To Daniel_K and Creative about RAM issues

)? Hi there,
i got this problem i got XF-i titanium gamer edition PCI and my new card Auzentech prelude 7. both of themhave same problem on official drivers and Danie_k drivers. If i got more than 3.9gb ram (right now i got 6gb ram) on VIsta 32 and 64bit and ofc. on windows 7 32 and 64 bit everytime i want to play something like L4D or new title prototype, i got blue screen! or my coumputer just shut dow(like something disconect my power source). I got
DFI lanparty DK P45-T2RS PLUS i used 2-3 bios to see if it make any diffrence but NO. I tried many ways of instalation on all systems, sometimes bluescreen show up in 3-5m sometimes i could play like few hours.. no Daniel_k drei'vers or orgnal drivers make diffrence on any system win 7 32/64 bit or Vista/32/64bit. Only if i got less than 4gb ram... Now i ask for help.. any ti
ps.
.. something maby any other driver for my Prelude cos i like it more (sory creative:P)

-[ Have you tested loosening up your memory timings? As that's an overclocker's board I imagine you're running as tight as you can get it, try backing off or increasing the vDimm a bit and see what happens.
I have a P35 T2RS and a Titanium and I have no problems... I know, it's a different board, but it's not too far off.

Similar Messages

Which do you think; Windows 7: 32-bit / 64-bit, (plus unused RAM issues) is best for video editing?

Hi there!
Just received delivery of a Lenovo G550 with the following spec:
2.2Ghz Core 2 Duo,
4GB (DDR3 - 1066Hz) RAM,
500GB HDD
NVIDIA GeForce G210M (512MB)
Windows 7
The entire purpose for buying this laptop, was for video editing and it is the best spec I could find for my needs and budget.
So what's the problem?
1) Windows 7 is installed as 32-bit, not 64 bit. Why is this? I was given no choice in this decision.
2) Only 2.96GB of that juicey RAM is being used by Windows 7. I need as much RAM as possible for video editing.
3) Lenovo sent NO install disc. - When I eventually get a virus or my HDD fails, I have NO WAY to clean install the very product I have just purchased! (A laptop with Windows 7 OS).
Considerations:
As I understand it (please comment if there are alternative views on this); The 64-bit architecture is only useful for compatible software which has been designed to run 64-bit.
The video editing software I use is "Sony Vegas Movie Studio HD 9.0"
The suggested problems with Windows 7 run as 64-bit include:
* Possible lack of driver compatibility support.
* Possibility of 32-bit programs running SLOWER in 64-bit environment, than their native 32-bit environment.
* Higher running temperatures & processor cooling issues.
* No performance gains for all other programs running as 32-bit (email, internet browser, etc).
The suggested advantages with Windows 7 run as 64-bit could be:
* Full utilisation of the 4GB RAM. (Presently limited to 2.96GB)
* Faster rendering and video editing tasks in 64-bit environment.
Questions:
4) How can I get an install disc for Windows 7? Shouldn't this come with the computer?
5) Do you think the potential hassle and architecture conflicts are worth suffering, to get the reported performance gains of 64-bit architecture and the remaining unused RAM?
Thank you for any help and advice!

contact lenovo support line for windows 7 dvds, but make sure if they send recovery dvds instead of windows 7 dvd.
most of people are having trouble with installing windows and drivers, so companies has found as this as solution to send recovery dvd -if asked- or using hidden partition to recovery system - like one key recover - instead of.
but if you ask me, they need to send dvds.
i'll contact the mods and admins about this issue, please stay connected to this post.
anyp wrote:
the member should contact lenovo, as of recently users are entitled to request media for 32 / 64 bit if they purchased one and want the other.

The infamous RAM issue with bootcamp

Sp, I have seen a lot of threads about RAM issues when using bootcamp.
I'm about to install Windows XP SP 3 using bootcamp - how much RAM will be utilized when using my windows partition?
I have a MBP 2.33 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo with 3 GB RAM and Radeon X 1600 256 mb RAM.
Looking forward to your responses.
Thanks

This is not so much an issue with Bootcamp as it is an issue with Windows. On any machine, Mac or PC, Windows will only recognize approximately 3GB of RAM. The only Windows Operating Systems that are capable of going higher are the 64-bit OS choices. So, if and when you upgrade your MacBook Pro to 4GB of RAM, Windows will still only see 3GB. Just a heads-up.

