Computer runs out of memory?

[ellman12]

Hey all,

I have a pretty old computer (around 7 years I think) and it has a strange issue. Whenever I get into the desktop, after a few minutes, the computer just locks up, freezes, and can't do anything. I was able to check the RAM usage before this happens, and most of the RAM in the system is being used (it has 4 GB of RAM) . This just started happening recently. What should I do? Should I try adding more RAM or what else could I try? Help is greatly appreciated!

 

[grmnlxndr]

Hi, 4GB of ram isn’t much for today standards, but it shouldn’t happen that by doing almost nothing. In your case I would try reinstalling the OS, it should help a lot.

Best regards

 

[ellman12]

Hi, 4GB of ram isn’t much for today standards, but it shouldn’t happen that by doing almost nothing. In your case I would try reinstalling the OS, it should help a lot.

Best regards

Is there something else I could do? That would not be an easy process.

 

[Gam3r01]

Its not an easy process, but its usually very worth it.

 

[grmnlxndr]

You can try looking for malware and so on. The times I tried following that way, it took more time than a fresh install.
For a fresh install make sure the following:
- backup your files and documents (if you have a partition for your OS, only backup the files you need stored in the OS partition)
- download drivers and store it in a USB drive (or if you have a partition for your data, store there)
- when installing your OS, make sure the drive/partition you are formatting is the OS, and not your data one.

Installing an OS is not difficult, it just takes its time.

Best regards