[saucy2040]

first off id like to apologize to the admins if this thread is in the wrong section of the forums, and if so please move accordingly.

but ive got windows vista home premium, and currently i have only 2 gigs of RAM in my build right now but im planning on geting an additional 4 gigs once i work out my numbers for money.

but as i was reading my motherboard manual i read something i completely forgot about.
it reminded me that certain OS depending on the bit version will only recognize a certain amount of RAM in the system. for what reasons i dont know, maybe someone here can tell me why it matters, but it was a slap in the face, but a good rteminder cause if i just spent a couple hundred bucks and install it in my computer and then realize that my OS doesnt even support it then itd been a big waste of money.

my motherboard can support up to 16 gigs of RAM with 4 slots. first can someone confirm how much RAM windows vista home premium will recognize and after that, if there really is a lower limit for that OS on the RAM, then is there a way around this? without me having to go and spend hundeds of dolars on a vista 64 bit version?

any advice would be greatly appreciated, and thanks in advance.

[carnageX]

Difference Between 32 Bit (x86) and 64 Bit (x64)

Located here:
^**READ FIRST**^ Windows Stickies Index

32bit: limit of 3-3.5GB
64bit: somewhere around 128GB limit or something like that...can't remember for sure off the top of my head.

[Mak213]

Carnage is right on the money.

32 bit can only handle between 3.25-3.5GB of RAM
64 Bit can handle up to 128GB

Server editions can handle much more. So if you wish to take your system to 6GB of RAM you will be wasting about half of it with 32 Bit.

[carnageX]

Originally Posted by Mak213

Carnage is right on the money.

64 Bit can handle up to 128GB

Thought that number sounded right, but couldn't remember heh.

I'll also add in that your video card's memory counts towards that limit as well.

[forrestcupp]

Isn't it true that if you have the 32-bit version of Vista, you can request to have the 64-bit version sent to you, and you don't have to spend hundreds of dollars to get it?

[veedubfreak]

Only if you have the full version. OEM you are on your own.

[forrestcupp]

Originally Posted by veedubfreak

Only if you have the full version. OEM you are on your own.

That's what I thought. But doesn't the full version disc come with both 32-bit and 64-bit on it? If so, why would you need them to send you anything?

[carnageX]

Only the retail version of the disc has both 32/64bit on the disc. OEM you'll have to get a 64bit disc from somewhere, if you originally had 32bit. Either OEM or Retail Vista keys work with either 32/64bit.