SOLVED: Windows 10 Won’t Use Full RAM

RAM is a volatile storage device that your computer uses to store data and also use it simultaneously but it is used to store the type of data that is being frequently used by the operating system or an application running on it. Once your computer shuts down all the data in it is lost as it is a temporary but fast storage device. The more amount of RAM you have, more smoothly your computer will multitask by enabling the applications to store more files they need frequently. Having more RAM never hurts, but not able to use the whole of it can be unacceptable to a user.

Many of the users, when started using Windows 10, reported that when they open the Windows property window or the Task Manager, they noticed that only a part of the total amount of RAM is currently usable by Windows. In some cases, they would see an unusually large amount of RAM been “Hardware Reserved” by the Windows in the Task manager. It could be in fact due to reason that amount of memory has been reserved for the internal graphics adapter installed on your computer but if you have dedicated graphics card installed on your computer then this shouldn’t be the problem. And for some, the amount was from 1024 MB to 4181 MB which is not normal.

There are some configurations in Windows 10 and your motherboard’s BIOS that can reserve some amount of RAM making them unusable. They can be easily changed and are listed in the solutions below. But In some cases, the hardware was also found to be the culprit causing this issue. Below listed are the best solutions that have worked for users. But before you start with the solutions, you should know that if you have a 32 bit Windows 10 operating system installed, you can only use 3.5GB RAM no matter how much RAM is physically installed on your computer. You will need to install a 64 bit Windows 10 operating system to use more than 3.5GB RAM.

1. To know which type of operating system you have, simply Press and Hold the Windows key and Press R.
2. In the Run dialog box type msinfo32 and Press Enter.
3. In the SystemInformationwindow that opens, look for System type in the right pane.
4. If next to System type the value is x86 then you have a 32 bit Windows 10 installed. If it is x64 then you have a 64 bit Windows 10 installed.
5. Now let’s start with the solutions.

Solution 1: Modify RAM used on Boot

This option in Windows is used to reserve RAM that is used during the boot procedure when your system is turning on. By default, it may permanently and unnecessarily reserve a significantly large amount of RAM for it.

1. To set that right, Press and Hold the Windows key and Press R. Type msconfig in the Run dialog box and Press Enter.
2. The System Configuration window will open. Go to the Boot tab in it.
3. Select your Operating system from the list below if you have more than one. Now Click on the Advanced Options button.
4. On the upper right corner, Clear the checkbox next to Maximum memory. Click Ok.
5. Now restart your computer. Check of the issue resolved. If not, move on to the next solution.

Solution 2: BIOS Settings

There are a few configurations on BIOS that can limit the Windows from using the full amount of RAM installed. Firstly, if you have a separate dedicated video card installed, then you have to make sure the internal graphic processing unit (iGPU) is off which is is used in case you don’t have any external one. If it is On, Windows can be reserving the memory for it.

To make sure it is off, Restart your computer and enter its BIOS/UEFI setup. You will have to tap a specific key to Enter BIOS and it differs by your system’s model. It can be F1, F2, F12 or the Esc key. You can easily google the model of your system to see which key to use to enter the BIOS setup.

In the BIOS setup, search for iGPU, Internal Graphics or Onboard Graphics. The name and location of this setting can once again vary according to your system’s manufacturer so you will have to search for it. Once you find it, make sure it is Disabled or turned Off.

Also in BIOS, there is a Memory Map Feature that can give Windows full access to the RAM installed. Search for it and make sure it is Enabled or turned On.

In addition to the feature mentioned above, if you can find the below features, make sure they are in their respective states as mentioned next to them.

Feature State

Render Standby Enabled
iGPU Memory Auto
Multimonitor Disabled

Save changes and Restart your computer. Check if can now use the whole RAM. If still an amount of RAM is unusable, move on to the next solution.

Solution 3: Physical Inspect RAMs

In some cases, the reason Windows 10 showed less amount of RAM usable was due to a physical defect. So we will check the RAMs physically, and will also rule out the possibility if the slots on which the RAMs are installed are faulty. Only proceed if you’re comfortable opening your CPU.

