When buying a new desktop or laptop computer, it is much more affordable to opt for a cheaper model first and then upgrade the RAM to its maximum performance. The question is, how much RAM can your computer take? Is it already maxed out, or is there still room for an upgrade? Follow this easy-to-understand guide to find out how much RAM your computer currently has and the maximum RAM capacity it supports.
ContentsFind out how much RAM your computer hasFind out the maximum RAM your computer can supportwindowsmacOSLinuxIt's pretty easy to find out how much RAM your computer has. In Windows 10, you can find out your installed RAM using the Win hotkey + PAUSE . This will also provide your processor name and operating system type (32 or 64 bit).
Mac users can select "About This Mac" from the Apple menu to view their chipset information and RAM values.
Linux users can use the hardinfo software to get detailed system information, including memory information.
Windows users can determine the maximum RAM capacity in the command prompt with the command below. It gives the final value in kilobytes which can be converted to gigabytes (divide the value by 1048576 to convert KB to GB).
wmic memphysical get MaxCapacity, MemoryDevices
The example above shows that my maximum RAM capacity is 8 GB. If your motherboard has two memory slots, that means the maximum RAM capacity per slot is 8 / 2 =4 GB.
The easiest way to find out the details of a Mac's RAM is to check "About This Mac", which will identify the type and speed of the memory module, the number of RAM slots on the Mac, and the slots used.
1. Pull down the Apple menu and navigate to "About This Mac".
2. Click on the "More information..." button to call up the system information.
3. Look under the "Memory" tab for information about your Mac's RAM, including maximum capacity, memory slots used, and the type of RAM the Mac accepts.
To find the maximum RAM capacity in Linux, you can use the command dmidecode , although it is not installed by default in most distributions.
1. Install dmidecode:
#ubuntu/debiansudo apt install dmidecode #archsudo pacman -S dmidecode #Fedorasudo dnf install dmidecode #openSUSEsudo zypper in dmidecode
2. Run the command:
sudo dmidecode -t 16
It will give you information about your memory capacity.
In my case, my Linux computer has 4 memory slots and a maximum RAM capacity of 128 GB (32 GB per slot).
After finding the maximum RAM capacity of your computer, if your computer supports more memory than it currently has, you can proceed to upgrade your RAM and improve the performance of your computer. Don’t forget to check out the things to consider while buying RAM. And if you ever run out of memory in Windows, use these tricks to free up memory in Windows.
