knew another Smith would come through! YOU FIXED IT!!

THANKS!!

On a side note...not sure how the Turbo got turned on...

Turbo mode is on by default, which is bad since it is susceptible to making erratic changes to memory settings that can actually decrease performance.
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post #25 of 34
11/22/11 at 9:44am
Thread Starter 
Uggg! It came back! I didn't tamper with anything I swear. I wonder if it's got something to do with Skyrim. But it's 2GB short even when not in the game. Punks!
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post #26 of 34
11/22/11 at 9:52am
Dan told me that the very latest patch made it so even those using the "fix" are still limited to 2gigs. : /
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post #27 of 34
11/22/11 at 10:49am
Thread Starter 
Yes, but to my knowledge I wasn't using the fix...at least I disabled it before the patch when I was first having problems.

I did go into the BIOS and actually changed it back to "TURBO" and that fixed it...go figure.
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post #28 of 34
11/22/11 at 1:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by tomfoolery_79 View Post

Yes, but to my knowledge I wasn't using the fix...at least I disabled it before the patch when I was first having problems.

I did go into the BIOS and actually changed it back to "TURBO" and that fixed it...go figure.

That's weird. I doubt a game would be the cause of such behavior. It is more likely just the BIOS being finicky with the particular RAM modules you're using.
Motherboards can be odd at times. I had an ASUS P5E motherboard that would sometimes drop my CPU's overclock to stock speed out of nowhere after months of perfect stability.

If you are comfortable with tweaking, it is worth checking the RAM timings and see if they precisely match what the modules are officially rated for.
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post #29 of 34
11/30/11 at 7:51pm
Thread Starter 
and again. I just have to keep rebooting and changing that setting MSmith suggested...frustrating.
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post #30 of 34
12/2/12 at 11:38am
Thread Starter 
Update: (Sad update) ---


Bought more RAM on Black Friday sale...now I have 18GB. Windows started fine but showed only 14GB usable RAM...I went into BIOS and changed memory setting from "standard" to "turbo" (see previous posts)...rebooted and now usable RAM showed 12GB (instead of the installed 18GB)!!!! Something is NOT right, so I check my version of the BIOS and it's the original BIOS from early 2010, I used Gigabytes @BIOS tool to update the BIOS...message came up saying "update successful". I rebooted the machine per the prompt to do so and....wait for it....it won't boot...won't even post. What do I do now?
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