Experiment and conclusion on notorious Bios and turbo boost related issue.

Hi everyone,
Like everyone here, I suffered from the turbo boost issue and I decided to find a practical way to solve this problem,so .I conducted some experiments trying to find out the relationship between power strategy, graphic type, booting power source and the CPU frequency.. Here are my results:
Variable: Power strategy for AC/BAT: Max/Balanced, Max/Max(didn't try for balanced AC power strategy)
Graphic type: Integrated, discrete and Nvidia Optimus
power source when the machine booted(BAT,AC)
Testing model: W520 42762QU i7-2720QM Quodro2000M 16G Crucial M4 128G, 500G HDD, BIOS1.30
Testing programs: Intel Turbo Boost programs and CPU-Z
power strategy
Graphics
booting:AC
AC-BAT
AC-BAT-AC
Booting: BAT
BAT-AC
BAT-AC-BAT
Max/Balance
Discrete
Turbo
1.5Ghz
Turbo
1.5Ghz
800Mhz
1.5Ghz
Max/Max
Turbo
1.5Ghz
Turbo
1.5Ghz
800Mhz
1.5Ghz
Max/Balance
Integrated
Turbo
Turbo
Turbo
Turbo
800Mhz
Turbo
Max/Max
Turbo
Turbo
Turbo
Turbo
800Mhz
Turbo
Max/Balance
Optimus
Turbo
800-2400
Turbo
800-2400
800Mhz
800-2400
Max/Max
Turbo
800-2400
Turbo
800-2400
800Mhz
800-2400
Notice the '800-2400' state, it is a special situation when CPU-Z occationally gives me a speed of approx 2400 when I tried some head-load programs, which lasted about few seconds and the frequencies went back to 800 or 1500(in most cases, 800) when I closed the program.
Conclution:
1. power stratagy will not influnce the cpu frequency.
2. booting power source and graphic types will do.
3. I'm sick and tired of pluging and unpluggin my W520.
4. I'm not a fan of Nvidia Optimus.
5. Lenovo did a terrible job on this issue.
6. I expect a same result for Bios 1.26
Practical solutions:
1.When you need a powerful W520, use Discrete graphic and plug your AC while booting.
2, For a longer battery life, use integrated graphic, and if you wan't to plug the AC, please turn off your machine and boot again.(not rebooting!)
Thank you for reading my post and sorry for my bad english
Robin Liu

SomeOtherGuy:
Thanks very much for keeping us all informed about the "work in progress" on the BIOS and the Turbo-thing. That is thoughtful of you and will (hopefully) cut down on the amount of carping and complaining about this issue.
Michael
W520 (4270 CTO), which replaced a W500 (4062-27U), which replaced a T42P, which replaced an A21P...

Where can I find a phone number to speak to an actual person about my issues with Creative Cloud?

I am having issues installing a copy of Adobe Acrobat XI Pro on a computer that used to have Creative Cloud on it. I need a phone number to speak to someone about this issue, but cannot find one. Can anyone give me a phone number to call these clowns?

No... the only telephone number link I have is for ordering problems, not installation
-by telephone http://helpx.adobe.com/x-productkb/global/phone-support-orders.html
>issues installing a copy of Adobe Acrobat XI Pro on a computer that used to have Creative Cloud on it
Sign out of your account... Uninstall... run the Cleaner...
-Restart your computer... Sign in to your account... Reinstall
-using the cleaner after uninstalling and before reinstalling is needed
-http://helpx.adobe.com/creative-cloud/help/install-apps.html (and uninstall)
-http://helpx.adobe.com/creative-suite/kb/cs5-cleaner-tool-installation-problems.html

