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16 GB Physical RAM and Windows says 3.22 GB Usable

Running Windows 7 Professional SP-1, I have 16 GB installed RAM.  Under System Properties, Windows detects 16 GB installed memory, but reports only 3.22 GB is usable.  Is there a way to make the rest of the RAM usable?
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Joe Winograd
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tailoreddigital
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My guess is the system bios needs an update.    I had this same issue a couple years back, updated and all was recognized after that.
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Joe Winograd
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Oh, if you don't know how to tell whether you have a 32-bit or 64-bit OS, there are numerous ways. One is to right-click on Computer on the desktop and select Properties. You will see an info screen that has a System section like this:

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ddantes
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Thanks to both Experts.  This is a 32-bit O.S.   Windows is recognizing the full 16 GB, but apparently only using 3.22 GB.   I am using RamDisk Plus (by SuperSpeed), and so I have a ram disk with a 10 GB paging file and also the temp and Temporary Internet File directories on that drive.
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Joe Winograd
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That's the problem. A 32-bit OS can utilize at most 4GB (usually less due to memory being used for graphics). You must install the 64-bit OS to use beyond 4GB. With 64-bit W7 Pro, you will be able to utilize all 16GB. Regards, Joe