32-bit / 64-bit memory

Ok, so we all know about 32-bit vista being unable to realize 4gb of memory.
Currently, because my video card has 768mb of memory, my 4 gigs of system
memory is only displaying as about 3gb (as expected).

I have two questions:
1) Are there any registry hacks to open up extra available memory
mapping space
2) Does windows offer a trade-up program? I mean comon, I purchased
vista upgrade for 32-bit, but now need 64-bit. I have a 64-bit version of
windows XP just sitting around that I could easily upgrade to Vista-64.
Anyone know of a Vista "swap" program?

Hello Matthew,

Microsoft Knowledge Base article 932795
(http://support.microsoft.com/kb/932795) outlines the various options
available for upgrading and installing Windows Vista 64-bit editions.

To order Windows Vista 64-bit media for a small fee (depending on your
location), please visit
http://www.microsoft.com/windows/pro...ons/64bit.mspx.
At the bottom of the page, select the language that you prefer and click on
the Go button, then follow the on-screen instructions. You will need to have
your Windows Vista product key ready in order to verify your Windows license.

Before migrating to 64-bit, ensure that all of your devices and peripherals
have 64-bit drivers available, and check with the manufacturers of any
applications you may use to verify compatibility with 64-bit Windows.

--
Regards,
Kristan M. Kenney
Microsoft MVP [Windows - Shell/User]

This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights.


"Matthew Dill" wrote:

> Ok, so we all know about 32-bit vista being unable to realize 4gb of memory.
> Currently, because my video card has 768mb of memory, my 4 gigs of system
> memory is only displaying as about 3gb (as expected).
>
> I have two questions:
> 1) Are there any registry hacks to open up extra available memory
> mapping space
> 2) Does windows offer a trade-up program? I mean comon, I purchased
> vista upgrade for 32-bit, but now need 64-bit. I have a 64-bit version of
> windows XP just sitting around that I could easily upgrade to Vista-64.
> Anyone know of a Vista "swap" program?
>
>

1. No. This is an OS limitation, and cannot be bypassed.

2. Your upgrade rights depend on where you got your copy of Windows. If
your version of Vista didn't come with both discs AND is a retail version,
you can order the 64-bit disc for a nominal charge. If your copy of Vista
is an OEM copy your "upgrade" rights to get a 64-bit version are determined
by the OEM who sold you the CD. You may or may not be able to get the
64-bit disc.

--
Richard G. Harper [MVP Shell/User]
* NEW! Catch my blog ... http://msmvps.com/blogs/rgharper/
* PLEASE post all messages and replies in the newsgroups
* The Website - http://rgharper.mvps.org/
* HELP us help YOU ... http://www.dts-l.org/goodpost.htm


"Matthew Dill" <> wrote in message
news:%23s%...
> Ok, so we all know about 32-bit vista being unable to realize 4gb of
> memory. Currently, because my video card has 768mb of memory, my 4 gigs of
> system memory is only displaying as about 3gb (as expected).
>
> I have two questions:
> 1) Are there any registry hacks to open up extra available memory
> mapping space
> 2) Does windows offer a trade-up program? I mean comon, I purchased
> vista upgrade for 32-bit, but now need 64-bit. I have a 64-bit version of
> windows XP just sitting around that I could easily upgrade to Vista-64.
> Anyone know of a Vista "swap" program?

"Richard G. Harper" <> wrote:

>1. No. This is an OS limitation, and cannot be bypassed.

I agree, but I think it's a hardware limitation, and the OS can't do
anything about it.

--
Tim Slattery
MS MVP(Shell/User)

http://members.cox.net/slatteryt

"Tim Slattery" <> wrote in message
news:...
> "Richard G. Harper" <> wrote:
>
>>1. No. This is an OS limitation, and cannot be bypassed.
>
> I agree, but I think it's a hardware limitation, and the OS can't do
> anything about it.

It can't be a hardware limitation or vista 64 would have the same
limitation.
It is down to how the software uses the hardware, i.e. an OS limitation.

dennis;513659 Wrote:
> "Tim Slattery" <Slattery_T@xxxxxx> wrote in message
> news:hq2mj3tmgktob5rcg0g0e07srdec4ueosr@xxxxxx
>
> It can't be a hardware limitation or vista 64 would have the same
> limitation. It is down to how the software uses the hardware, i.e. an
> OS limitation.

Actually, it IS a hardware limitation. A 32-Bit Hardware limitation.

32-Bit in Hex translates to FFFFFFFF Bytes. In decimal, this number is
4,294,967,295 bytes.