FCP After Effects and RAM Issues

Hello,
Recently I have been working on a 1280x720 video project using both FCP 7 and After Effects CS6. I have an early 2011 MBP running 10.6.8 (I'm not a fan of Lion). It's a 2.2 GHZ Intel Core i7. I have been having significant lagging issues with playing back videos in AE and eeven more significant playing them in the timeline of FCP. It has made editing a royal pain. Exports also take a long time.
I had 8GB of RAM but last night, expanded to 16GB. Since then, I have noticed no increase in speed at all. Not opening programs. Not opening files, not exporting files, and not playing back in either program. Maybe I am misunderstood as to what the RAM was supposed to accomplish?
My question is, what can I do to fix this? Do I need a new Hard Drive? Was the RAM upgrade a waste of money. Maybe someone has some suggested settings for Memory and Cache for the two programs?
Thanks in advance for any help
Chris

Chris:
To open an application faster, install a faster hard drive. If you go with an SSD drive, you should notice a huge improvement in how quickly your applications launch. If you just upgrade from a 4,800 RPM or 5,400 RPM drive to a 7,200 RPM drive, then you'll see a modest increase in launch time.
To export files faster from AE, you'll want faster processors (assuming you had enough RAM in the first place). AE tells you at the bottom of the application window how much RAM is being used. While you had 8GB of RAM, you might have seen 42% being used. Increasing your RAM to 16GB would only reduce that percentage to 21%. It would not speed up the render. A faster hard drive can help as well, but not as much as faster processors. Switching from a USB2 thumb drive to your internal drive would boost render speeds. Even if you were working at 1920x1080, it's unlikely that you'd need more than 4GB of RAM. If you happend ot be working at really large Composition sizes or have artwork that is really large (like 18MB still images), AE will tell you exaclty how much more RAM you need when it displays an "insuficient memory" dialog box. If that was happening, then you'd want more RAM.
To "speed up" the playback of video, you need storage media that can maintain the sustained data transfer rate of the file being played. (Unfortunately, more RAM doesn't help for this.) 1280x720 rendered to the Animation codec at best quality and at 8 bits per channel requires 3.5Mb per frame (not including audio). At 30 frames per second, you're looking at 105Mb/second. eSATA was recommended earlier and that's a good option; however, you mentioned that you have a 2011 MacBook Pro. As such, you probably have a Thundebolt port. An external Thunderbolt drive should be able to maintain 105Mb/second with overhead to spare. If you have to use your interal drive, switch from the Animation codec to Apple ProRes 422 or Apple ProRes 422 LT. You'll see a good reduction in storage space requirements and your internal drive should be able to maintain the data rate required of APR 422 and APR 422 LT. If you need to have Animation versions of your renders, use Compressor or Adobe Media Encoder to convert the rendered Animation movie to a H264 file and then play that when you need to view the video. Also, _always_ be mindful of how full your drive is. The closer the drive gets to being over 85% to 90% of its maximum capacity, the more likely data transfer rates are going to drop (that is, the drive will not perform as fast as it would have otherwise). If you happen to have upgraded to a hybrid drive or SSD drive, you probably won't have to worry about reaching drive capacity (other than worrying about setting overlfow volumes in AE). You can throw the fastest processor available and the most RAM available at a high data transfer rate movie, but if the storage media isn't fast enough then the storage media isn't fast enough.
Regardless of your OS (32bit vs. 64bit; 10.3, 10.4, 10.5, 10.6, 10.6 or 10.8), all of the above factors apply.
I'm curious, do you really hope that I choke?
-Warren

Kernel Panic and RAM issues

about a week ago I got my first ever kernel panic . This coincided with the mac completely running out of battery due to being on a holiday. Sometimes I can get on without an issue for a while until it shuts down and either tells me there is a kernel panic or it does the three beep black screen. From what I have researched its a ram issue. from memory I have 2x2gb rams installed but it may be 4gb I'm not 100% sure and I cant get on to check. I'm pretty sure its not a software issue as I have booted up on several occasions and deleted things such as Sophos. I'm out of warranty so its up to me to get this show back on the road. My questions:
If I can startup the computer and have it running for a while before it dies and says is a kernel panic, is it unlikely its a software related issue?
Is there any possible way of testing for dodgy rams without physically removing one at a time and seeing what happens?
Is there anything else it could be?
Can rams cause kernel panics, if so do the panic reports reflect this?
cheers

Try to get your MBP functioning. Perform SMC and PRAM resets:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3964
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1379
Try a Safe Boot:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1564
Kernel Panics can be caused by hardware or software issues. When they occur, log it and post it for review:
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2546
RAM can be checked by downloading and running REMBER fro Kelley Computing:
http://www.kelleycomputing.net/rember/
In order to get sufficient loops, run it overnight.
Running a MBP till the battery is exhausted is a very bad practice.
Ciao

I received a message about an issue shutting down my laptop and when I restarted it won't go past the all grey screen. What do I do?