Unplug all wires and remove the cover of your computer. Here, you will be able to see Rectangular sticks (RAMs) installed on your motherboard. They will be next to a big heat sink with a fan on it. There will be either 2 or 4 slots on which RAMs can be installed.

There will be clips at the sides of the slots. Toggle them and Unplug All the RAMs installed and make sure there contacts are clean. Also, remove any dust that may be inside the slots.

If you have more than 1 stick of RAM installed it is possible one may be faulty so remove any one them and start up your computer. Do the same with the other stick of RAM. If the system fails to run with any one of the RAM installed, then that stick of RAM is faulty.

Similarly, check the slots in use by inserting a known working stick of RAM in it and running your computer. If it fails to run on any one slot, then the slot in question is faulty rendering the RAM inserted in it unusable by Windows.

If all the slots and stick of RAM are working, inserting them back but in different slots as they were originally in before. This is also known to work for some users. Make sure they are properly placed and locked in.

Solution 4: Update BIOS

In some cases, an outdated BIOS version has been known to cause this memory bug to appear in Windows 10.

The procedure to update BIOS varies by system manufacturers and models. Access your system manufacturer’s website to download and install the latest BIOS version on your system.

Before moving with the solutions to make your RAM fully usable in Windows 10, check if booting the system with the bare minimum (make sure to empty the PCI slots e.g., removing a PCI network card) resolves the issue. Moreover, make sure your system supports the RAM you are trying to use with it i.e., no hardware limit is in place, for example, Intel 945 chipset motherboard has a hardware limit of 4 GB of RAM, and more than that cannot be used with it.

Solution 5: Update Windows and Drivers of Your PC to the Latest Build

Windows, like any OS, is prone to bugs and the RAM issue at hand could also be a result of a bug. Microsoft is trying its best to eliminate bugs from Windows and for this purpose, it uses the Windows update channel to populate the latest patches of the reported bugs. Before diving into more technical solutions, it will be a good idea to update the Windows of your system to the latest build which may solve the problem.

1. Manually update the Windows of your PC to the latest stable release. Also, make sure the system’s drivers are updated to the latest build. Check for Windows Updates
2. After updating the Windows and drivers, check if the RAM issue is resolved.
3. If not, then check if reinstalling the graphics drivers resolves the RAM issue.

Solution 6: Restore the BIOS of Your PC to Defaults

You may encounter the issue at hand if the BIOS of your system is wrongly configured. In this case, restoring the BIOS to the factory defaults may solve the problem. For illustration, we will discuss the process for a Dell system, you may follow the instructions as per your make and model of the PC.

Warning: Advance at your own risk as editing the system’s BIOS is a proficient task and if done wrong (or if a sudden power failure occurs during the process), you may brick your system and cause everlasting damage to your data.

1. Boot your system into BIOS (you may press the F2 key when powering on your system).
2. Now, near the bottom of the right pane, click on Restore Settings (or Load Defaults) and then confirm to restore the BIOS (or load defaults). Reset BIOS to Defaults
3. Then exit BIOS and boot the system into Windows to check if the RAM issue is resolved.

If the issue persists, then check if disabling/enabling the paging file resolves the issue. You can also use a utility TestLimit by Sysinternals to solve the RAM problem. If that did not do the trick, then either the RAM sticks are faulty/incompatible or the issue is caused by a failing hard drive (some users reported that a failing hard drive caused the same issue for them).

Memory Limits for Windows and Windows Server Releases

This topic describes the memory limits for supported Windows and Windows Server releases.

Limits on memory and address space vary by platform, operating system, and by whether the IMAGE_FILE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE value of the LOADED_IMAGE structure and 4-gigabyte tuning (4GT) are in use. IMAGE_FILE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE is set or cleared by using the /LARGEADDRESSAWARE linker option.

4-gigabyte tuning (4GT), also known as application memory tuning, or the /3GB switch, is a technology (only applicable to 32 bit systems) that alters the amount of virtual address space available to user mode applications. Enabling this technology reduces the overall size of the system virtual address space and therefore system resource maximums. For more information, see What is 4GT.