4,294,967,295 bytes = 4,194,303 KB
4,194,303 KB = 4,096 MB
4,096 MB = 4GB

If your hardware is 32-Bit (i.e. it uses a 32-Bit Address Bus), then
the system must support PAE (Physical Address Extensions) to be able to
support memory spaces larger than 4GB. This is most common in 32-Bit
Server Operating Systems, such as Windows Server 2003

64 Bit Addressing (FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF bytes in Hex) is
18,446,744,073,709,551,615 Bytes of address space!. To get the
KB/MB/GB/TB values, keep dividing by 1024.


--
dzomlija

____________________________________
Peter Alexander Dzomlija
Do you hear, huh? The Alpha and The Omega? Death and Rebirth? -And as
you die, so shall I be Reborn-...

- ASUS A8N32-SLI-Deluxe
- AMD Atlon 64 Dual-Core 4800+
- 4GB DDR400
- ASUS nVidia 6600
- Thermaltake Tai-Chi Watercooled Chassis
- 1207GB Total Formatted Storage
- Vista Ultimate x64
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"dennis@home" <> wrote:

>
>
>"Tim Slattery" <> wrote in message
>news:.. .
>> "Richard G. Harper" <> wrote:
>>
>>>1. No. This is an OS limitation, and cannot be bypassed.
>>
>> I agree, but I think it's a hardware limitation, and the OS can't do
>> anything about it.
>
>It can't be a hardware limitation or vista 64 would have the same
>limitation.

It's a limitation of 32-bit hardware. You can run 64-bit Vista (or any
other 64-bit OS) only on 64-bit hardware.

--
Tim Slattery
MS MVP(Shell/User)

http://members.cox.net/slatteryt

"Tim Slattery" <> wrote in message
news:...
> "dennis@home" <> wrote:
>
>>
>>
>>"Tim Slattery" <> wrote in message
>>news:. ..
>>> "Richard G. Harper" <> wrote:
>>>
>>>>1. No. This is an OS limitation, and cannot be bypassed.
>>>
>>> I agree, but I think it's a hardware limitation, and the OS can't do
>>> anything about it.
>>
>>It can't be a hardware limitation or vista 64 would have the same
>>limitation.
>
> It's a limitation of 32-bit hardware. You can run 64-bit Vista (or any
> other 64-bit OS) only on 64-bit hardware.

Except that isn't what the OP was asking about.
He was asking if there were any hacks to make vista 32 support more RAM.
This is not a hardware issue.

"dzomlija" <> wrote in message
news:...
>
> dennis;513659 Wrote:
>> "Tim Slattery" <Slattery_T@xxxxxx> wrote in message
>> news:hq2mj3tmgktob5rcg0g0e07srdec4ueosr@xxxxxx
>>
>> It can't be a hardware limitation or vista 64 would have the same
>> limitation. It is down to how the software uses the hardware, i.e. an
>> OS limitation.
>
> Actually, it IS a hardware limitation. A 32-Bit Hardware limitation.
>
> 32-Bit in Hex translates to FFFFFFFF Bytes. In decimal, this number is
> 4,294,967,295 bytes.
>
> 4,294,967,295 bytes = 4,194,303 KB
> 4,194,303 KB = 4,096 MB
> 4,096 MB = 4GB
>
> If your hardware is 32-Bit (i.e. it uses a 32-Bit Address Bus), then
> the system must support PAE (Physical Address Extensions) to be able to
> support memory spaces larger than 4GB. This is most common in 32-Bit
> Server Operating Systems, such as Windows Server 2003
>
> 64 Bit Addressing (FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF bytes in Hex) is
> 18,446,744,073,709,551,615 Bytes of address space!. To get the
> KB/MB/GB/TB values, keep dividing by 1024.
>

This is not relevant to what the OP was asking.
It is a software limitation that prevents his Vista 32 bit from accessing
more RAM.

BTW just because a processor has 64 bit registers and addressing doesn't
mean it can address 2^64 bytes as they tend not to have enough pins to
actually support that much RAM.

"dennis@home" <> wrote:

>
>
>"Tim Slattery" <> wrote in message
>news:.. .
>> "dennis@home" <> wrote:
>>
>>>
>>>
>>>"Tim Slattery" <> wrote in message
>>>news: ...
>>>> "Richard G. Harper" <> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>>1. No. This is an OS limitation, and cannot be bypassed.
>>>>
>>>> I agree, but I think it's a hardware limitation, and the OS can't do
>>>> anything about it.
>>>
>>>It can't be a hardware limitation or vista 64 would have the same
>>>limitation.
>>
>> It's a limitation of 32-bit hardware. You can run 64-bit Vista (or any
>> other 64-bit OS) only on 64-bit hardware.
>
>Except that isn't what the OP was asking about.
>He was asking if there were any hacks to make vista 32 support more RAM.
>This is not a hardware issue.

There's no such software hack because the limitation is a hardware
issue.

--
Tim Slattery
MS MVP(Shell/User)

http://members.cox.net/slatteryt