Hello scooter250

In the process of turning this server into a desktop machine did you add a 1GB video card? The 4GB memory limitation is an addressing limit that affects all memory addressed by the operating system. This includes video memory.

If that is not the case, then yes, I would recommend removing all but two DIMMs. The DIMMs on the 2950 are fully buffered DIMMs and do not operate like your normal DDR DIMMs. The OS may have an issue mapping a limited section of the memory because of the way it works.

Thanks

I'm using the ATI ES1000 card that is embedded on the 2950 motherboard. According to the spec sheet it has 16Mb of memory.

I removed six of the DIMMS and left the ones in the first and third slots per the diagram on the inside top cover. I'm now getting a reading of 3.24Gb of ram. This was the same before I installed the video drivers and now after they are installed.

It appears to be functioning correctly. There is a lot of addressing that takes place aside from the memory available for application use. It looks like there was a lot of wasted addressing with the other DIMMs in place. 

Thanks

Most systems running XP will assign around 760mb of ram for system resources. It's a limitatioon of XP. Microsoft did release a 64bit version to address more mem. It was very good but lacked driver support from oems. Then came Vista :-(

Sorry, but I still think there is something not right.

I have four other XP-Pro SP3 systems, all different and all Dell desktops and they all show the exact amount of RAM installed under Control Panel| System on the front page.

This 2950 is showing only partial installed RAM.

My concern is more to do with it not using the memory correctly. Right now I have an issue with a simple hard drive speed test utility not wanting to run. It runs on all my other XP machines with far less RAM.

Is there a way I can test the system to see if the memory is being used properly?

Thanks!

You can verify that the OS is presented all 4GB by checking system information. Programs>Accessories>System Tools>System Information. It should list the full 4GB there.

You can research Physical Address Extension to possibly enable more memory. It is available in XP service pack 2 and later. It may allow you to use more of the memory if enabled. If you don't have access to this page on MSDN then you should be able to find alternatives with a search:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/hardware/gg487503.aspx

Thanks

It says:

Total Physical Memory = 4096Mb (4Gb)

Available Physical Memory = 3Gb

Virtual Memory = 2Gb

Available Virtual Memory = 1.96Gb

What I do not understand is why the discrepancy between what is says here (4Gb) and what it says under Control Panel | System Properties (3.24 Gb of Ram). I have never seen this before. This box has always displayed the exact amount of ram in a given system of mine.

Hello scooter250,

The 32-bit version of Windows has 4GB of address space. A portion of this, roughly about .5GB in most systems, is reserved for the system hardware. 

The remainder (3.5GB) is assigned to the OS. 

What happens is that some of the addressable memory (regardless of how much you have physically installed) is reserved for use by page files or by 

some of the devices that you are using, such as a graphics card, PCI card, integrated network connections, etc., so it's unavailable for use as normal 

main memory. If you install 64Bit OS (Windows XP Pro 64Bit Version) then your system will recognize the entire amount of memory i.e, 16GB. 

To determine if your system is running a 32bit version of the windows or 64bit, please follow the instructions:

Open the Start menu, and click on Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> System Information
Look in the System Summary

The System Information tool will display detailed information about your Windows operating system. Once opened it will show the "System Summary" – it’s an overview of your computer and operating system.
Look for the System Type Item

On the right hand side of the window you will see a list of items. Look for the item called "System Type".
The value of this item will tell you whether your computer is 32-bit or 64-bit:
          * x86-based PC: It’s a 32-bit 
          * x64-based PC: It’s a 64-bit 

Let me know if you need any more info. Hope that works!

Regards,

xqzit