Upgrading RAM in Dell Optiplex 380
Solution 1
A Dell manual for the Optiplex 380 says
Memory
Memory module connector 2 DIMM slots
Memory module capacity 1 GB, 2 GB, or 4 GB
Memory type 1067 MHz DDR3
Minimum memory 1 GB
Maximum memory 8 GB
So yes, you can replace the RAM with 2 x 4GB DDR3
Solution 2
What they are saying is that the G41 chipset can support either DDR2 or DDR3 memory and so the quantity of memory you can fit is highly dependant on which memory type your motherboard manufacturer chose to allow you to fit.
This is due to the fact that DDR2 and DDR3 signals are kind of similar though the connectors for the memory DIMMs are not completely the same hence the strange limitation. Essentially the motherboard manufacturer chose whether to go for faster DDR3 memory, or more DDR2 memory on the board.
There were even a few motherboards that supported both at one time though only one type could be used at a time.
If you have DDR3 memory slots then you are limited to 4GB.
If you have DDR2 memory slots then you are able to use 8GB.
Related videos on Youtube
JayaprakashReddy
Passionate to give solutions to real world problems using various technologies suitable for the solution. Has hands on with technologies like Install Shield, VB6, C, C++, VC++, PHP, Microsoft technologies since Dot net framework 2.0 (C#, ASP.net, VB.net).
Updated on September 18, 2022Comments
-
JayaprakashReddy over 1 year
I've Dell optiplex 380 machine and I've 32bit Windows 7 ultimate OS on it with DDR3 2*2GB RAM on it.
I want to upgrade my machine to use 8GB RAM with 64bit windows 7 ultimate OS and want to install DDR3 2*4GB RAM. Is this possible on this machine?
I'm little bit layman in this area but by reading the specs I have got an impression that max Ram I can use on this machine is 4GB with DDR3 and 8GB with DDR2. Can anybody give me clear idea on this?
specification links of processor and mother board chipset:
-
JohannesM over 11 yearssee Configuration Details in kingston.com/de/memory/…
-
JayaprakashReddy over 11 yearsNegative voters - if you could give me the reason for downvote, that would help me a lot to reframe my question or give more information.
-
bgmCoder about 10 yearsI think you were downvoted because you can find this easily by searching on Amazon. Try it. Here are some search engine results: duckduckgo.com/?q=max+ram+dell+optiplex+380
-
-
JayaprakashReddy over 11 yearsThanks a lot for the manual and info. I did try installing 64bit OS and installed 8GB DDR3 RAM as well and it worked without any issue.
-
JayaprakashReddy over 11 yearsThanks for the detailed information on the specification links given by me.