4GB RAM useable? beneficial?

[Aosh]

I'm thinking about getting 4GB of RAM for my next build. I do HEAVY photoshop (very large files) and am a VMWare junkie. Now i know about the 2GB virtual mem address space for apps in XP.

So my question is, do you guys think that it would be wise getting 4GB (will it be used well?) Or would I be better off w/ 2GB?

A rebate on RAM is ending tomorrow so I'm hoping for some quick responses! =)

 

[amdskip]

I believe xp 32 big supports up 2gb max. What operating system will you be using?

* 32-bit versions of Windows Vista Home Basic, Home Premium, Business, Enterprise, and Ultimate: 4GB
* 32-bit Windows Vista Starter: 1GB
* 64-bit versions of Windows Vista Home Basic: 8GB
* 64-bit versions of Windows Vista Home Premium: 16GB
* 64-bit versions of Windows Vista Business, Enterprise, and Ultimate: 128GB

 

[Aosh]

I'm not jumping to Vista yet (waiting for issues to iron out).

So for the time being, I'll be using Windows XP Pro

 

[Nocturnal]

XP 32-bit can use 4GB but I don't believe the entire amount is recognized. Something like 3.25GB will be recognized. Let us know how it is with 4GB.

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: Nocturnal
XP 32-bit can use 4GB but I don't believe the entire amount is recognized. Something like 3.25GB will be recognized. Let us know how it is with 4GB.

You are partially correct. XP will allocate no more than 2GB per running program. If you have 4GB XP will use it but you will need two separate processes that use 2GB each.

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: Aosh
I'm thinking about getting 4GB of RAM for my next build. I do HEAVY photoshop (very large files) and am a VMWare junkie. Now i know about the 2GB virtual mem address space for apps in XP.

So my question is, do you guys think that it would be wise getting 4GB (will it be used well?) Or would I be better off w/ 2GB?

A rebate on RAM is ending tomorrow so I'm hoping for some quick responses! =)

What is the link? And buy it now!

 

[Aosh]

Originally posted by: Googer
You are partially correct. XP will allocate no more than 2GB per running program. If you have 4GB XP will use it but you will need two separate processes that use 2GB each.

Okay, that was what i thought. That's not too comforting, though.
So I guess the question is how often will I use RAM intensive apps that will make full use of the 4GB. I suppose it would allow me to run VMWare 24/7..and Have heavy photoshoping along side of it, plus Firefox, etc..

A little hard to justify, though...

Do mobo's (P5B-E) have any problem running 3 sticks of RAM? (for 3GB) (Will it affect any dual channel kinda thing?) I've never been too clear on that.

 

[Aosh]

Originally posted by: Googer
What is the link? And buy it now!

It's not a huge rebate (only $30)



OCZ S.O.E 2GB (2 x 1GB) for $185.99 after rebate at Newegg

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: Aosh

Originally posted by: Googer
You are partially correct. XP will allocate no more than 2GB per running program. If you have 4GB XP will use it but you will need two separate processes that use 2GB each.

Okay, that was what i thought. That's not too comforting, though.
So I guess the question is how often will I use RAM intensive apps that will make full use of the 4GB. I suppose it would allow me to run VMWare 24/7..and Have heavy photoshoping along side of it, plus Firefox, etc..

A little hard to justify, though...

Do mobo's (P5B-E) have any problem running 3 sticks of RAM? (for 3GB) (Will it affect any dual channel kinda thing?) I've never been too clear on that.

Two suggested options avalable to you: Upgrade to Windows XP x64 or Windows Vista Ultimate 64Bit. XP x64 will perform better than Vista and has better driver support.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16832116179

 

[Aosh]

Originally posted by: Googer

Originally posted by: Aosh

Originally posted by: Googer
You are partially correct. XP will allocate no more than 2GB per running program. If you have 4GB XP will use it but you will need two separate processes that use 2GB each.