I received a message about an issue shutting down my laptop and when I restarted it won't go past the all grey screen. What do I do?

Hardware Information:
          MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid 2010)
          MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro7,1
          1 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2 cores
          4 GB RAM
Video Information:
          NVIDIA GeForce 320M - VRAM: 256 MB
Startup Items:
          Executor - Path: /Library/StartupItems/Executor
System Software:
          OS X 10.8.5 (12F45) - Uptime: 0 days 0:37:49
Disk Information:
          Hitachi HTS545025B9SA02 disk0 : (250.06 GB)
                    disk0s1 (disk0s1) <not mounted>: 209.7 MB
                    Macintosh HD (disk0s2) /: 249.2 GB (97.41 GB free)
                    Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted>: 650 MB
          HL-DT-ST DVDRW GS23N
USB Information:
          Apple Internal Memory Card Reader
          Apple Inc. Built-in iSight
          Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub
                    Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
          Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
          Apple Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
FireWire Information:
Thunderbolt Information:
Kernel Extensions:
          com.intego.Family-Protector.safe-boot          (10.7.5)
Problem System Launch Daemons:
Problem System Launch Agents:
          [failed] com.apple.AirPlayUIAgent.plist
Launch Daemons:
          [not loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist
          [not loaded] com.Affinegy.InstaLANd.plist
          [not loaded] com.google.GoogleML.plist
          [not loaded] com.google.keystone.daemon.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.commonservices.daemon.integod.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.commonservices.daemon.taskmanager.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.commonservices.icalserver.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.commonservices.metrics.kschecker.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.Family-Protector.daemon.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.netbarrier.daemon.logger.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.netbarrier.daemon.monitor.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.netbarrier.daemon.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.netupdate.daemon.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.personalantispam.daemon.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.PersonalBackup.daemon.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.virusbarrier.daemon.emlparser.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.virusbarrier.daemon.logger.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.virusbarrier.daemon.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.virusbarrier.daemon.scanner.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.washingmachine.daemon.plist
          [not loaded] com.vmware.launchd.vmware.plist
Launch Agents:
          [not loaded] com.Affinegy.InstaLANa.plist
          [not loaded] com.brother.LOGINserver.plist
          [not loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.commonservices.integomenu.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.commonservices.taskmanager.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.commonservices.uninstaller.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.Family-Protector.agent.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.netbarrier.alert.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.netupdate.agent.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.personalbackup.agent.plist
          [not loaded] com.intego.virusbarrier.alert.plist
          [not loaded] jp.co.canon.CUPSCMFP.BG.plist
          [not loaded] jp.co.canon.CUPSFAX.BG.plist
          [not loaded] jp.co.canon.UFR2.BG.plist
          [not loaded] net.culater.SIMBL.Agent.plist
User Launch Agents:
          [not loaded] com.adobe.ARM.202f4087f2bbde52e3ac2df389f53a4f123223c9cc56a8fd83a6f7ae.plist
          [not loaded] com.apple.CSConfigDotMacCert-karenarvay-SharedServices.Agent.plist
          [not loaded] com.google.Chrome.framework.plist
          [not loaded] jp.co.canon.Inkjet_Extended_Survey_Agent.plist
          [not loaded] ws.agile.1PasswordAgent.plist
User Login Items:
          Quick Emoji HD
          SNDesktopper
          Amnesty
          Antispam Engine
          Mail
          Belkin Router Monitor
          VirusBarrier X6
          Calendar
          Dropbox
          Messages
          Notes
          TomTomHOMERunner
          NetUpdate
3rd Party Preference Panes:
          Déjà Vu
          Flash Player
          Flip4Mac WMV
          Google Desktop
          Logitech Control Center
          Xmarks for Safari
Internet Plug-ins:
          AdobePDFViewer.plugin
          AdobePDFViewerNPAPI.plugin
          EPPEX Plugin.plugin
          Flash Player.plugin
          FlashPlayer-10.6.plugin
          Flip4Mac WMV Plugin.plugin
          Google Earth Web Plug-in.plugin
          iPhotoPhotocast.plugin
          JavaAppletPlugin.plugin
          QuickTime Plugin.plugin
          RealPlayer Plugin.plugin
          Scorch.plugin
          Silverlight.plugin
          SpeedDownload Browser Plugin.plugin
User Internet Plug-ins:
Bad Fonts:
          None
Top Processes by CPU:
              26%          Mail
               8%          WindowServer
               3%          EtreCheck
               3%          NotificationCenter
               2%          hidd
               2%          ps
               1%          Dock
               1%          Google Chrome
               0%          usernoted
               0%          fontd
Top Processes by Memory:
          172 MB             Google Chrome
          102 MB             Mail
          97 MB              Google Chrome Helper
          86 MB              Dock
          70 MB              CalendarAgent
          70 MB              SystemUIServer
          70 MB              Finder
          57 MB              com.apple.dock.extra
          45 MB              EtreCheck
          45 MB              WindowServer
Virtual Memory Statistics
          281 MB             Free RAM
          1.22 GB            Active RAM
          974 MB             Inactive RAM
          1.30 GB            Wired RAM
          408 MB             Page-ins
          0 B                Page-outs

