Windows 10: Installed memory: 8GB (6GB usable) - 2 GB is Hardware Reserved

I have a 64-bit windows 10 desktop with 4GB (2x2GB) of memory that I built about nine years ago. A week ago I purchased more memory (2x2GB) of the same brand/model/specs to bring the total up to 8GB but when I installed it, windows said 8GB is installed but only 4GB is usable. Furthermore, bios only recognized the 4GB. I removed the two new ones memory sticks that I purchased and went back to 4GB I originally had and Windows then said 4GB installed and only 2GB usable. The bios also recognized only 2GB. I tried reseating the DIMMS with several combinations and it now says 8GB installed with 6GB usable (again, BIOS only recognizes 6GB). So each time BIOS is only recognizing what Windows says is usable, not what Windows says is installed. I have a dedicated GPU. Resource Monitor shows 2GB is "hardware reserved". I'd for all 8GB to be usable, not just the 6GB.

Heres what I've tried so far:
1. msconfig memory limits is unchecked.
2. a fresh install of Windows
3. reflashed BIOS (I was already on the latest version)
4. Ran "Speccy" software and it reads all four DIMMS
5. Checked for any RAM management settings in BIOS but there are none. Motherboard manual URL below http://download1.gigabyte.us/Files/M...x58-ud3r_e.pdf
6. All DIMMS have been tested individually and work fine.
7. Ran Memtest86 for 23 hours and it produced zero errors.
8. Tried both fail-safe and opimized default settings in BIOS.
There are other things I tried that I can't think of off the top of my head. Any thoughts/input would be great.

Components:
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...82E16813128375
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...0666CL9D-4GBNQ

Specs:
Operating System
Windows 10 Pro 64-bit
CPU
Intel Core i7 920 @ 2.67GHz 65 °C
Bloomfield 45nm Technology
RAM
8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 532MHz (8-8-8-20)
Motherboard
Gigabyte Technology Co. Ltd. EX58-UD3R (Socket 1366) 35 °C
Graphics
SyncMaster (1920x1200@59Hz)
512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9500 GT (EVGA) 60 °C
Storage
111GB Crucial_CT120M500SSD1 (SSD)
298GB Western Digital WDC WD3200AAKS-00L9A0 (SATA) 33 °C
Optical Drives
HL-DT-ST CDRW/DVD GCC4482 ATA Device
Audio
Realtek High Definition Audio

:)

 

memory upgrade in windows 10

Original Title: memory upgrade

upgraded memory from 2 gbs to 6 gbs windows 10 shows 6 gb installed only 2.62 gb usable. task mgr shows 3.4 gb hardware reserved. what does this mean?

 

RAM is lesser than acually installed

In my dell inspiron laptop I have 4gb of ram installed but 2.39 gb is only available to use. checking with resource monitor it shows hardware reserved memory for 1651 mb. when I added 2 more gb it shows the same 2.39 usable out of 6 gb ram. give me a
solution.

 

Could be, that one memory stick is bad. Pull new sticks out, one by one and see if there will 6 GB in one occasion and 4+2 in other.

There could be a problem with memory slot too..

One more thing: put same sticks (you have 2 old and 2 new) in every second slot (slots 0, 1, 2 and 3 -> pairs should be in 0 - 2 and in 1 - 3)

 

Whole bunch things to try here,

http://i4memory.com/showthread.php?t=19200#post120083

 

Or it could be the problem with the CPU or mobo pins that are bent. I've seen some users who own an x58 system have that issue and so far they fixed it by unbenting the pins. To be honest, the board and cpu a re so sensitive to pressure...maybe thats why you had this problem. Anyway, I'd reccomend doing what stormy and AndreTen suggested first.

 

I'm starting to suspect this since I've tried everything else. So Windows would recognize the 8GB installed even though the pins are bent? I figured if the pins are bent, it would only recognize and use what it can see but its seeing 8GB and saying only 6GB is usable.

 

Can you collect the information in this post - Hardware Reserved Memory issue: need help with my BIOS maybe?! - Windows 10 Forums - and attach it here?

The maximum memory capacity is read from the SPD chips on the DIMMs. However, BIOS/UEFI can limit the amount accessible to the OS for any number of reasons.

 

Yeah, I used to own an x58 system that does this after my bro-in-law reinstalled the cpu cooler. After that, it does the reboot thing three times (it said Detecting Dram Settings) then it finally booted. Kinda sad that the mobo was flawed because of that the pins are bent. :/

 

Most probably, it's being shared by graphics

 

It is 9 years old so some of the hardware has probably gone out of spec, pretty much EOL.
I went through that lot on mine that was 10 years old, swapping out memory modules as they weren't being recognised properly, cleaning sockets, modules, swapping out with spares etc. Then problems started to appear with USB stuff. I reckon the MCH/Chipset had pretty much died. So that was it, a dead MOBO.

There can also be differences in current production RAM Modules compared to the older ones enough to cause problems.

 

Thanks for the response, I've uploaded the reports to my dropbox: Dropbox - RWX

 

I have a dedicated graphics card and see nothing in BIOS where I can verify its not being shared by graphics card. BIOS only recognizes the "usable" memory that Windows detects, not the "installed" memory that Windows detects.

 

I checked the CPU and MB pins and they look good to me. I've uploaded some pics to dropbox at the link below because I wanted to include the original high-res pics. Please let me know if you see any issues because I know even a slight bend in the pin can cause the issue.
Also, I didn't have any thermal grease so I put back the CPU as it was. There was a little bit of the original paste on there. Hope this doesn't cause an issue!
Dropbox - CPU

 

I ran "Speccy" diagnostic on the memory in below is a screenshot. You can see from the numbers which are the pairs. Anything in the number discrepancy between the pairs that would cause an issue. Even so, its odd that three of the modules would be usable. I would expect both the two new ones not to be usable, not just one?