Limits on physical memory for 32-bit platforms also depend on the Physical Address Extension (PAE), which allows 32-bit Windows systems to use more than 4 GB of physical memory.

Memory and Address Space Limits

The following table specifies the limits on memory and address space for supported releases of Windows. Unless otherwise noted, the limits in this table apply to all supported releases.

Memory type	Limit on X86	Limit in 64-bit Windows
User-mode virtual address space for each 32-bit process	2 GB Up to 3 GB with IMAGE_FILE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE and 4GT	2 GB with IMAGE_FILE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE cleared (default) 4 GB with IMAGE_FILE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE set
User-mode virtual address space for each 64-bit process	Not applicable	With IMAGE_FILE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE set (default): x64: WindowsВ 8.1 and Windows ServerВ 2012В R2 or later: 128 TB x64: Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 or earlier 8 TB Intel Itanium-based systems: 7 TB 2 GB with IMAGE_FILE_LARGE_ADDRESS_AWARE cleared
Kernel-mode virtual address space	2 GB From 1 GB to a maximum of 2 GB with 4GT	WindowsВ 8.1 and Windows ServerВ 2012В R2 or later: 128 TB Windows 8 and Windows Server 2012 or earlier 8 TB
Paged pool	384 GB or system commit limit, whichever is smaller. WindowsВ 8.1 and Windows ServerВ 2012В R2: 15.5 TB or system commit limit, whichever is smaller. Windows ServerВ 2008В R2, WindowsВ 7, Windows ServerВ 2008 and WindowsВ Vista: Limited by available kernel-mode virtual address space. Starting with WindowsВ Vista with Service PackВ 1 (SP1), the paged pool can also be limited by the PagedPoolLimit registry key value. Windows Home Server and Windows ServerВ 2003: 530 MB WindowsВ XP: 490 MB	384 GB or system commit limit, whichever is smaller WindowsВ 8.1 and Windows ServerВ 2012В R2: 15.5 TB or system commit limit, whichever is smaller. Windows ServerВ 2008В R2, WindowsВ 7, Windows ServerВ 2008 and WindowsВ Vista: 128 GB or system commit limit, whichever is smaller Windows ServerВ 2003 and WindowsВ XP: Up to 128 GB depending on configuration and RAM.
Nonpaged pool	75% of RAM or 2 GB, whichever is smaller. WindowsВ 8.1 and Windows ServerВ 2012В R2: RAM or 16 TB, whichever is smaller (address space is limited to 2 x RAM). WindowsВ Vista: Limited only by kernel mode virtual address space and physical memory. Starting with WindowsВ Vista with SP1, the nonpaged pool can also be limited by the NonPagedPoolLimit registry key value. Windows Home Server, Windows ServerВ 2003 and WindowsВ XP: 256 MB, or 128 MB with 4GT.	RAM or 128 GB, whichever is smaller (address space is limited to 2 x RAM) WindowsВ 8.1 and Windows ServerВ 2012В R2: RAM or 16 TB, whichever is smaller (address space is limited to 2 x RAM). Windows ServerВ 2008В R2, WindowsВ 7 and Windows ServerВ 2008: 75% of RAM up to a maximum of 128 GB WindowsВ Vista: 40% of RAM up to a maximum of 128 GB. Windows ServerВ 2003 and WindowsВ XP: Up to 128 GB depending on configuration and RAM.
System cache virtual address space (physical size limited only by physical memory)	Limited by available kernel-mode virtual address space or the SystemCacheLimit registry key value. WindowsВ 8.1 and Windows ServerВ 2012В R2: 16 TB. WindowsВ Vista: Limited only by kernel mode virtual address space. Starting with WindowsВ Vista with SP1, system cache virtual address space can also be limited by the SystemCacheLimit registry key value. Windows Home Server, Windows ServerВ 2003 and WindowsВ XP: 860 MB with LargeSystemCache registry key set and without 4GT; up to 448 MB with 4GT.	