I am very annoyed at the Creative Cloud set up and the non-stop issues and problems

I am very annoyed at the Creative Cloud set up and the non-stop issues and problems! I am paying monthly for this service and it is constantly failing in some way! So far in three months I have had to uninstall and re-install Photoshop THREE times because it stopped working properly and Illustrator I have had to do that same to TWICE! That isn't including the other apps that have had issues! I don't have the time to constantly be un-installing and re-installing all or some of the Creative Cloud because your developers are not making a product that works consistently for the money you are charging! It is costing me more than just this monthly fee! And I am even less impressed with the fact that I cannot email someone for assistance in resolving these issues. Really Adobe?

Adobe contact information - http://helpx.adobe.com/contact.html may help

I buy adobe creative suite for teachers and students about one year ago but now i'm not longer a student. Can I still use this programs legally for commercial purposes or do I have to buy some upgrades or something like this? Please help

I buy adobe creative suite for teachers and students about one year ago but now i'm not longer a student. Can I still use this programs legally for commercial purposes or do I have to buy some upgrades or something like this? Please help

The license did not have use restrictions Licenses and terms of use | Adobe
BUT... when your one year Education account ends, I do not think you will be able to renew at the Education rate

Recently when opening up Photoshop, my Adobe CS6 Master Collection pops up saying there's some kind of offer going on the Creative Cloud. For awhile I was just able to close out of it and go about my business on Photoshop, but now it's not allowing me to

Recently when opening up Photoshop, my Adobe CS6 Master Collection pops up saying there's some kind of offer going on the Creative Cloud. For awhile I was just able to close out of it and go about my business on Photoshop, but now it's not allowing me to open Photoshop unless I sign up/pay. I'm quite confused? I really NEED to have access to Photoshop ASAP.

Sign in, activation, or connection errors | CS5.5 and later
Mylenium

Firefix sad:"Copy/Cut/Paste is not available in Mozilla and Firefox. Do you want more information about this issue?" But,I can do the that from Opera...What should I do?

Copy/Cut/Paste is not available in Mozilla and Firefox.
Do you want more information about this issue?
That's what Firefox sad to me...I was Rich text editing,but I can
not use copy paste on.
I did the same site and Rich text editing with Opera,
and there was no problem.
I love Firefox,and I want ti use it,but if this is not posibile to do in Firefox,I must go with Opera from now on.
Pleace,responde to me,I need to fix a problem.
I hope you understanded my Engish!
Thank you...

Try to use the keyboard if the buttons on the web page aren't working.
* Copy: Ctrl+C or Ctrl+Insert
* Paste: Ctrl+V or Shift+Insert
* Cut: Ctrl+X or Shift+Delete
See:
*http://kb.mozillazine.org/Granting_JavaScript_access_to_the_clipboard
*https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/allowclipboard-helper/

Copy/Cut/Paste is not available in Mozilla and Firefox. Do you want more information about this issue?

