Having problems with memory, I think.

I hope I'm putting this in the right place.

I am running 4 sticks of Corsair memory adding up to 16gig. By accident when I was System>Display, Sound, Notifications, power>About, I noticed that Win 10 is reporting Installed RAM=12.0GB. So I did some looking and found that you can check your RAM using Administrative Tools> Windows Memory Diagnostic, so I used it and it reported no problems. I also checked Windows Task Manager>Performance and it too is reporting 12gig of ram. I pulled all the RAM sticks and switched them around and it Win10 still reports 12gig.

1. I'm guessing I have a stick that's bad but I have no idea how to identify that particular stick
2. If Win 10 is reporting no problems with the RAM, why is Win 10 only reporting 12gig?
3. Is there any other program that can check your RAM other than Windows?

Thanks in advance

xpac5896 said:

3. Is there any other program that can check your RAM other than Windows?

MemTest86+ is used by many here. It is run from a bootable usb, instructions in this tutorial.

MemTest86+ - Test RAM | Tutorials

There is a log collectors used in another forum.
There are DM and BETA.
Run the BETA log collector and post a zip into this thread.
BSOD - Posting Instructions - Windows 10 Forums

These are three software that can be used to see the RAM specs:

HWinfo64: https://www.hwinfo.com/download/

Speecy: Speccy - Free Download

CPU-Z: CPU-Z | Softwares | CPUID

For RAM testing:

For DDR3 RAM use Memtest86+ version 5.01
Memtest86+ - Advanced Memory Diagnostic Tool

For DDR4 RAM use Memtest86 version 8.0
MemTest86 - Official Site of the x86 Memory Testing Tool

When testing ram the tests are not by time but by passes.
For each test make 8 or more passes.
A substantial portion of the testing can be performed overnight.
RAM can be tested one module at a time in the same DIMM however this does not test the multichannel capability of the motherboard.
Testing must be continuous.
Testing time takes approximately 1 -2 hours / GB RAM
Just one error is a test fail and testing can be aborted.
Then test one RAM module at a time in the same DIMM for 8 or more passes.

Memory problems. - Microsoft Community

MemTest86+ - Test RAM | Tutorials

Understanding, Identifying and Upgrading the RAM in your PC

zbook: I've never had to test memory before as I've never had any problems with it. I read about the Memtest86 for DDR4 and due to the fact that, even though I'm running DDR3, I do have a UEFI Bios. Will running Memtest86+ have any effect in regards to the BIOS? According to the website, I guess you could say, the new and improved Memtest 86 does have support for DDR2 and 3 and does have support for the UEFI BIOS. So I Guess the question is, should I stay with the 5.01 or go with the new one?

We have been using Memtest86+ version 5.01 for DDR3.
A minimum of 8 passes are needed to reduce false negatives.
A false negative is a test pass when there is malfunctioning RAM.
It sometimes takes passes into the 20s to find malfunctioning RAM.
Just one error is a fail and you can abort testing.
Testing multiple RAM modules at the same time allows testing of the multichannel capability of the motherboard.
The testing must be continuous.
A significant portion of the testing can be performed overnight.
After testing please use a camera or smartphone camera to take a picture and post an image into the thread.

If there are any problems booting:
a) try another USB stick
b) try usb2 an usb3
c) turn off secure boot
d) turn off fast boot
e) turn off ultrafast boot
f) try uefi or legacy
g) try CSM and without CSM


Boot from USB Drive on Windows 10 PC | Tutorials
Enable or Disable Fast Boot in UEFI Firmware Settings for Windows | Tutorials