16 gigs, only 8 usable

[funnybr0ther]

This seems to be a very common issue with RAM, but no solution seems to be working...

So,

I've been using 8 gigs of DDR4 2400Mhz as one stick for almost a year, and I felt like upgrading to 16 gigs of dual channel, seeing how my Ryzen 5 1600X likes memory bandwidth...

I installed the new 8 gigs stick in the second slot of my Asus B350M-K (it only has two slots, so this can't be a wrong slot issue) and fired up BFV to see my Fps multiplied by 200... However, that didn't really
happen, as Windows seems to only use 8 gigs, saying in the System page, 16 gigs (only 8 usable). I did the msconfig thing with maximum ram (unchecking the box), didn't work, verified that both sticks worked independently,
and they do, etc... In the BIOS, it detects both RAM sticks, but on the side says that it uses 8 gigs... I e-mailed asus but they didn't really answer. Could someone help me?

 

System Specs:

Ryzen 5 1600X (not oc)

Asus B350M-K
2* 8G HyperX Fury 2400 Mhz DDR4

Geforce 1060 3G

Windows Home 64 bits

[rcmaehl]

Windows is mistakenly reserving 8GB for hardware. Swap slots the RAM is in and make sure both sticks of RAM are the same, or at the very least, listed as compatible with each other. Update BIOS as well.

[funnybr0ther]

I already swapped them, but my BIOS might actually be outdated, i'll update it rn

 

[LIGISTX]

I don’t have experience with Ryzen, but BIOS could also mistakenly be taking it specifically for VRAM for integrated graphics. May want to check that as well once you update the BIOS.

[funnybr0ther]

I thought so too, but that cpu has no integrated graphics...

[SupaKomputa]

 

23 minutes ago, LIGISTX said:

I don’t have experience with Ryzen, but BIOS could also mistakenly be taking it specifically for VRAM for integrated graphics. May want to check that as well once you update the BIOS.

1600x don't have integrated gpu, cross that out.

 

It maybe incompatible with each other, or the new one is dead / defective.

you can try booting with the new stick only.

[funnybr0ther]

Wow not so nice, I just updated the BIOS, It said update successful, system will now reboot, and when it did the screen was just black... There was no power shutdown or anything else that could have corrupted the update... What do I do? 

[funnybr0ther]

6 minutes ago, SupaKomputa said:

 

1600x don't have integrated gpu, cross that out.

 

It maybe incompatible with each other, or the new one is dead / defective.

you can try booting with the new stick only.

Tried that too, they both work independently

[SupaKomputa]

How about in single channel?

Put them side by side (no gap).

[iLostMyXbox21]

Check to make sure nothing is bent, chipped, cracked, or scratched. 

 

Check the RAM slots to make sure they are not damaged. 

[SupaKomputa]

12 minutes ago, iLostMyXbox21 said:

Check to make sure nothing is bent, chipped, cracked, or scratched. 

 

Check the RAM slots to make sure they are not damaged. 

 

18 minutes ago, funnybr0ther said:

Tried that too, they both work independently

 

[funnybr0ther]

15 minutes ago, SupaKomputa said:

How about in single channel?

Put them side by side (no gap).

My mobo only has two slots

[funnybr0ther]

14 minutes ago, iLostMyXbox21 said:

Check to make sure nothing is bent, chipped, cracked, or scratched. 

 

Check the RAM slots to make sure they are not damaged. 

I know they both work well, I tried each slot and stick individually

[SupaKomputa]

If you have only 2 slots, then no option but to use dual channel.

Ok let's rewind back, you have the same Hyper X Fury modules?

The memory should not be identical, but at least you match the speed.

Usually 1/2 memory usable is when something is broken / loose.

I've got this problem before, but fortunately the seller is willing to swap the module before i'm doing any further test.

[funnybr0ther]

Just now, SupaKomputa said:

If you have only 2 slots, then no option but to use dual channel.

Ok let's rewind back, you have the same Hyper X Fury modules?

The memory should not be identical, but at least you match the speed.

Usually 1/2 memory usable is when something is broken / loose.

I've got this problem before, but fortunately the seller is willing to swap the module before i'm doing any further test.

Yup, they are the same... Uh, for now, my BIOS seems to be corrupted now that I updated it... It just does nothing when I boot up... Could someone help me out here or should I do a new post?

