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wrong values reported by BIOS


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#1
SKOOTERBUM

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i purchased a used gateway fx510x PC to use as my backup PC.

i downloaded the SIW, system information for windows, program.

while going through the information this program shows about my PC, i found that i have a problem with my BIOS, concerning the reported values of my memory.

the SIW program states that the BIOS is reporting the wrong values for my memory.

here is a screen shot of the report.......

[attachment=56991:GATEWAY FX510X MEMORY SUMMARY.bmp]

what do i need to do to fix this ??

thanks,
Ron
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#2
rshaffer61

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How much memory do you actually have installed on the system?
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#3
SKOOTERBUM

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How much memory do you actually have installed on the system?



i have 4 sticks of 512MBytes, for a total of 2GB
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#4
rshaffer61

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OK after increasing the picture size what I see is it is actually reporting the maximum amount of memory the motherboard will accept which is 4 gigs total. This is not the actual installed memory but only what the total memory that can be installed.
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#5
SKOOTERBUM

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so do you mean that i can ignor this warning, and that there is nothing wrong with my system, and everything most likely is operating as it should ??

and the warning is there because i don't have the maximum amount of memory installed for this board ??

thanks,
ron
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#6
rshaffer61

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so do you mean that i can ignor this warning

Yes

there is nothing wrong with my system, and everything most likely is operating as it should ??

Unless you are experiencing any specific issue I see no reason to worry.


and the warning is there because i don't have the maximum amount of memory installed for this board ??

Yes it is more of information to let you know what you can install total on your motherboard.
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#7
SKOOTERBUM

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thank you for helping me with this.

when i saw the WARNING label, i assumed that there was a problem.

i think it is operating as it should, so i will ignor this as you suggest.

in time i plan to ad more memory to the system.

thanks,
ron
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#8
rshaffer61

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When you are ready to upgrade the memory you might want to consider this way to guarantee compatibility.

Go to HERE and run the Crucial online scanner.
This will give you the exact memory configuration for your system.
You do not have to buy the memory from there, but write down the information and if you need assistance in purchasing the upgrade memory GTG can assist with suggestions also.
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#9
SKOOTERBUM

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When you are ready to upgrade the memory you might want to consider this way to guarantee compatibility.

Go to HERE and run the Crucial online scanner.
This will give you the exact memory configuration for your system.
You do not have to buy the memory from there, but write down the information and if you need assistance in purchasing the upgrade memory GTG can assist with suggestions also.



thank you !!!
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#10
rshaffer61

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You are very welcome Ron and I'm glad I could answer your questions for you. :thumbsup:
BTW my name is Ron also so we have something in common now. ;)
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#11
Ztruker

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Just some added info.

Open Task Manager then click on the Performance tab. What does it report for Total Physical Memory. That is the number Windows sees.
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#12
SKOOTERBUM

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Just some added info.

Open Task Manager then click on the Performance tab. What does it report for Total Physical Memory. That is the number Windows sees.


i love having 2 PC's. it helps in many ways, especialy for multitasking. but i get mixed up on getting the right information from the right PC....LOL

now that i got the information from the PC in question, the answer is, 2094144Kilobytes or 1.99713GB is the total that shows in the task manager.

ron
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#13
SKOOTERBUM

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You are very welcome Ron and I'm glad I could answer your questions for you. :thumbsup:
BTW my name is Ron also so we have something in common now. ;)



hi Ron. i am in the beggining stages of learning how PC's work. so you will most likely see more of my posts asking for help.

i recently purchased all new components, and assembled my own PC, and managed to get it up and running. Macboatmaster helped me with that project. so i have learned that much anyways. but there is a lot more that i hope to learn over time.

this sure is a friendly site !!!

thanks,
ron
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#14
Macboatmaster

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and what did Crucial say because according to Gateway it can take 8Gb.
http://support.gatew...008696sp3.shtml

and sometimes SIW does not always report correctly, excellent as the program is.

However sometimes the BIOS reports incorrect values not the quantity of ram per se ie: 2Gb but the aspects of the ram.

In otherwords you can have installed - just as an example DDR2


Integral 512MB DDR2-667 DIMM

Type DRAM Technology DDR2 SDRAM
Form Factor DIMM 240-pin
Data Integrity Check Non-ECC
Supply Voltage 1.8 V
Module Configuration 64 x 64
RAM Features Unbuffered
Memory Speed 667 MHz ( PC2-5300 )
Chips Organization 64 x 8
Module Height (inch) 1.18
Latency Timings CL5


But the Bios may not report it as that configuration, although it will report it as the 512Mb
However as I said and indeed as my colleague rshaffer61 has said, if all is working well it is nothing AT THIS STAGE to concern yourself with and indeed maybe NOT the BIOS reporting incorrectly but SIW

Here is why
Utilities, that analyse your computer get much of their information from the system BIOS, which keeps tables specifying the processor type and memory configuration. In some cases, this information is not recorded correctly by the BIOS and the analytical utility cannot determine that the BIOS information is incorrect. Common data problems include:
  • System brand or model is incorrect (e.g., "System Manufacturer")
  • System type shown as desktop when it's a notebook
  • Incorrect number of free or filled memory slots
  • Incorrect memory type or maximum module size
  • The System Management BIOS (SMBIOS) Specification provides a way for utilities to get information about the PC. Older PCs built before about 1998 usually do not implement SMBIOS at all; PCs built before 2000 often have serious inaccuracies in their data.
  • Even newer systems can have incorrect SMBIOS data.
As I know from the previous topics I have helped you on, YOU like to learn and know more about it.

That Gateway uses for example, three different types of RAM - makes capacity etc when it was manufactured
as per HERE
http://support.gatew...008696cl2.shtml

Here is just one of them
ManufacturerGateway
Manufacturer Part No.WMEHYS64T64000HU3SB
Memory TypeDDR2 SDRAM
Capacity512MB
Pins240 PinBus
TypePC-5300Error
CorrectionNon-ECC
Cycle Time6ns
CasCL5
Data Transfer Rate667Mhz
Memory Clock166Mhz
Voltage1.8



Now you will notice that this is NON ECC - that means No error correcting
Here is all the information you could ever want.
http://en.wikipedia....wiki/ECC_memory

as basically all you need to know, or indeed 99% of users is - is the ram I need ECC or NON ECC, aside of course from the important details of type, speed voltage configuration etc.

NOW LOOKING at the report in the image it is -single bit ECC

Could well be SIW as I said.

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#15
rshaffer61

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Looking at the original picture that was posted it clearly shows the maximum capacity of the motherboard and Ron has stated he only has 2 gigs installed. The BIOS is not showing anything wrong but the total possible capacity of the motherboard.
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