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Possible Duplicate:
Windows XP and RAM 3.5GB+

I have a Dell desktop that had 2GB of Ram in it, but XP's control panel -> system setting said only 1.75 GB. (This is 32 bit XP.)

I then installed another 2 GB, and now XP says I'm at 3.23 GB. I'm sure my graphics card is using shared memory and that might explain some of it, but where can I check that setting to make sure?

Community
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4 Answers4

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It's not a setting you can change, really. Your BIOS, video card, and other hardware need to map their own memory onto the system's address space.

See this post for a simple explanation of what's happening.

You can run the System Information utility to verify that the computer sees the physical RAM; the metric you're interested in is "Total Physical Memory".

Stephen Jennings
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These are some questions that popped up after you typed the title of your question, all of which contain information you are asking about.

Community
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JMD
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32-bit Windows XP can only address up to a maximum of ~3.5 GB of RAM. The other 256MB or so is probably shared with your integrated graphics card.

You need a 64-bit operating system to use 4GB or more of RAM. Windows XP 64-bit is not recommended because few companies have drivers that support 64-bit Windows XP. Most start at Windows Vista 64 at least.

Joshua
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Here's what's happening: Windows takes up some of your RAM, and that is not Included. Furthermore, You can't actually use all 4 GB with 32 bit Windows XP, because it only supports 3.5 GB of memory. You could buy Windows XP 64 bit, but I do not recommend it- it has compatibility issues. Your best bet is to relax and deal with it. You will find that most computers have this "problem".

Nathan L.
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