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    Is my RAM ECC on Best Buy M17x?

    Discussion in 'Alienware 17 and M17x' started by Tchamber, Jun 25, 2010.

  1. Tchamber

    Tchamber Notebook Consultant

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    Hey all. my computer only registers 3.75 gigs of RAM out of 4 installed. Is this because I have ECC memory? And if so, would there be a noticeable performance gain from going to non-ecc? BTW, I paid $1173 for this laptop, was that a good deal? Seems Best Buy Alienware stock is a little out of date, though the C2Q is a great CPU.
     
    Tchamber, Jun 25, 2010
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  2. graye

    graye Newbie

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    No, Error Correction Code (ECC) RAM has nothing to do with this phenomenon. What you’re seeing is that a 32-bit OS can’t fully use all 4 Gbs of RAM. The difference between your 3.75 Gb and 4 Gb is due to the mapping of RAM that exist on other devices (most notably the graphic card). This is normal, and does not need to be fixed.

    There are tons of articles on the web that discuss this issue…
     
    graye, Jun 28, 2010
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  3. stamatisx

    stamatisx T|I

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    If you have the R1 and the integrated GPU enabled in the BIOS, it takes 256MB out of the RAM as memory for the 9400.
     
    stamatisx, Jun 28, 2010
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  4. Tchamber

    Tchamber Notebook Consultant

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    Thanks stamatisx, this is good info.
     
    Tchamber, Jun 30, 2010
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