How can I make my new computer see all 8gigs of ram

Just purchased a great buy from tiger direct. It was a barebones, so it came in pieces:

1. Motherboards
2. Video Cards
3. Memory (8gig)
4. DVR/DVD
5. Fans, etc.....

IT's up and running and I dont want to activate it until I know that it can use 8gig.

Please assist me in anyway you can.

BLACK THANOSAsked: 2012-12-22

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LVL 76

Alan HardistyConnect With a Mentor Co-OwnerCommented: 2012-12-22

What is the Exact Make / Model of Motherboard you bought?

LVL 4

brendonfeeleyConnect With a Mentor Commented: 2012-12-22

This can be a few things. MS article is pretty good on this topic:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/978610

A few things to try there. Hope that helps.

LVL 82

arnoldConnect With a Mentor Commented: 2012-12-22

Check your bios settings dealing with the built in graphics and their shared memory usage.
Also make sure it is not set to OS install mode.

LVL 25

Tony GiangrecoConnect With a Mentor Commented: 2012-12-22

Go into setup on your motherboard and check theamount of memory it sees. If it's not the full amount, Windows will never see it. You might have a ram chip problem or the chips are not inserted in the correct slots or they might need to be identical or different size.

LVL 25

Tony GiangrecoCommented: 2012-12-22

Video may be using some system ram also.

LVL 25

Tony GiangrecoCommented: 2012-12-22

Depending on your motherboard, your boot options might not be wrong. Check bios for memory remap. If remapped memory for video, then hardware could be reserving memory.

LVL 102

JohnBusiness Consultant (Owner)Commented: 2012-12-22

The picture above says this is Windows 7 64-bit which will recognize more than 4Gb of memory. I would also suggest checking the BIOS and then the memory chips to see if they are both good. .... Thinkpads_User

LVL 25

Tony GiangrecoCommented: 2012-12-22

what motherboard make and model do you have?

Same for the ram chips - brand, #, and how many?

LVL 82

arnoldCommented: 2012-12-22

Another thought as others referenced, the graphics cards might be using system memory versus have their own.
Adding to prior request, include as much detail on your hardware as possible.

BLACK THANOSAuthor Commented: 2012-12-22

Here are the specs gentlemen. Let me know what you think,

ComputerSpecs.pdf

LVL 102

JohnConnect With a Mentor Business Consultant (Owner)Commented: 2012-12-22

CPU-Z seems to say there is 2 chips.

Make sure both are good by interchanging them. Then see if you ca get a BIOS upgrade for the computer.

Also contact Tiger support and tell them only half the memory works.
.... Thinkpads_User

LVL 76

Alan HardistyCo-OwnerCommented: 2012-12-22

There have been about 10 BIOS upgrades since the version you have on the mainboard, so please get upgrading to the latest version:

http://uk.msi.com/product/mb/760GM-P23--FX-.html#/?div=BIOS

A lot of the updates provide improved memory compatibility.

Alan

LVL 25

Tony GiangrecoCommented: 2012-12-22

Looking at the specs you posted, I'd have to agree the the previous exprts:

1. Your Bios has many firmware upgrades waiting that may help memory compatibility
2. One of the memory chips may be bad
3. The 2nd memory slot may be bad
4. You may need a newer Chipset driver for memory compatilibility

I'd switch the ram chips and make sure you hear the locking tabs click down when inserting th ram. Retest it. If it does not work prooperly, contact Tiger support as mentioned above.

LVL 70

Gary CaseConnect With a Mentor RetiredCommented: 2012-12-22

Actually, the BIOS is only two versions behind -- you're running 17.10, which is the same as H.A., released 8-10-2012. The two later versions don't say anything in the release notes about memory stability issues; but it shouldn't hurt to do the upgrades.

The specifications for the board indicate it supports dual channel memory operation; but CPU-Z indicates it's running in single channel mode. Check the BIOS to see if you are forcing this mode. [Usually when this happens, it's because you don't have the memory modules in the right sockets; but with only two sockets that can't be the case here.]

Another thing to check: Have you installed all of the drivers for this system? ... in particular, the chipset driver. You indicated this came with a dedicated video card -- have you installed this or are you using the motherboard's Radeon 3000 graphics? ANY video card should have a WEI well above the 1.0 you're showing. If your Device Manager isn't "clean" be sure to install the drivers you need to make it that way.

BLACK THANOSAuthor Commented: 2012-12-22

I am convinced that it is the combination of a bios update and/or a dedicated video-card.The One I installed has a capacity beyond the internal video card, so everything now points to the bios. My client took his machine home working with only the capacity to use 4gigs, but I will still allocate the points now. I will start at the top of the list and go down , just to be fair, as there were a plethora of potential solutions.