Copy/Cut/Paste is not available in Mozilla and Firefox.
Do you want more information about this issue?
Yes!

https://support.mozilla.com/en-US/kb/Clipboard+not+working
This extension will help you set the necessary permissions - Allow Clipboard Helper extension: <br />
https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/852

I am using PP 2014 CC and it and or Encoder keep crashing.. using iMac computer with Yosemite OS anyone have any ideas about this issue?

I am using PP 2014 CC and it and or Encoder keep crashing.. using iMac computer with Yosemite OS anyone have any ideas about this issue?

Hi,
Please give this a try: Premiere Pro CC, CC 2014, or 2014.1 freezing on startup or crashing while working (Mac OS X 10.9, and later)
Thanks,
Rameez

Confusion about UEFI/BIOS and GPT/MBR compatibility issues

So a user said in another post that they were NOT able to boot in UEFI mode and install Fedora even though it is UEFI compatible. But this person was able to useLegacy mode and install Fedora, and furthermore, was able to "keep the Windows partition." I'm guessing that means that Win 8 that came with it, which would be installed in UEFI/GPT mode, correct? I'm specificly referring to the Y510P but from what I understand *every* laptop that comes preinstalled with Win 8 must be UEFI/GPT.
So the way I understand it is that the installed Fedora is in "BIOS"/GPT mode rather than "BIOS"/MBR mode because you can't have both GPT and MBR on the same disc.
I have just started learning about this UEFI/BIOS and MBR/GPT nonsense, and it's going to drive me crazy until I finally understand it. So I guess what I'm asking is:
1) When I get my y510p I assume it will be in UEFI/GPT mode. Can I install non-UEFI distros alongside it as I take it was done with Fedora?
2) If I install a linux distro alongside Win 8, do I have to worry about compatibility issues with a drive that is in GPT format? Or does the MBR/GPT issue have nothing to do with it, so I don't have to worry about ever changing my drive to MBR?
For example, I read that Win 7 must be installed either as BIOS/MBR or UEFI/GPT. This can not be mixed and matched. This means that if I could not get the Windows 7 installer to boot in UEFI I would have to install as MBR. This also means I would have to format the drive and reinstall Win 8 on the MBR.
So my question is do other OS's like Linux have these restrictions? (For example, if a particular distro will not boot in UEFI and therefor MUST install on MBR)
3) I have a pendrive with YUMI installed with a ton of distros/tools/Win installs/etc. (It is a USB boot tool like unetbootin that allow you to add multiple bootable images.) When I tried it recently on my dad's laptop. I have used it many, many times with my older computers, none of which were UEFI. It works great. Now that I've had a recent encounter with my dad's ASUS Windows 8 computer (not with the y510p yet) I found out that UEFI seems to be complicating the crap out of things (for me, at least.)
So when I used this computer, I noticed that when I boot (with legacy mode enabled) and enter the "boot selection screen" in order to boot with USB, I have two options a) UEFI:"name of usb" and b) "name of USB". The UEFI option would NOT boot, but it would boot without the UEFI: option.
So does this mean that I am booting in non-UEFI mode and once I have booted this way and choose a distro to install that it CANNOT install in UEFI mode? I recently saw a tool called Rufus that I have yet to try that has an option to set the bootable USB to UEFI, so that would possibly work if I wanted to install a UEFI compatible distro (Arch linux is what I'm wanting.)
4) If installing a UEFI compatible distro (such as Arch) requires that the USB device be able to boot in UEFI mode has anyone been able to do this? Has anyone even been able to boot a device in UEFI mode to do *anything* such as run a live linux?
I'm 99% sure I would be able to boot in legacy mode and run a live linux (because I did so on my dad's computer) but the problems arise when I consider how to INSTALL.
I would really like to know the answers to these questions (as scattered as they are.) Any help would be appreciated!
Unnecessary info:
(I started learning about BIOS/UEFI and MBR/GPT the hard way a few days ago by trying for hours to install Windows 7 on my dad's Windows 8 laptop because I could NOT get Win 7 installation to work...it kept asking for drivers before I could install until I finally used the Windows USB install tool, put the stick in a different USB, AND formatted the drive as MBR because Windows 7 would NOT install on the existing GPT drive until I used diskpart.exe -clean. And I have read that Win 7 64 bit will work fine on a UEFI/GPT setup. I used the Windows 7 USB boot tool which did NOT give me a UEFI: and regular option. It showed up simply as "name of usb" without a UEFI in front. Since I read that Windows 7 must either be in BIOS/MBR mode or UEFI/GPT mode that this drive would not boot in UEFI mode, and I don't know why...Although I believe I read that Win 7 cannot be installed from a USB in UEFI/GPT mode, only BIOS/MBR. UEFI/GPT mode requires a DVD install but I did not have a drive to test this.)