Okay, that was what i thought. That's not too comforting, though.
So I guess the question is how often will I use RAM intensive apps that will make full use of the 4GB. I suppose it would allow me to run VMWare 24/7..and Have heavy photoshoping along side of it, plus Firefox, etc..

A little hard to justify, though...

Do mobo's (P5B-E) have any problem running 3 sticks of RAM? (for 3GB) (Will it affect any dual channel kinda thing?) I've never been too clear on that.

Two suggested options avalable to you: Upgrade to Windows XP x64 or Windows Vista Ultimate 64Bit. XP x64 will perform better than Vista and has better driver support.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16832116179

That would require a 64 bit CPU, no?

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Your rig link doesn't work
http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=42&threadid=1715668&enterthread=y

 

[Aosh]

Ah, It's not for that rig anyways. I haven't updated in awhile, but I'm actually building a new machine.

Intel E6600, Asus P5B-E, Win XP Pro

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: Aosh

Originally posted by: Googer

Originally posted by: Aosh

Originally posted by: Googer
You are partially correct. XP will allocate no more than 2GB per running program. If you have 4GB XP will use it but you will need two separate processes that use 2GB each.

Okay, that was what i thought. That's not too comforting, though.
So I guess the question is how often will I use RAM intensive apps that will make full use of the 4GB. I suppose it would allow me to run VMWare 24/7..and Have heavy photoshoping along side of it, plus Firefox, etc..

A little hard to justify, though...

Do mobo's (P5B-E) have any problem running 3 sticks of RAM? (for 3GB) (Will it affect any dual channel kinda thing?) I've never been too clear on that.

Two suggested options avalable to you: Upgrade to Windows XP x64 or Windows Vista Ultimate 64Bit. XP x64 will perform better than Vista and has better driver support.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16832116179

That would require a 64 bit CPU, no?

Yes, xp64 and Vista64 require a 64bit CPU. If any of your software has a Linux version, I suggest you try Linux. Also I am not sure but I suspect that Vista32 may have removed the 2GB limit. But if you are going the Vista route, 64bit is the only way to go.


EDIT: You can change the 2GB limit to 3GB by modifying boot.ini and adding the switch /3GB .

 

[ranjan2001]

Asus P5B-dlx Wifi, BIOS 1004
Intel C2D 6400
2x1GB DDR-2, 800Mhz transcend ram
stock cpu cooler
2 sata-2 HDD 8MB cache 7200RPM
planning to setup a raid to speed up further.

On my XP-pro SP2, I often consume 800mb -1.3 Gb doing just doing XP stuff, some music CD playing, FF 2.1 websurfing, downloading,3 messengers chatting, & DVD burning.

So if I use Photoshop along with all this I often hit the 2Gb limit & need more, mem turbo reports me that I am often left with 200mb of free ram, so I think I need more but reading various discussions (some quite technical, going above my head) I hesitate to add more assuming it would be waste of money.

Can some one in simple language give me a direction if I borrow another 2 GB what else do I need to do to enable that often discussed 3Gb switch, so I can test some bench marking & decide weather to have 2Gb or 4GB since I have built a new system & would also be over clocking once I get the CPU cooler.

 

[McManCSU]

If you are looking to use Vista then upgrade your RAM. I read somewhere (maybe a review on Vista on this site) that 4GB would be ideal, and 2GB more or less a minimum! It sounded like Vista will try and store a lot more stuff in RAM now that RAM is more widely and cheaply available. See http://www.anandtech.com/systems/showdoc.aspx?i=2917&p=3

 

[Makaveli]

that is wrong, its more like 1GB is minimum for Vista, 2GB standard and 4GB is for Power users

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: Makaveli
that is wrong, its more like 1GB is minimum for Vista, 2GB standard and 4GB is for Power users

:thumbsup:

 

[obeseotron]

Originally posted by: Googer

Originally posted by: Makaveli
that is wrong, its more like 1GB is minimum for Vista, 2GB standard and 4GB is for Power users

:thumbsup:

Yeah that's about right. Another way would be to more or less double what you're comfortable with in XP.