[SupaKomputa]

do you update your bios with both memory?

the bios maybe corrupted from the effect of inproper memory.

if your motherboard have dual bios, you can switch to the default one.

[funnybr0ther]

Just now, SupaKomputa said:

do you update your bios with both memory?

the bios maybe corrupted from the effect of inproper memory. 

if your motherboard have dual bios, you can switch to the default one.

Omg I just managed to reset the BIOS with the jumper thingy to reset it, and removing the new stick of ram, at least that's out of the way. I'll try and make those 8 other gigs work too, and see how things go. This is SO confusing

[funnybr0ther]

Just now, funnybr0ther said:

Omg I just managed to reset the BIOS with the jumper thingy to reset it, and removing the new stick of ram, at least that's out of the way. I'll try and make those 8 other gigs work too, and see how things go. This is SO confusing

So after trying to put the second stick back it seems like it won't boot if that's how I put those two sticks... I really don't know if this is an issue with the motherboard, or with the sticks, considering it ran just fine when I booted with only either sticks. I'm gonna send asus an e-mail back and see what they tell me.

[aezakmi]

It's not a RAM or BIOS problem idk why people keep thinking a BIOS update would solve it, it's a Windows problem that exists, well, since fucking Vista and MS is clearly not willing to solve it.

Only happens with AMD boards so it must be some sort of compatibility problem, Windows has always been more Intel-aligned so that might be the reason of the issue not being solved.

 

There are a few things you could've done BEFORE updating your BIOS and ending up with a black screen, a BIOS update should only be done when a new processor microcode isn't compatible with the current version.

Anyway here are the possible workarounds

 

- Resetting CMOS and configuring the memory speed and timings manually without any kind of "Performance" or "XMP" auto setting.

- Reinstalling Windows, since it's a Windows and not a hardware issue this could solve it for a while, had to do it every 3 months with my old FX build but I partitioned the hard drive in a way that only the base OS is stored in a partition and everything else in a different one.

- Using safe mode to force the maximum memory value to 16384 and then to 0

[_Hustler_One_]

My AMD laptop also getting similar issue, I added RAM from 2x2Gb to 2x4Gb, ended up only 3.7Gb usable while system recognize all the RAM capacity which is 8Gb.. I did every possible way I could try to fix, but no result.

[nick name]

Have you checked under MSCONFIG > Boot > Advanced Options > Maximum Memory?  

[SupaKomputa]

4 hours ago, aezakmi said:

It's not a RAM or BIOS problem idk why people keep thinking a BIOS update would solve it, it's a Windows problem that exists, well, since fucking Vista and MS is clearly not willing to solve it.

Only happens with AMD boards so it must be some sort of compatibility problem, Windows has always been more Intel-aligned so that might be the reason of the issue not being solved.

 

There are a few things you could've done BEFORE updating your BIOS and ending up with a black screen, a BIOS update should only be done when a new processor microcode isn't compatible with the current version.

Anyway here are the possible workarounds

 

- Resetting CMOS and configuring the memory speed and timings manually without any kind of "Performance" or "XMP" auto setting.

- Reinstalling Windows, since it's a Windows and not a hardware issue this could solve it for a while, had to do it every 3 months with my old FX build but I partitioned the hard drive in a way that only the base OS is stored in a partition and everything else in a different one.

- Using safe mode to force the maximum memory value to 16384 and then to 0

Read the whole conversation!

Its the same module.

 

5 hours ago, funnybr0ther said:

So after trying to put the second stick back it seems like it won't boot if that's how I put those two sticks... I really don't know if this is an issue with the motherboard, or with the sticks, considering it ran just fine when I booted with only either sticks. I'm gonna send asus an e-mail back and see what they tell me.

That is the module that is not working.

Return it as soon as possible, to get a unit swap.

Memory lasted forever, but factory defects are common.

[funnybr0ther]

9 hours ago, nick name said:

Have you checked under MSCONFIG > Boot > Advanced Options > Maximum Memory?  

Yup, doesn't work

[funnybr0ther]

5 hours ago, SupaKomputa said:

Read the whole conversation!

Its the same module. 

 

That is the module that is not working.

Return it as soon as possible, to get a unit swap.

Memory lasted forever, but factory defects are common. 

Ty for the advice, although it seems really wierd that the new stick works alone