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I have a Dell Inspiron 620s PC. It has a Core i3 2120 processor which supports 32 GB RAM and an H61 chipset motherboard which supports 16 GB RAM, but then also at the Dell website it says the maximum RAM for my PC is 8 GB. Why, just why?

Peter Mortensen
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Utkarsh Yadav
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2 Answers2

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According to the following post your model can accept 16 GB RAM:
Can I insert one 8gb ram instead of two 4gb rams in my pc Dell Inspiron 620s which has two slots and a limit of 8gb on motherboard.

You may see an example RAM at A-Tech 16GB (2x8GB) RAM for Dell Inspiron 620, 620s.

The explanation given in the above post is that when the manual was written, the available technology allowed only 4GB RAM sticks. By the time 8GB memory became affordable, production of the computer had ceased, so there was no incentive to update the manual for an obsolete product.

Your real limitation comes from the Intel H61 chipset. The Dell manual seems to be obsolete.

Nevertheless, I suggest buying the 2x8GB sticks from a vendor with a good return policy.

harrymc
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I cannot discover a good reasons as to why this is so. Nonetheless, it is so. Multiple third-party sites indicate the maximum RAM is 8GB. You should not add more RAM than this unless you are willing to risk damage.

While you are correct about the H61 motherboard supporting 16GB and the CPU supporting 32GB, the maximum supported by Dell is 8GB.

My best guess is that Dell has restricted capacity in the BIOS. This is probably a marketing choice. But, this is just a best-guess scenario.

(You can always try two 8GB sticks and see if the BIOS and OS will recognize the additional memory. Likely the worse that will happen is that the BIOS will either recognize a lower amount or not recognize it at all. But, there always exists the potential that it can damage the system. So, you should not try adding RAM beyond the manufacturers specifications unless you are willing to completely ruin your system.)

source: https://www.crucial.com/compatible-upgrade-for/dell/inspiron-620s

source: https://www.memorystock.com/memory/DellInspiron620620s.html

source: https://www.dell.com/community/Desktops-General-Read-Only/what-is-the-max-specs-of-a-dell-inspiron-620/td-p/4076582

Source (read Valis response via BIOS restrictions): https://gearspace.com/board/music-computers/783063-how-change-ram-max-bios.html

Brian
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