[SOLVED] Windows installation at snail pace after upgrade to 4GB on old Intel DG965RY board

[vijay.kumar.kanta]

Hello everyone, nice to meet you all. I got a problem with my computer. I was running 2 GB 533Mhz and Windows 8.1 on this board with no fuss at all, but recently got a great deal for two 2GB sticks of 800Mhz which I took and installed. The OS was now running smoother until I had to use my 8.1 DVD to install from scratch. Here comes the problem that bugged me for days until I realized that the mother board won't allow smooth Windows (8.1 or 7) installation if the ram goes beyond 3GB. Not even a byte more. This I realized after switching RAM sticks to find if any one of them was the reason for the sluggish installation (almost took 2 hours to install Win 7). I must point out that Win 8.1 never got installed. The spinning circle was spinning forever without giving me the language and time options. I had to abort.

The board Inte DG965 RY is capable of 8 GB ram when 800Mhz is used by default. The processor is Core 2 Duo E3400 EM64T capable by default, still however it refuses to let me make a smooth Window installation. The moment I remove a 2 gig stick and stick in a 1 gig stick, the install is super smooth. Any thoughts or help?

 

[13thmonkey]

What happens if you install with 3 and then swap the memory for 4? Assuming 64bit windows?

 

[vijay.kumar.kanta]

What happens if you install with 3 and then swap the memory for 4? Assuming 64bit windows?

Nothing happens, all is good, but it completely sounds strange and defeats the purpose. I mean I have to alter config just to install, and then again alter config for it to run and take advantage of the full RAM.

I want to know whether there is something in the BIOS that I may have to do to prevent this thing if it again happens in future that I have to reinstall, this time with additional 4 gigs of RAM.

And the weird thing happens for both 32bit and 64bit versions, but I am willing to go the 64bit route.

 

[13thmonkey]

With 4GB of RAM you must go 64 bit, do you have physical address extension enabled in the bios, or memory remapping? It'll be a yes/no enabled disabled flag to do with memory, probably on the CPU page.

 

[vijay.kumar.kanta]

Okay, I checked the BIOS, and found nothing to enable/disable PAE or memory mapping, so I simply went ahead, removed a 2g stick and installed Win8.1 64bit. The install went flawlessly and soon after I introduced the other 2g stick, the OS hangs during boot. The spinner spins forever.

One important thing is that when I put in a new 2g stick after the 32bit install finished, the OS booted absolutely normally. This happens only with 64bit. Again I am perplexed at this situation.

P.S The Ubuntu OSes just install without a hiccup. Even with 5g ram already in. They run fantastic too.

 

[vijay.kumar.kanta]

Okay sorry all, I forgot the thumb rule "Keep your software updated". Essentially I had to update the BIOS of this relic of motherboard which has issues with certain bios releases. I went ahead and got the version 1761 for my board intel dg965 ry and bam! The problem's gone. Boots up perfect and soon I shall be enticed into going for more 4 gigs. Sweet!

Thanks 13thMonkey for your help!