Vostro 230 RAM Upgrade to 4GB Two Beeps

Hi byamauchi,

Dell Vostro 230 supports DDR3 SDRAM of clock speed 1066MHz you can customize either 1GB / 2GB / 4GB modules on 2 DIMMs. The RAM you have purchased runs on 1333 MHz clock speed.

byamauchi

Looks like the 2 x 2gb modules are not compatible, try going to www.crucial.com and use their memory selector, to buy RAM that's certified to be compatible.

http://www.crucial.com/usa/en/compatible-memory-for/Dell/vostro-230-mini-tower

Bev.

Thanks shesagordie & RAVI CH.  I guess that was a bonehead mistake on my part.  I thought I double checked before the purchase but looks like I'm stuck with unusable memory sticks.

Thanks,

Brandon

byamauchi

It's a bummer when that happens.

 A hint, whenever buying RAM, always check out the seller's return policies, 'just in case'.

Bev.

I've seen in various forums that the dell vostro 230 does, in fact, work with 8gb RAM. I recently tried the following ram and the machine did not recognize it.: G.SKILL Value Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Desktop Memory Model F3-10600CL9D-8GBNT When I turn it on, the machine beeps in sequences of two. I know this is an error code for the ram. Does anyone know what's wrong with this ram? If so, do you know of any specific 8gb models that will work? I upgrade my BIOS to v1.4, but it didn't solve the issue. Any help would be appreciated!

The reason the RAM is incompatible is because you accidentally purchased ECC (error-correcting code) RAM that is only compatible with servers. The RAM that you needed to have purchased would have to be non-ECC memory.

Actually, this unit shipped with 1333MHz which is the strange part but the BIOS will only run it at 1066MHz. I have a client with four of these and we just tried to upgrade them using memory recommended by Crucial and it failed miserably. If you check the original configuration using the service tag it shows all four systems were shipped with 1333MHz however the Dell 230 spec sheet shows only 1066MHz is supported. Sounds like some false advertising from Dell on this one.

We ship both PC3-8500 1066MHz and PC3-10600 1333MHz Non-ECC DDR3 memory on the Vostro 230. The Dell OEM 1333MHz memory will automatically down clock to 1066MHz. We cannot speak to a 3rd party vendors memory. Do you have a link to the Dell site where it states, "1333MHz memory will operate at 1333MHz on the Vostro 230." ?

Why even ship it and state that the unit comes with 1333MHz if it can only run 1066MHz? This is the first time that I have ever seen anything like this. We are now stuck with RAM that can't be sent back because it was opened. We've never had issues with Crucial or Corsair until now.

1066 supply issues from the ram manufacturer most likely. So we used the 1333 that was in stock. My point is the online Vostro 230 Setup and Features Information Tech Sheet PDF states, "Memory Type = 1066 MHz DDR3". So not false advertising.

I am agree with the statement above. Unfortunately, my PC recognized 2nd slot RAM which using 1333MHz DDR3(stock). When i try to change the 2nd RAM stick to new RAM stick(Corsair) which same on the MHz, it could not detected and PC booting failed. Any ideas on this issue? My PC running with Windows 7 64-bit and BIOS updated to 1.4.0.

https://www.cdw.com/shop/products/EDGE-DDR3-2-GB-DIMM-240-pin/1778348.aspx

http://www.crucial.com/usa/en/compatible-upgrade-for/Dell/vostro-230-mini-tower