Question 2x4 GB with only 4 GB "Usable RAM" Issue

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Newmanzest

Mar 9, 2019
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Hello everyone,

Like many others, I am having an issue where only 4 of my 8gb is usable. I went to boot > Advanced and checked the max RAM usage and 8gbs shows up.

My computer recognizes 2x4 gbs and both RAM sticks are identical in DDR3. Hardware is reserving 4 gb as can be seen in the screenshots below.

My Motherboard is a ASUS m5a78 lx plus running on WIN 10 Home

If there is anything else I can screenshot that would be helpful in diagnosing this, just let me know.

Appreciate any help or advice, thank you.
 
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Post an image of the Windows 10 Resource monitor for your Memory. It should be a window that looks like the following:

Windows10-Resource-Monitor.jpg


Your 4 GB of Hardware Reserved is not normal.
 
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Are you running mixed memory (Did not both come together in one set) or did they come together in one set? What slots, exactly, are they installed in?

What is the part number of your memory kit or each individual stick?

Have you tried (With the power off, of course) removing them and reseating them or moving each stick to where the other stick is currently installed?
 
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Look into your BIOS options.
Your motherboard supports integrated graphics and you may have specified a max size for your graphics vram.
If you are using a discrete graphics card disable the integrated graphics entirely.
There may be other bios specs which can carve out dedicated ram.

Is there a memory remapping option in the bios?
If so, try changing it.

Check for bios updates to your motherboard.
CPU-Z will tell you your current bios level.
Do not flash the bios on speculation.
A failed flash can leave an older motherboard useless.
Flash only if you see an update that addresses your issue.
 
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geofelt said:
Look into your BIOS options.
Your motherboard supports integrated graphics and you may have specified a max size for your graphics vram.
If you are using a discrete graphics card disable the integrated graphics entirely.
There may be other bios specs which can carve out dedicated ram.

Is there a memory remapping option in the bios?
If so, try changing it.

Check for bios updates to your motherboard.
CPU-Z will tell you your current bios level.
Do not flash the bios on speculation.
A failed flash can leave an older motherboard useless.
Flash only if you see an update that addresses your issue.
Click to expand...
I will check on these items when I get home. I do have a dedicated GPU, but am not sure if it's pulling in the integrated graphics. On the ASUS site, I found a BIOS update I was planning on flashing to:

"M5A78L-M LX PLUS BIOS 1302
1.Improve system stability.
2.Improve memory compatibility" - ASUS Website

Would that be something I should try to update to?

Thanks
 
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geofelt said:
Your motherboard supports integrated graphics and you may have specified a max size for your graphics vram.
Click to expand...

According to the boards specs the max shared ram for the onbaord GPU is 1024MB. Remember these CPUs didn't have onboard graphics, the GPU is integrated into the motherboard.

@Newmanzest has this EVER worked right? Is this a recent change that the 4gb is showing as reserved?

I ask because commonly this is caused on AM3 by a bent pin on the CPU.
 
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doesn't hurt to keep your bios up to date. Improve system stability dunno what it means improve memory compatibility widens the range of dimm modules available for it

https://www.asus.com/uk/Motherboards/M5A78LMUSB3/HelpDesk_QVL/

There's your list of dimms if it''s not on the list it might not change anything though my corsairs aren't precisely qvl for my board they work fine. The 1600mhz version is but the 2400 version isn't. I was thinking qvl is less of an issue for ddr3 and more of an issue for ddr4.

Could be some other problem in the system.
 
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Rogue Leader said:
I ask because commonly this is caused on AM3 by a bent pin on the CPU.
Click to expand...

100%!!

Bent pin, wrong slots, mixed memory modules where compatibility is an issue or wrong TYPE of memory module, are the most common probabilities. I wouldn't chase the other options until making certain there is not an issue with a bent pin, and there could have been one for a long time and you never knew it until you added another stick of RAM or changed slots.
 
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Rogue Leader said:
According to the boards specs the max shared ram for the onbaord GPU is 1024MB. Remember these CPUs didn't have onboard graphics, the GPU is integrated into the motherboard.

@Newmanzest has this EVER worked right? Is this a recent change that the 4gb is showing as reserved?

I ask because commonly this is caused on AM3 by a bent pin on the CPU.
Click to expand...
I believe it worked correctly at one point. The system was sent over to me so I am not sure what it was like before. It was previously on Windows 7 before a fresh install of WIN 10.

I know it's an older system, but it's said 4 gb reserved for as long as I've had it.
 
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Newmanzest said:
I believe it worked correctly at one point. The system was sent over to me so I am not sure what it was like before. It was previously on Windows 7 before a fresh install of WIN 10.

I know it's an older system, but it's said 4 gb reserved for as long as I've had it.
Click to expand...

If you can't confirm for sure that it worked right in the past I think bent pin is definitely on the table as the problem. Get yourself some thermal paste and pull the cooler and CPU and check. Its a good time to clean inside anyway. To make it easier to remove the cooler run the computer for a couple minutes to heat the processor a little then shut down and remove the cooler. Only a minute or so.
 
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Rogue Leader said:
If you can't confirm for sure that it worked right in the past I think bent pin is definitely on the table as the problem. Get yourself some thermal paste and pull the cooler and CPU and check. Its a good time to clean inside anyway. To make it easier to remove the cooler run the computer for a couple minutes to heat the processor a little then shut down and remove the cooler. Only a minute or so.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the advice. I will play around with the BIOS and do a BIOS update and if that doesn't work, I'll check the pins.
 
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I'd make sure there isn't a problem first, then update. If you update with an issue, you could brick the motherboard.

Another possible factor, if you have an aftermarket CPU cooler, is too tight or uneven tightening on one or more corners/sides. Uneven tightening of the CPU cooler can cock the CPU in the socket and break the connection to one or more pins. Since you'll need to remove the CPU cooler anyhow, you can address that when reinstalling to make sure it's tightened evenly all the way around and is secure on all sides, laying flat against the heatspreader. I'm with RL though, it's likely a bent pin.
 
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