Program to determine how much memory is supported?

[nissanman]

Hey All, I have a computer with 256mb ram and i want to upgrade to 512mb but i do not know if my computer can support that much, so i was wondering, are there any programs i can download that can determine the amount of ram my system can support? I do not have any manuals for this computer as i built it myself and cannot seem to find any info about this motherboard on the net.

Cheers, Nissanman

 

[Matthew DeCarlo]

Try using something such as CPU-Z to be sure that you have identified the motherboard brand and model correctly.

 

[nissanman]

Well, CPU-Z dosnt tell me the Make and model of my motherboard, but it does say that the chipset is Via Apollo Pro.

 

[Matthew DeCarlo]

Are the values under "Mainboard" just empty then? I am sure there are probably quite a few motherboards with that chipset.

Perhaps Everest will give you the motherboard's information...

 

[LookinAround]

Try going to www.crucial.com and let them scan your system to tell you what you got, what you can support, and what they could sell you that your computer would support.

 

[nissanman]

Well, everest dosnt tell me it either, Next to motherboard name it just say "Unknown". But i have installed a program called Astra32. It tells me that the motherboard is a Taiwan Commate. It says next to Motherboard OEM "Taiwan Commate Computer Corporation" It dose not tell me the model though but the Bios is Award Modular BIOS 4.51PG. I went to Crucial.com not so long ago and tried their scanner, it is unable to tell me anything. Only the amount of ram i currently have

 

[Matthew DeCarlo]

I'm tired and lazy. I honestly don't want to go look at every possible combination of "Taiwan Commate Computer Corporation" motherboards with a "Via Apollo Pro" chipset and "Award Modular BIOS 4.51PG" BIOS. Maybe someone else will be up for the task.

That said, if you just want to go up to 512MB you should be fine, really. I can't imagine your motherboard has a RAM capacity limit of <512MB (I'd be extremely surprised anyway). Be sure that the new module is at least compatible with your motherboard specification-wise by comparing it to the old RAM. CPU-Z ought to at least display your RAM information yes?

 

[nissanman]

Yea, CPU-Z displays my ram info. I have 2 128mb pc133 ram modules in my computer at the moment. I want to get just one 512mb module to rule out any compatibility issues with 2 256mbs. Anyway, i looked on my motherboard and it clearly states the model on it, 370VB. I searched that on google and it says that it is able to support 1.5GB so i should be ok

 

[Matthew DeCarlo]

Sounds great, good luck and enjoy .

 

[BILL_S]

Well, CPU-Z dosnt tell me the Make and model of my motherboard, but it does say that the chipset is Via Apollo Pro.

You need CPUID's more powerful PC Wizard application software, it's free and covers many more bases.

Also, in similar fashion there is Everest Ultimate! I got my hands on a free install that appears to have everything open (non trial)

 

[Matthew DeCarlo]

You need CPUID's more powerful PC Wizard application software, it's free and covers many more bases.

Also, in similar fashion there is Everest Ultimate! I got my hands on a free install that appears to have everything open (non trial)

He's already tried Everest and he's already figured out what his motherboard is as well what it will support.

 

[LookinAround]

just fyi....

if you don't need the flashy/colorful interface of PC Wizard but a good tool to "drill down" and tell you what you have.... try System Information Viewer (SIV (and it's free)

I'll have to check out Everest myself

 

[BILL_S]

I turned to a non demo Everest download via MajorGeeks or something I think, really nice to have regardless of lacking information. CPUID's PC Wizard has a neat interface I think... With the OEM computers, these have really helped me determine the right drivers for the most part. I'll try the SIV as well. I can't recall the one the local store told me about, but it's OLD, and didn't work well for me.
I like that it works for the old Windows too.
I had a Jetway mobo for example, and the proprietary IBM Aptiva SFF machine I came across allowing no real easy way to find the chipset drivers with these.