Is it possible to have more ram than specified?

Would it work if i install more ram than specified? Would it recognize the ram and improve performance? thanks

 

It depends on the specific system you're referring to and the operating system you are using. There are many cases were the manufacturer may specify "maximum 4GB" for RAM while the chip-set actually recognizes more than that; of course if you're looking to go above 3GB of RAM then you will also need a 64 bit operating system to go with it. The other limiting factor is how many RAM slots your machine has (common for older laptops is 2 while newer laptops are showing up with 3 or in my case 4 RAM slots).

 

I would post your specific model in the company subforum here (ie. H), to see if anyone has tested any memory amount above the maximum specified. Also, noting the BIOS revision and Intel chipset is important.

 

yes it is.. for example a Asus G72 has 3 lots and has used 12GB RAM although PM45 Chipset limits to 8GB RAM... there are cases but depends on chipset and BIOS support.

 

As always going beyond specs it may or may not work.

 

Notebook vendors usually post what they have tested the system with as the maximum. In some cases, more memory is possible as long as there is not a chipset or OS limit (like we had when 2 GB RAM modules became available but most systems were still running 32-bit OS's that could not access 4 GB). Often it is possible...but sometimes not. It really is model-specific, and worth checking in the forums for the model you are interested in.

 

An example would be my own 2 PM965 machines, although advertised to run at 4GB max, but I have them installed respectively 6GB and 8GB. It depends on the BIOS, the chipset, motherboard design (ie. No. of DIMM slots, generally 2 but some PM45 chipsets have 4 SoDIMM slots) and whether if the manufacturer enables it.

Now I think it would be advisable to tell us what model your laptop could be. If yours is something say, a GL40 or 965PM/GM chipset it may not be possible to go past 4GB.

 

Just to note, the "can't access 4 GB on a 32-bit OS" myth is false, most 32-bit OS's have extended memory support that enables use of most of the 4GB.

 

Most of the time you can, because what they specify and advertise is just the number of slot x max available ram size at the time of sales. The limit is 8gb because there's only max of 4gb rams. on some systems like the G73 with 4 slots, the limit is stated as 16gb because there's 4 slots. When 8gb per slot rams are available you will probably be able to go over the specified limit.

 

Not necessarily higher density DIMs can cause issues.

 

As far as I know, it also requires support from hardware, so some laptops cannot access a portion of the extra gigabyte at all.

 

From personal experience, yes. I found that I was able to run 6gb (but not 8gb) on a Toshiba M700. This result was reproduced by others with the same machine. I believe that it is a combination of chipset + BIOS limitations for any given laptop.

 

It's more like it's complicated--notice how even your rejection of this "myth" required two qualifications. Depends on the combination of OS and hardware, which is why several people have mentioned that memory limitations are specific to a computer model, and can not be generalized to all computers.