Only 3GB of RAM is Usable Out of 4GB (64-Bit Windows 8)

robc133

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Hi

I have been refurbishing an old computer lately and have almost finished it

But I have hit a problem with the RAM

I can only use 3GB out of the 4GB I have installed

The computer is manufactured by HP though the motherboard was made by ASUS

This is the motherboard model - ASUS PTGD1-LA

HP have a different name for it - Puffer UL8E

The processor I have is an Intel Pentium 4 640 which is a 64 bit processor

And like I said in the title I have 64 bit windows 8 installed

Can someone please explain to me why it's only picking up 3.12 GB of RAM

Computers Specs
Processor:
Intel Pentium 4 640 (3.2 GHz)
RAM: 4GB DDR1 RAM (4X1) 400MHZ
HDD:
Seagate barracuda 7200.7 (200GB 7200RPM)
GPU:
ATI Radeon HD 5450 (Low Profile Bracket) PCI-E
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Core X64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP PAVILION G6 2253SA
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 3210M 2.5GHz - 3.1GHz
    Motherboard
    183F (U3E1)
    Memory
    8GB DDR3 1600MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000
    Sound Card
    IDT Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6 Inch LED Display
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    1TB Seagate Solid State Hybrid Drive
    Mouse
    Synaptics Touch Pad
    Internet Speed
    30MB DL/2MB UL
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Is the 3.12 the "useable" RAM? If that is the case that is normal. Whether 32 bit or 64 bit OS, you will have something less than the 4GB of RAM useable as some is reserved for system, video, etc. My old system, which was Win 7 64 bit, had 4GB of RAM (later upgraded) and it had 3.24 GB of RAM available out of the 4GB (actually the same as when I had Vista 32 bit installed).
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Win 10
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Built
    CPU
    i7 6700K
    Motherboard
    ASUS ROG Maximus VIII Hero
    Memory
    16 Gb G Skill TridentZ DDR4 3400
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel (i7 CPU)
    Sound Card
    RealTek Integrated
    Monitor(s) Displays
    27" Dell SE2717HR
    Screen Resolution
    1920X1080
    Hard Drives
    500GB Samsung 850 SSD, 3TB for backups
    PSU
    EVGA Supernova 750 G2
    Case
    BeQuiet Silent Base 600
    Cooling
    Deepcool Captain 120EX
    Keyboard
    Microsoft Wireless
    Mouse
    Logitech wireless
    Internet Speed
    Cable - 100MB Downlink
    Browser
    Edge/Firefox
    Antivirus
    Microsoft
    Other Info
    Sonar Platinum 64 bit recording studio software with MOTU 896Mk3 Hybrid recording interface unit.
Well i'm not 100% sure if this is wrong but I've got 2 laptops here one with 4GB of RAM and the other with 6GB of RAM and they are able to utilize all there ram and they both run on 64 bit OS so I can't understand why my PC can only use 3.12GB out of 4GB
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Core X64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP PAVILION G6 2253SA
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 3210M 2.5GHz - 3.1GHz
    Motherboard
    183F (U3E1)
    Memory
    8GB DDR3 1600MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000
    Sound Card
    IDT Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6 Inch LED Display
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    1TB Seagate Solid State Hybrid Drive
    Mouse
    Synaptics Touch Pad
    Internet Speed
    30MB DL/2MB UL
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
It seems you hit some major hardware address space reservation.

The model is pretty old and was initially not designed for 64bit (let alone tested).

The fact that it's 64bit capable is a great thing.

What do other OSes say about this?
Does for instance Win7 x64 report another RAM size... or try a Linux Live CD in 64bit and see if you see different amount.
Otherwise it's normal and you'll have to live with it, at least what concerns Win8.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy DV6 7250
    CPU
    Intel i7-3630QM
    Motherboard
    HP, Intel HM77 Express Chipset
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD4000 + Nvidia Geforce 630M
    Sound Card
    IDT HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6' built-in + Samsung S22D300 + 17.3' LG Phillips
    Screen Resolution
    multiple resolutions
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 250GB + Hitachi HDD 750GB
    PSU
    120W adapter
    Case
    small
    Cooling
    laptop cooling pad
    Keyboard
    Backlit built-in + big one in USB
    Mouse
    SteelSeries Sensei
    Internet Speed
    slow and steady
    Browser
    Chromium, Pale Moon, Firefox Developer Edition
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    That's basically it.
One of my HP laptops can have up to 16GB RAM installed.
It runs with 8GB from factory and a 64bit Win8 installed.

