How to Speed Up Your PC with More RAM – A Quick Tutorial

PCs, just like phones, fall behind as time goes. You definitely have a bunch of software that you like to use on your PC. Whether you are a gamer, programmer, designer or another specialist, you want your PC to be super-fast and responsive.

You may wonder why your PC is now slow compared to when you bought it a few years ago. Remember, you keep on updating your operating system as new versions and builds are rolled out. You also keep your software updated with new versions as well. This is a sign that technology keeps on evolving, hence the change for better in apps and operating systems.

Therefore, your computer needs to keep up with these apps as their change also comes with a demand for more CPU and GPU power. Now, if you have saved a couple of bucks and are looking to upgrade your PC, you may be wondering which component you should start with to speed up your computer.

While there is decent software that can boost your system, you should keep in mind that if your hardware components are far behind, there is no way your PC can be fast enough to process current software without any hiccups. Therefore, to speed up your PC, you need to first check if your hardware components are up to date.

There are some things you can do to make your computer run faster, such as replacing your HDD with a solid-state drive (SSD) as your primary boot drive. However, one of the most overlooked computer components that can actually add more speed to your PC is the RAM. Adding RAM will give your PC more speed than upgrading any other computer component.

Most of the operating systems and the majority of applications that run on them are hoggers when it comes to resources. Now, you may be wondering what the RAM has got to do with speeding up your PC. Well, when you open more than one application simultaneously or run a demanding program, the operating system will be continually swapping pieces of code and data between your RAM and HDD. This usually bogs the PC down to a much slower pace. Now, if more RAM is added, there will be less interchange of code and data, leading to the system becoming faster even when stressed by various applications.

The good news is that adding RAM is one of the easiest DIY tasks when it comes to upgrading your PC. The process is fast and presents little risk to your computer. The procedure is so easy that anyone with the ability to read this article can do it. However, there are a bunch of things to consider before buying RAM to add to your PC. Here are the things that you need to take note of:

The Type of RAM Used by Your PC

You need to know which type of RAM your computer is using. Motherboards accept different types of RAM, so it is important to know the type of RAM that is compatible with your PC. Most of the latest computers use either DDR3 or DDR4 modules. If your system is not current and uses either DDR2 or DDR, then adding more RAM will be useless as the PC is too old to handle the latest apps.

You can find out the type of RAM your PC is using by simply searching for the model number of your PC together with the keyword ‘RAM’ using your search engine. Browse through the results and check a couple of trusted sites to find out reliable information. Alternatively, you can check the box your computer came in if you still have it as the information on it usually contains the type of RAM compatible with your PC. An alternate way of finding out which type of RAM your computer supports is to run a scanner tool such as CrucialScan. The tool is developed by a reputable team with years of experience in the industry. It also works efficiently and is 100% safe. On top of the type of RAM that you need to add, the scanner tool will let you know how many RAM slots you have so that you know how much available space you have for adding extra RAM.

Let’s take my PC as an example. It supports up to 32GB of RAM, and it has 4 slots. I have 2 8GB RAM modules installed in 2 slots. Therefore, when increasing memory, I need to get 2 8GB RAM modules and install them into the empty slots to increase my PC memory to 32GB and reach the max memory volume that my PC supports.  

If you previously installed, for example, 4 2GB RAM modules and thereby occupied all your slots, then you will need to remove a couple of installed RAM modules to accommodate the ones with more memory you recently bought. Therefore, make sure you consider the existing RAM modules when planning to buy additional RAM modules.

The Maximum Amount of RAM Your Computer Supports

Computers have limits when it comes to the amount of RAM they can support. For instance, on my MSI desktop, I have 16GB of RAM installed, but my PC can take up to 32GB of RAM. Your PC might take more or less depending on the type of motherboard you have. Regardless, you need to understand that you can add RAM up to the maximum limit.

Here is what you should do when increasing your PC’s amount of RAM:

Install Modules in Matching Pairs

It is important to install your RAM modules in matching pairs as this will mitigate random hiccups and make your PC operate faster. Although it is possible to install one RAM stick or 3 RAM modules at a time, it is recommended to add RAM modules in matching pairs.  

Install RAM Modules with the Same Specs

Purchasing additional RAM modules with specs similar to those of existing ones will help you avoid problems related to system stability. Therefore, when purchasing additional RAM modules, you need to pay attention to their clock speeds. If your additional RAM modules are modern compared to the installed ones, then it will be best to remove the old ones and run your PC on the new ones. This will help your PC in the long run, especially in terms of stability.

As a rule of thumb, the more RAM you have, the better your PC performs. Remember, memory speed is the rate at which the RAM receives, processes and carries out requests to read and write data. The faster your RAM is, the faster the speed at which the memory transfers data to the other components of your system.

Now that you understand the importance of RAM, you can make an informed decision when buying your next PC or upgrading your current device.

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