 

[jkresh]

better ram

you might want to look at this instead of the newegg deal, cheaper and faster. Also while I haven't had a chance to fully move to vista yet from what I have seen it is comfortable with more memory then xp (ie 4gigs definitely is an upgrade over 2 where its not as much in XP) but it doesn't need that much more, ie if you use 2 in xp and parent borderline on needing more (ie your really use 1.6 or 1.7...) then 2 is fine in vista, if you have 2 and often have only 50 or 100megs free then upgrading ram with vista makes sense.

 

[Chadder007]

I believe if you get Vista x64, then your system can address more than the 4 Gigs of RAM. As for a specific program, it would also have to be compiled to be x64 compatible to address over 2gigs. Otherwise if you are running a 32bit program in a 64bit OS, then the program itself still cannot take advantage of more RAM even though the OS can itself.

 

[Steve]

All sorts of beliefs here. Let's clarify, shall we?

32-bit hardware, 32-bit OS? You have 2^32 (4GB) of address space, in which to address all your RAM plus hardware and subsystem addressing. If you put 4GB in, some won't show as its address space is reserved and in use by hardware and subsystem address. The RAM on your video card? That needs addressing. PCI subsystem? That needs addressing too. Things like that. In a system like this, 2GB is for the OS, and 2 for apps. The /3GB switch gives you an extra gig for apps, IIRC.

Some OSes allow you to remap above and beyond the 4GB border using PAE (Physical Address Extensions). This is basically 36-bit technology giving you 64GB potential.

Want to have and use all of 4GB of RAM or more? Go 64-bit at the OS and hardware level.

Now I have heard that there are some minor tweaks and differences in certain Windows versions, but I can't articulate them right off.

 

[kpb]

Adobe actually has a really good doc about this for photoshop cs 2.

http://www.adobe.com/cfusion/knowledgebase/index.cfm?id=320005

4gb or more with a 64 bit os can still benifit a 32 bit program even if it can't directly access more than 4gb of ram.

 

[Googer]

Originally posted by: sm8000
All sorts of beliefs here. Let's clarify, shall we?

32-bit hardware, 32-bit OS? You have 2^32 (4GB) of address space, in which to address all your RAM plus hardware and subsystem addressing. If you put 4GB in, some won't show as its address space is reserved and in use by hardware and subsystem address. The RAM on your video card? That needs addressing. PCI subsystem? That needs addressing too. Things like that. In a system like this, 2GB is for the OS, and 2 for apps. The /3GB switch gives you an extra gig for apps, IIRC.

Some OSes allow you to remap above and beyond the 4GB border using PAE (Physical Address Extensions). This is basically 36-bit technology giving you 64GB potential.

Want to have and use all of 4GB of RAM or more? Go 64-bit at the OS and hardware level.

Now I have heard that there are some minor tweaks and differences in certain Windows versions, but I can't articulate them right off.

I was thinking the same thing, but most desktop motherboards do not support more than 4GB of ram and you also need an Enterprise version of Windows.

 

[krotchy]

FYI If you go 64 bit, go Vista not XP. XPx64 is pretty much a half-baked never finished OS. Vista 64 is on shaky feet at the moment too but at least its being supported and everyones rushing to make their hardware Vista 64 compatible. At the moment I use it as my only install on my Desktop and there are definitely some issues, but I still actually prefer it over XP in alot of ways. Also 4 gigs of RAM in Vista is awesome, I find superfetch immensely useful. I just need to find somewhere that has 2 matched sticks for my friggin rig in stock.

If you go 32 bit, go XP, I see no purpose in upgrading to 32 bit vista if you have a Core/Athlon 64, its a waste in the end.

 

[Blain]

Instead of 2GB to 4GB of memory, why not upgrade to SCSI?