Hello all,

I've been running Memtest86 version 3.2 on my memory sticks lately. I mainly started because I read a lot about it in the forums and wanted to try it out. I'm kind of new to the whole PC scene, so I don't know exactly why, or when, to run memory tests or what all the numbers are supposed to tell me.

I'll start by listing my system specs.:

Processor:
Intel P4 3.0C GHz w/800MHz FSB
Motherboard:
MSI 865G Neo2-PLS
Memory:
Kingston ValueRam 1GB (2 x 512MB) PC2700
Hard Disk:
Western Digital 160GB, 7200RPM IDE

I realize that my current memory is not optimum for my system, but at the time I built my system, it was what I had, I plan on upgrading to PC3200 in the future.

My motherboard has 4 RAM slots, 2 each for Channel "A" and Channel "B". I've run each stick in each slot, individually, for a minimum of 5 hours per run. The first stick has consistantly run without any errors, the second stick has consistantly run with many errors! :eek:

My questions are these:
Have I run the tests properly?
Can I assume that ultimately there should be no errors?
My memory has a "Lifetime Warranty", how would I go about having Kingston replace the bad stick?

If I've left out any pertinent information, I apologize and please feel free to request it.

Any responses are greatly appreciated.

Thank you,
ahnadahodo

There is really no way to run MemTest wrong and yes, there should be no errors whatsoever.

You can either take the memory back to where you bought it or RMA it directly to Kingston. You can find the RMA form on www.kingston.com under support.

Nodsu, thanks for the reply!

When I made reference to the "proper" way to run MemTest, I meant that I wasn't sure if I should've run the tests on the sticks individually or both at the same time. Also, whether or not I should've run the tests with some sort of "heavy load" on the system, apparently I did O.K.

Thanks again and I'll look into requesting an RMA from Kingston.

ahnadahodo

If you haven't, run the other memory stick by itself and see if you can recreate the results of having both of them in.

It is very possible, although not as likely, one of your memory slots are bad or there is another problem with you system, such as a failing CPU.

There should be no errors, but memtest itself cannot determine what is causing the problem.. It just tells you that there are memory errors, which can be caused by a number of things. Memtest, like other programs, is prone to bugs and errata with certain chipsets etc.. So make sure you have the latest one. There's another called memtest+ which you can use to cross verify the results.

Rick,

Thanks for your response.

I did run each memory stick, separately, in each of the 4 slots on my motherboard. The good stick consistantly ran without any errors in all 4 slots, while the bad stick consistantly ran with a lot of errors in all 4 slots. This leads me to believe that the memory stick itself is bad and not the board or anything else. I will try to find the MemTest+ program and run that also, just to help verify my results.

Thanks again,

ahnadahodo