Does anyone here have 4 GB of RAM in their system? What motherboards are recommended for this capacity?

Are there any OS limitations one should be aware of when installing this much RAM?

I don't, but the OS can only use 3.5GB when you install 4 GB, something with memory addressing.

<<<-- Originally posted by Akos Szemenyei : I don't, but the OS can only use 3.5GB when you install 4 GB, something with memory addressing. -->>>

Not if you use NT 4.0 or 2000 advanced server. I could not speak for XP or Win2k since I don't have the need for that much RAM on any of my personal boxes.

I'll post the model numbers of P3 and Xeon dual CPU MB's if you are interested tomorrow from work Robert. Post back if you are going dual. If you are looking for single CPU MB's with that kind of capacity, I could not recommend.

I've also got Windows Server 2003 Release Candidate 2 sitting here at home but have yet to install it.......

Dan, You are right about that, my apologies to Robert. I was thinking from a workstation point of view, but I might have mixed it up with the single CPU motherboards, I think that's where the limit is. But I couldn't find the article I got it from. Feel free to correct me further if necessary.

Here's the official scoop from Microsoft:

http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/hwdev/platform/server/pae/paemem.mspx

The summary:
2000 Pro and XP home/pro only support up to 4GB (which often ends up reading as about 3.5 gigs). 2000 Advanced Server (not 2k Server) and 2003 server (aka XP server) can support up to 64GB using PAE.

Thanks Brian, I guess I wasn't that wrong then.

Yes, Dan, please post. It would be a dual workstation, but unless you tell me that only the server OS line can handle 4 GB of RAM, the box will just be running a pro version of 2K or XP.

I've just outgrown 1 GB, is all.

I'm running this on 2 servers with P3 1ghz's.
One is running a SQL database that gets hammered 16 hours a day (ad hoc reports during business hours, then canned reports during the night). The other runs our system of record, which gets hammered by 50+ users across 3 branch offices during business hours, then has the sleepy tasks during the night (like backup's etc.)

Supermicro P3TDDE http://www.supermicro.com/PRODUCT/MotherBoards/VIA/P3TDDE.htm

This Xeon board runs our Metaframe server (mac daddy stuff)
I put VV 3.0 on this when I built it to test it out with 16 gig ECC RAM, and let me just say it RULED ! Needless to say it's way overkill, but I had to do it before it got Metaframe on it...hehe

Supermicro P4DP8-G2 http://www.supermicro.com/PRODUCT/MotherBoards/E7500/P4DP8.htm

Robert, I'm interested to hear how you have ran out of 1 GB
of memory and you need 4. That is a lot of memory.

It's real easy when you do compositing work in HD res.

The MBs Dan mentions seem to be a generation or two behind. Are there any 4 GB motherboards that work with the current clock speeds of Pentium 4 chips?

I use an Abit KG7 raid. I believe it will work with 4Gig. I am using an AMD chip, but they have a model for the P4s. A little quirky at first, but smooth after you squash some bugs.

I have 2GB of memory and a hard drive dedicated simply as a page file drive (although this isn't really necessary I had an extra, fast 30GB drive lying around). Aside from memory how is your disk subsystem? Perhaps investing in SCSI will help your system's overall speed. Have you benchmarked or used something like Performance Monitor to see how RAM or lack thereof is affecting your system?

Robert, now that you mentioned what you are doing with this setup, I would go Xeon all the way IMO, but here are some other links below for a single Hyperthread setup.

I'm installing this on my editing box tonight and retiring my Abit BD7II-Raid
http://www.directron.com/4pea.html (it only takes 2 gig DDR though)


Gigabyte GA-8KNXP http://www.directron.com/ga8knxp.html


Other giga models: http://www.directron.com/ga8ipe1000.html

http://www.directron.com/ga8ipe1000pro.html

Intel MB's:
http://www.directron.com/d875pbz.html

Abit:
http://www.directron.com/abitic7.html

Is there any place I can get Xeon chips for cheap? (I thought all that old stuff was discontinued.)

Re: "I thought all that old stuff was discontinued"
Far from it, they are still laying down layers as I type.........
I've got dual 1.8's on that Metaframe server I was talking about.

http://www.googlegear.com/jsp/ProductList.jsp?ThirdCategoryCode=010404

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.asp?DEPA=1&submit=manufactory&catalog=343&manufactory=1157&description=&page=2