Increasing computer-memory from 2 to 4 Gb : will it help?

http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/attachment.php?s=&postid=1455331

Almost certainly. Putting additional RAM in is never a bad thing.

The more RAM you have, the less FSX will have to move in and out of the RAM to run the program (i.e. paging).

If you do go for this option, you can set an option to force the entire operating system to load into RAM at startup, instead of only the bits it needs to get going. This can provide a considerable performance boost for everything that runs on your PC.

Mark

FlightSimX wrote:

...
you can set an option to force the entire operating system to load into RAM at startup,

Mark

how do you do that?

Sorry, just noticed you're on Vista. The "tweak" I mentioned re loading the OS into RAM works with XP. I'll have a search and see if there's a Vista equivalent.

Mark

As a general rule XP 32 bit does not support more than 3G. I think the same holds true for Vista 32 bit.

-N

4gigs in Vista 32bit.... You will notice some improvements throughout the system, nothing extreme, and FSX will hardly notice the change.

I have to respectfully disagree a wee little bit about Ram and Vista. I first built my rig with 2G DDR2 6400 Ram. Then loaded FSX and played with it. Then tried a Thumb drive set up with Ready Boost. I noticed a faster FSX, esp loading. So I bought 2 additional DDR2 6400 Ram for 4 G. True, any 32-bit OS will not report over 3 G, but I suspect it still uses/addresses the 1 G Ram (but I could be wrong here). At any rate, the 3rd G Ram would be slower if you only used it in bank 1 by itself and not paired with the 4th G Ram. I would say you should use ready Boost if you have 2 G Ram, or get 4 G. Ready Boost has no advantage once you are over 2 G Ram. Happy Flying ! rob

Habu - Vista 32bit will recognize 4gigs of allocated memory. Everyones system will react differently based on startup programs. I perfer to keep my start up config very very neat. This effects how well Vista will perform.

With all due respect, No it Won'T !! I'd like to see a 32-bit OS show that it has 4 G. You will see a bit over 3 G. I still use 4 G, but I believe it to be impossible to see all 4 G on 32-bit OS

Habu wrote:

With all due respect, No it Won'T !! I'd like to see a 32-bit OS show that it has 4 G. You will see a bit over 3 G. I still use 4 G, but I believe it to be impossible to see all 4 G on 32-bit OS

go on the internet and do a search. this is not new science. all the information is there, all you have to do is read.

Habu, before you argue, you need to know what you are talking about. Ive explained this already... the OS will recognize 4gigs of TOTAL memory, this includes all components with its OWN memory. The OS has to load the components into the system BEFORE the physical DIMM sticks... So, if you have 4gigs of DIMM, 256mb of Video, and 256 of Sound card memory, which will be subrtracted from the DIMM allocation... you will see 3536mb of available memory. 4gb is a jump from 3gb in XP. Its nothing more than a starting point, which is 4gigs.

Do not argue. I am right on this.

Thats assuming you are using onboard VGA and sound. A dedicated video and sound card with its own memory would not take from the installed ram so I am not 100% sure what point you are trying to make there? Apologies if I have mis-understood.

Then why are the mobo's built for 8 gigs of ram.

Good question radar!!!!
here I made sure i bought a MOBO that would take up to 8 gigs of ram, don't tell me it was a waste of time??????? 😕

Sometimes it can get frustrating explaining this to some peoplr (Radarman, not you)..

When you are using integrated video and sound, it still has to use physical memory to operate properly. When this happens, it will take it from the DIMM and and hense the reason you will see a drop in recognized memory... this doesnt matter if you have 256, 512, 1024, 4048mb... you WILL see a drop, and this has nothing to do with the Operating system... My laptop has 1024mb of memory, and I allocated 128mb to the video... so when I look at system information, I see 896mb of system memory... you really think I bought a 896mb DIMM?!?!

Radarman, there are boards that now recognize 16gigs of memory, not just 8gig anymore... I do not know the actual amount of memory that 64bit Vista allocates, a friend of mine who works in the IT deparment of my company says it recognizes 16gigs of DIMM... Does this make sense?

I am fully aware of how PC memory works and I shall not bore you with the details why.

Maybe I am missing something here but you seem to have made an assumption that Habu was using integrated video and sound. Where does it say they are using integrated video and sound?

You are right in your statement that integrated video and sound use a share of system memory and your example illustrates the point beautifully.....but dedicated video and sound do not share the resgistered system ram.

In summary, if Habu is using integrated video and sound then this explains where some of his registered system RAM has gone. If Habu is using a dedicated video card and sound card (which I suspect he is) then this does not explain where the 1gb RAM has gone.

I suspect Habu actually has a mobo incompatability or needs a mobo bios update.

Leave the new HD dedicated to FSX/SP1. DO NOT LOAD SYSTEM FILES TO HD. That, your CPU and GIG should get you excellent results. AND new large HDs are CHEAP!!

you guys are talking about apples and oranges.
habu is half right
JL is half right
RM is half right

the other half is all apples and oranges.

I am NOT here to insult anyone, as someone here likes to do ! As BashDaBish says, I know about memory...I am in the industry. So without further ado, try pp62 of Maximum PC that just arrived after this started. The Aug mag is not online yet, but here's a link to Miro$oft explaining why a 32-bit OS doesn't see 4 G Ram. One of the required workarounds, among others, is to install a 64-bit OS.
Here's one quote from M$:
"If a computer has many installed devices, the available memory may be reduced to 3 GB or less. However, the maximum memory available in 32-bit versions of Windows Vista is typically 3.12 GB."
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929605/en-us
Noone including me knows everything, so try showing a bit of respect when disagreeing with others. Respectfully, rob

I upgraded my computer from 2GB or Ram to 4GB of Ram. I noticed an immediate improvement in frame rates. Did not measure the improvement but is was dramatic.

My Computer Specs:

Windows XP
Dual Core 2.6
P5N MoBo
4GB Ram
7600GS Video with 512MB Ram
Running three monitors at 1600x1050 each (dont quote me on the exact resolution but it is close to that).

After the Ram was upgraded it shows 3.2GB under system properties.

Good move, chrisjoi !!