When a computer starts to run slow the first thing that pops into the mind of most people is "I need more memory". Upgrading your systems memory is one of the cheapest and easiest upgrades to perform, but before you upgrade you need to find out a few things about your system.
How to find your current memory/RAM information If you have no idea what kind of memory your system is currently using then go download and install CPU-ID.
CPU-ID will show you the type of memory you are using, how much of it you have, as well as more advanced information. For now we are just interested in the size, i.e. the amount of RAM in your system.
To Upgrade or not to upgrade
If you have 2GB of RAM or more you probably have enough as it stands. In that case you may want to try other alternatives to speed up your PC, such as:
1. Defrag your hard drives
Either use Windows built in defragger, or a third-party defragger. The windows one can be found in the (Help and Support -> Tools -> Disk Defragmenter) on WinXP systems.
2. Run a Virus/Spyware/Trojan scan
3. Disable background programs/services
Start -> Run -> type "msconfig" -> Start up tab -> uncheck programs you don't need on start up.
4. Use windows performance monitoring to diagnose the problem.
This can be found in Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Performance. You can add counters by right-clicking on the chart. You should probably seek out a tutorial on how to use this.
5. Format your drive (The last resort, so try everything else first)
On the other hand, if you have 1GB or less you will most likely benefit from upgrading, especially if you are running Windows Vista. Vista seems to thrive at 2GB and it wouldn't hurt to have 2GB in a Windows XP or Linux system as well.
Things you should know beforehand
When upgrading your memory you should be aware of the following
1. All the RAM in your system should be identical, in other words all your RAM sticks should be of the same type, brand, and have the same timings. Using identical RAM will provide you with a more stable system than mixing RAM from different vendors.
2. In most cases the RAM currently in your system will be replaced by your new RAM.
3. Make sure your motherboard can support the RAM you are planning to buy. It's a good idea to check your motherboard manual or website regarding supported memory types e.g. DDR, DDR2, DDR3, Rambus, etc...
4. For 32-bit operating systems there is no point in having more than 4GB of RAM. In actuality only about 3GB of the 4GB is used with the remainder reserved by the OS. If you want a system that can run more than 4GB of memory you need to install a 64-bit version of the operating system.
How to find your current memory/RAM information If you have no idea what kind of memory your system is currently using then go download and install CPU-ID.
CPU-ID will show you the type of memory you are using, how much of it you have, as well as more advanced information. For now we are just interested in the size, i.e. the amount of RAM in your system.
To Upgrade or not to upgrade
If you have 2GB of RAM or more you probably have enough as it stands. In that case you may want to try other alternatives to speed up your PC, such as:
1. Defrag your hard drives
Either use Windows built in defragger, or a third-party defragger. The windows one can be found in the (Help and Support -> Tools -> Disk Defragmenter) on WinXP systems.
2. Run a Virus/Spyware/Trojan scan
3. Disable background programs/services
Start -> Run -> type "msconfig" -> Start up tab -> uncheck programs you don't need on start up.
4. Use windows performance monitoring to diagnose the problem.
This can be found in Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Performance. You can add counters by right-clicking on the chart. You should probably seek out a tutorial on how to use this.
5. Format your drive (The last resort, so try everything else first)
On the other hand, if you have 1GB or less you will most likely benefit from upgrading, especially if you are running Windows Vista. Vista seems to thrive at 2GB and it wouldn't hurt to have 2GB in a Windows XP or Linux system as well.
Things you should know beforehand
When upgrading your memory you should be aware of the following
1. All the RAM in your system should be identical, in other words all your RAM sticks should be of the same type, brand, and have the same timings. Using identical RAM will provide you with a more stable system than mixing RAM from different vendors.
2. In most cases the RAM currently in your system will be replaced by your new RAM.
3. Make sure your motherboard can support the RAM you are planning to buy. It's a good idea to check your motherboard manual or website regarding supported memory types e.g. DDR, DDR2, DDR3, Rambus, etc...
4. For 32-bit operating systems there is no point in having more than 4GB of RAM. In actuality only about 3GB of the 4GB is used with the remainder reserved by the OS. If you want a system that can run more than 4GB of memory you need to install a 64-bit version of the operating system.
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