Re: How do I see what is using my RAM?

On Thu, 16 Apr 2009 23:22:01 +0100, Cuzman <> wrote:

>
> I have 4GB in my Dell XPS M1530 laptop which is running 32-bit Vista
> Home Premium, so I guess I only get 3.5GB.


All 32-bit client versions of Windows (not just Vista/XP) have a 4GB
address space. That's the theoretical upper limit beyond which you can
not go.

But you can't use the entire 4GB of address space. Even though you
have a 4GB address space, you can only use *around* 3.1GB of RAM.
That's because some of that space is used by hardware and is not
available to the operating system and applications. The amount you can
use varies, depending on what hardware you have installed, but can
range from as little as 2GB to as much as 3.5GB. It's usually around
3.1GB.

Note that the hardware is using the address *space*, not the actual
RAM itself. The rest of the RAM goes unused because there is no
address space to map it too.




> Anyway, even though I have purposely stripped my system tray of
> everythng which is unecessary, All CPU Meter (Sidebar Gadget) says that
> roughly 2700MB of RAM is being used at any given time.
>
> Is there a function or program which can break down what the hell is
> going on.
>
> ...and no, I don't have viruses or spyware etc.

--
Ken Blake, Microsoft MVP - Windows Desktop Experience
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