I see 7.8GB usable from 8GB and this is the first one in x64 above 4GB I personally see to suffer from this.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 10 x64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP Envy DV6 7250
    CPU
    Intel i7-3630QM
    Motherboard
    HP, Intel HM77 Express Chipset
    Memory
    16GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD4000 + Nvidia Geforce 630M
    Sound Card
    IDT HD Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6' built-in + Samsung S22D300 + 17.3' LG Phillips
    Screen Resolution
    multiple resolutions
    Hard Drives
    Samsung SSD 250GB + Hitachi HDD 750GB
    PSU
    120W adapter
    Case
    small
    Cooling
    laptop cooling pad
    Keyboard
    Backlit built-in + big one in USB
    Mouse
    SteelSeries Sensei
    Internet Speed
    slow and steady
    Browser
    Chromium, Pale Moon, Firefox Developer Edition
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
    Other Info
    That's basically it.
This is why I am now buying a new pc after upgrading the old one to 8 64bit.

Although it runs 8 pretty darn good I still have only 2.95gb available which, I think is the same as I would have had in 32bit.

Apparently it is because my old motherboard is not capable of remapping the memory to best advantage.

That's what I been told anyway.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Microsoft Windows 8 Pro with Media Center 64-bit
    System Manufacturer/Model
    homebrew
    CPU
    intel i3 3220
    Motherboard
    asus P8H61-MX USB3
    Memory
    8gb ddr3
    Graphics Card(s)
    on board
    Sound Card
    on board
    Screen Resolution
    1440 x 900
    Hard Drives
    500gb
Ahh i see. I have tried Windows 7 64 bit and i only get 3.2GB of ram out of 4GB. I will need to try a live cd of Ubuntu to see if that picks up any extra RAM and then ill reinstall Windows 7 or 8 (Not decided yet) to see if it will make a difference

Thanks for your help guys
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Core X64
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    HP PAVILION G6 2253SA
    CPU
    Intel Core i5 3210M 2.5GHz - 3.1GHz
    Motherboard
    183F (U3E1)
    Memory
    8GB DDR3 1600MHz
    Graphics Card(s)
    Intel HD 4000
    Sound Card
    IDT Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    15.6 Inch LED Display
    Screen Resolution
    1366x768
    Hard Drives
    1TB Seagate Solid State Hybrid Drive
    Mouse
    Synaptics Touch Pad
    Internet Speed
    30MB DL/2MB UL
    Browser
    Internet Explorer 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
What does Control Panel > System, 'Installed memory (RAM)' say?

Then check Resource Monitor, >Start Page, type 'resmon' press 'Enter', Memory tab.
The bar graph shows what's being used and the list below is a re-cap.
I have 8GB and it says:



Available6655 MB
Cached2654 MB
Total8152 MB
Installed8192 MB
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 Pro x64/ Windows 7 Ult x64
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    76~2.0
    CPU
    Intel Core i5-3570K 4.6GHz
    Motherboard
    GIGABYTE GA-Z77X UD3H f18
    Memory
    8GB (2X4GB) DDR3 1600 CORSAIR Vengeance CL8 1.5v
    Graphics Card(s)
    Sapphire HD 7770 Vapor-X 1GB DDR5
    Sound Card
    Onboard VIA VT2021
    Monitor(s) Displays
    22" LCD Dell SP2208WFP
    Screen Resolution
    1680x1050
    Hard Drives
    Samaung 840Pro 128GB, Seagate 500GB SATA2 7200rpm 32mb, Seagate 1TB SATA2 7200rpm 32mb,
    PSU
    Corsair HX650W
    Case
    Cooler Master Storm Scout
    Cooling
    Corsair H80 w/Noctua NF P12 12cm fan, case fans 2X14cm
    Keyboard
    Logitech Wave
    Mouse
    CM Sentinel
    Internet Speed
    Abysmal
    Browser
    Opera Next
    Other Info
    Dell Venue 8Pro: Baytrail Z3740D, 2GB Ram, 64GB HDD, 8" IPS Display 1280 x 800, Active Stylus.
    Haswell laptop: HP Envy 17t-j, i7-4700MQ, GeForce 740M 2GB DDR3, 17.3" Full HD 1920x1080, 16GB RAM, Samsung 840 Pro 128GB, 1TB Hitachi 7200 HDD,
    Desktop: eSATA ports,
    External eSATA Seagate 500GB SATA2 7200rpm,
Old thread but someone else may need this info:

I had the same problem, and unchecked the max memory box in msconfig which returned the full 4gb to windows.


Start, run, msconfig, boot, advanced options, uncheck maximum memory
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    win 7 8 10
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