Always 1 TB regardless of physical RAM WindowsВ 8.1 and Windows ServerВ 2012В R2: 16 TB. Windows ServerВ 2003 and WindowsВ XP: Up to 1 TB depending on configuration and RAM. Physical Memory Limits: Windows 10 The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for WindowsВ 10. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 WindowsВ 10 Enterprise 4 GB 6 TB WindowsВ 10 Education 4 GB 2 TB WindowsВ 10 Pro for Workstations 4 GB 6 TB WindowsВ 10 Pro 4 GB 2 TB WindowsВ 10 Home 4 GB 128 GB Physical Memory Limits: Windows Server 2016 The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for Windows ServerВ 2016. Version Limit on X64 Windows ServerВ 2016 Datacenter 24 TB Windows ServerВ 2016 Standard 24 TB Physical Memory Limits: Windows 8 The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for WindowsВ 8. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 WindowsВ 8 Enterprise 4 GB 512 GB WindowsВ 8 Professional 4 GB 512 GB WindowsВ 8 4 GB 128 GB Physical Memory Limits: Windows Server 2012 The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for Windows ServerВ 2012. Windows ServerВ 2012 is available only in X64 editions. Version Limit on X64 Windows ServerВ 2012 Datacenter 4 TB Windows ServerВ 2012 Standard 4 TB Windows ServerВ 2012 Essentials 64 GB Windows ServerВ 2012 Foundation 32 GB Windows Storage Server 2012 Workgroup 32 GB Windows Storage Server 2012 Standard 4 TB Hyper-V Server 2012 4 TB Physical Memory Limits: Windows 7 The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for WindowsВ 7. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 WindowsВ 7 Ultimate 4 GB 192 GB WindowsВ 7 Enterprise 4 GB 192 GB WindowsВ 7 Professional 4 GB 192 GB WindowsВ 7 Home Premium 4 GB 16 GB WindowsВ 7 Home Basic 4 GB 8 GB WindowsВ 7 Starter 2 GB N/A Physical Memory Limits: Windows Server 2008 R2 The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for Windows ServerВ 2008В R2. Windows ServerВ 2008В R2 is available only in 64-bit editions. Version Limit on X64 Limit on IA64 Windows ServerВ 2008В R2 Datacenter 2 TB Windows ServerВ 2008В R2 Enterprise 2 TB Windows ServerВ 2008В R2 for Itanium-Based Systems 2 TB Windows ServerВ 2008В R2 Foundation 8 GB Windows ServerВ 2008В R2 Standard 32 GB Windows HPC Server 2008 R2 128 GB Windows Web Server 2008 R2 32 GB Physical Memory Limits: Windows Server 2008 The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for Windows ServerВ 2008. Limits greater than 4 GB for 32-bit Windows assume that PAE is enabled. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 Limit on IA64 Windows ServerВ 2008 Datacenter 64 GB 1 TB Windows ServerВ 2008 Enterprise 64 GB 1 TB Windows ServerВ 2008 HPC Edition 128 GB Windows ServerВ 2008 Standard 4 GB 32 GB Windows ServerВ 2008 for Itanium-Based Systems 2 TB Windows Small Business Server 2008 4 GB 32 GB Windows Web Server 2008 4 GB 32 GB Physical Memory Limits: Windows Vista The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for WindowsВ Vista. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 WindowsВ Vista Ultimate 4 GB 128 GB WindowsВ Vista Enterprise 4 GB 128 GB WindowsВ Vista Business 4 GB 128 GB WindowsВ Vista Home Premium 4 GB 16 GB WindowsВ Vista Home Basic 4 GB 8 GB WindowsВ Vista Starter 1 GB Physical Memory Limits: Windows Home Server Windows Home Server is available only in a 32-bit edition. The physical memory limit is 4 GB. Physical Memory Limits: Windows Server 2003 R2 The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for Windows ServerВ 2003В R2. Limits over 4 GB for 32-bit Windows assume that PAE is enabled. