Upgrade memory from 4GB to 16Gb, but Hardware Reserved memory got 8GB

17,434

Solution 1

After much research I've found that the "system reserved" message is a generic message that windows uses to say you that some of your memory is locked by the BIOS. The problem is it can happen for a number of reasons, even a few that are software related, but it's usually hardware.

In your case I think it's a memory compatability problem with your new sticks. One thing that affects memory compatibility is it's density level. Which is how much memory is packed into each memory chip and can affect the hardware's ability to access it. Another related issue is if it's single or double sided, which is if the chips are on both sides of the stick or not.

This is a pretty common problem when someone updates a older system with newer RAM, because the newer RAM takes advantage of denser chips, but the older system can't actually access them properly. Check your computer's MB manual or support site to see what memory configuration is recommended by the manufacturer, and check your sticks against it. You're most likely going to have to get compatible sticks, so see if you can return the ones you have for an exchange or refund.

Solution 2

It's way in the future now, I hope you all made it here :), but I rebooted the PC 3 times With remap enabled and ended with a driver error and a restart, disabled it and rebooted and the memory shows up as usable, your experience may differ.

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Dr.jacky
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Dr.jacky

Updated on September 18, 2022

Comments

  • Dr.jacky
    Dr.jacky over 1 year

    I want to upgrade my laptop memory from 4GB (Hynix-BUS 1600-DDR3-PC3 12800-voltage 1.5v), to two 8GB memories (total:16GB - Kingmax-BUS 1600-DDR3-PC3 12800-voltage 1.35/1.5v)

    OS: Windows 7 64bit Ultimate (I Installed it myself)
    Laptop model: ASUS N56DP
    Supported Memory: Up to 16GB BIOS version: 214 (Latest). Source: HERE

    When I put these two new memories, system doesn't boot up at all. even not showing ASUS logo; just a black screen; and power light and a lock light(a lock with an 'A' inside it, turns on.

    After that I put just one of them lonely (total: 8GB), and doesn't boot up, like mentioned above.I repeat it with the other new memory, and didn't work again.

    But when I put 8GB and 4GB together, system get boot up, and lock light turns off. (P.S: after this, when I put those new 8GB memories together, lock light didn't turn on anymore!)
    Now in BIOS, it says 12GB DDR3
    In CPU-Z, it shows both RAMs very well (the only difference is voltage for 8GB; it says 1.35v)
    In AIDA-64, it shows both of them
    In Device Manager, it says "Installed memory 12GB, usable 3.45GB)
    In Task Manager, it shows 4GB for physical memory
    In Resource Monitor, it says "Hardware Reserved 8758MB"

    Maximum memory in msconfig, under BOOT tab is unchecked.
    There is no feature for remapping memory in BIOS; There is no option at all in BIOS!!!

    I ran meminfo -r command, and it shows some 2GB and 1GB used for something.

    My AMD Catalyst driver version is 14.9; and "AMD Radeon Dual Graphics is enabled"; Of course, disabling this feature didn't solve my problem.

    I tried updating BIOS (reinstalling v.214 again, but there is a warning says "it's too old, press ENTER to cancel". So I reinstalled it via UEFI BIOS Updater; to insure it's up to date!

    How can I release that Hardware Reserved memory?
    Or even how can I put these new 8GB memories together and upgrade it to 16GB? Cause after put 8GB + 4GB together, system works very smoother than before. So Based on this situation, I want to put those two 8GB together, and ignore reserved memory at all.

    Thanks.

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    • Admin
      Admin over 7 years
      You have 8758 MB ram in hardware reserved.
    • Admin
      Admin over 7 years
      Already this topic has been discussed in our forum check this link.
    • Admin
      Admin over 7 years
      @vembutech What do you mean by "installed RAM was in an unsupported config" ?! And what si wrong with set both 8GB (total 16GB) ?
    • Admin
      Admin over 7 years
      @Mr.Hyde - They means use two 8GB modules. My suggestion is to reset your BIOS configuration to the default settings. This should trick, the setting which you say you can't find, to go back to a reasonable number.
    • Admin
      Admin over 7 years
      @vembutech - We are not a forum.
    • Admin
      Admin over 7 years
    • Admin
      Admin over 7 years
      @DavidPostill No, it's not. I saw that post before (see my comment on there), it's for specific HP Laptop that have more that two memory slot; I have two.
    • Admin
      Admin over 7 years
      The other question is about a system that requires triple-channel memory, or another matched-memory setup, which is more common in workstations and multiprocessor systems. @Mr.Hyde is correct that this is not duplicate.
  • Ramhound
    Ramhound over 7 years
    You should edit your answer and in detail provide specifics on how the author solves their problem.
  • Andrew Morton
    Andrew Morton over 7 years
    The OP's photos show that both the old and new RAM are dual rank.