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 Windows ServerВ 2003В R2 Datacenter Edition 64 GB (16 GB with 4GT) 1 TB Windows ServerВ 2003В R2 Enterprise Edition 64 GB (16 GB with 4GT) 1 TB Windows ServerВ 2003В R2 Standard Edition 4 GB 32 GB Physical Memory Limits: Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 2 (SP2) The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for Windows ServerВ 2003 with Service PackВ 2 (SP2). Limits over 4 GB for 32-bit Windows assume that PAE is enabled. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 Limit on IA64 Windows ServerВ 2003 with Service PackВ 2 (SP2), Datacenter Edition 64 GB (16 GB with 4GT) 1 TB 2 TB Windows ServerВ 2003 with Service PackВ 2 (SP2), Enterprise Edition 64 GB (16 GB with 4GT) 1 TB 2 TB Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 2 (SP2), Standard Edition 4 GB 32 GB Physical Memory Limits: Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 (SP1) The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for Windows ServerВ 2003 with Service PackВ 1 (SP1). Limits over 4 GB for 32-bit Windows assume that PAE is enabled. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 Limit on IA64 Windows ServerВ 2003 with Service PackВ 1 (SP1), Datacenter Edition 64 GB (16 GB with 4GT) X64 1 TB 1 TB Windows ServerВ 2003 with Service PackВ 1 (SP1), Enterprise Edition 64 GB (16 GB with 4GT) X64 1 TB 1 TB Windows Server 2003 with Service Pack 1 (SP1), Standard Edition 4 GB 32 GB Physical Memory Limits: Windows Server 2003 The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for Windows ServerВ 2003. Limits over 4 GB for 32-bit Windows assume that PAE is enabled. Version Limit on X86 Limit on IA64 Windows ServerВ 2003, Datacenter Edition 64 GB (16 GB with 4GT) 512 GB Windows ServerВ 2003, Enterprise Edition 64 GB (16 GB with 4GT) 512 GB Windows ServerВ 2003, Standard Edition 4 GB Windows ServerВ 2003, Web Edition 2 GB Windows Small Business Server 2003 4 GB Windows Compute Cluster ServerВ 2003 32 GB Windows Storage ServerВ 2003, Enterprise Edition 8 GB Windows Storage ServerВ 2003 4 GB Physical Memory Limits: Windows XP The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for WindowsВ XP. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 Limit on IA64 WindowsВ XP 4 GB 128 GB 128 GB (not supported) WindowsВ XP Starter Edition 512 MB N/A N/A Physical Memory Limits: Windows Embedded The following table specifies the limits on physical memory for Windows Embedded. Version Limit on X86 Limit on X64 Windows XP Embedded 4 GB Windows Embedded Standard 2009 4 GB Windows Embedded Standard 7 4 GB 192 GB How graphics cards and other devices affect memory limits Devices have to map their memory below 4 GB for compatibility with non-PAE-aware Windows releases. Therefore, if the system has 4GB of RAM, some of it is either disabled or is remapped above 4GB by the BIOS. If the memory is remapped, X64 Windows can use this memory. X86 client versions of Windows don’t support physical memory above the 4GB mark, so they can’t access these remapped regions. Any X64 Windows or X86 Server release can. X86 client versions with PAE enabled do have a usable 37-bit (128 GB) physical address space. The limit that these versions impose is the highest permitted physical RAM address, not the size of the IO space. That means PAE-aware drivers can actually use physical space above 4 GB if they want. For example, drivers could map the «lost» memory regions located above 4 GB and expose this memory as a RAM disk. Читайте также:  Wpci 150n драйвер windows 10 Оцените статью Вам также может понравиться Windows или Linux: Что лучше выбрать? Есть много причин выбирать между Windows и Linux, но Файл владелец изменить linux Команда Chown в Linux Chown Command in Linux (File Установка шлюза по умолчанию linux Настройка сети вручную Содержание Краткое описание Чем разбить диск для linux ИТ База знаний Курс по Asterisk Полезно — Узнать IP — Правообладателям Политика конфиденциальности Контакты