I have a Y510p which is running dual boot Windows 8.1 and Arch Linux. I think that it is strongly advised to do plenty of reading ahead of any install if you will be using UEFI and Linux so that you understand all the issued before making critical changes to the existing system.
Yes, if the machine comes with Windows 8 (as mine did) then the disk will be formatted with a GPT partition table (instead of the old MBR partitioning scheme), and will boot using UEFI. If you are going to try to keep the existing Windows 8 system and add Linux then you will need to keep the disk with its GPT partition table and partition structure, but you can shrink the Windows 8 C: drive to make space for the Linux partitions that are needed ( a root partition and at least a /home and/or /opt partition and possibly a linux swap partition also ). If you want to boot the Linux install via UEFI then you can simply add the required boot directory to the EFI System Partition (ESP).
However it is very important that before trying to do any linux install that you switch off Fastboot from within WIndows 8 (or 8.1). Also most Linux distributions are in some difficulty booting using Secure Boot, though a few such a Ubuntu and Fedora are supposed to be able to do so. Hence it is much easier to work with Linux if Secure Boot is first switched off from the BIOS settings menu.
The order of operations that I used was;
1) Switch off Secure Boot from the BIOS - and boot back into the Windows 8 system to check that it boots OK.
2) With Windows 8 running go into the settings and switch off Fastboot (which does a hybrid suspend when it shuts down instead of a full normal shutdown - if you don't do this then the memory gets overwritten when booting Linux in the future which means booting back into Windows will fail).
3) Reboot back into WIndows and check all is well, and if so then use the disk management facility within Windows 8 to shrink the C: drive to make room for the Linux partitions.
4) Reboot to check Windows 8 still boots OK.
5) If you are going to update to Windows 8.1 then do so, and then update everything once it is booted (it is a huge update and takes ages!). Once done then you will likely have to update drivers for the graphics cards, the clickpad and possibly the wireless chip and ethernet chip. I found that I needed to get drivers that were newer than were available on the Lenovo website, by going to the relevant hardware manufacturer website (eg for synaptics for the clickpad). Then spent a week or so in the evenings getting Windows 8.1 configured the way I like it.
6) Then I did a lot of reading about the various options for the boot manager that would suit a UEFI boot for a dual boot system for Windows 8.1 and Arch Linux and there was a choice of Grub, Gummiboot, rEFInd, and others - and after reading the details I decided on rEFInd as my boot manager which can boot not only any new Arch Linux install but automatically finds the Windows UEFI boot files and presents the options in a nice graphical window once the system gets past POST at bootup.
7) It was important to check which partition was the ESP and to know what partitions I needed to create for the Arch Linux system. Then I went ahead and booted from a usbkey to a uefi install system, and very carefully proceeded with a standard Arch Linux install, being particularly careful to know where to put the rEFInd boot manager files and the kernel and initrd files. Also I used efibootmgr to write the appropriate NVRAM boot entry in the motherboard memory so that the uefi boot system knows where to find the rEFInd uefi boot files in the ESP.
8) Once complete the system boots to Arch Linux as the default, with a nice Windows icon which you can select with the arrow keys within the boot timeout period (default 20 seconds).
I noted also that it is possible to create boot stanzas in the rEFInd boot manager config files which allow rEFInd to chain load other Linux systems or even other bootloaders if you wish - so it is very flexible. So if you want to you could install a grub standalone set of diretories/files so that if the normal linux boot fails then you can select the grub icon from rEFInd and chainload grub to boot either the same Archlinux install, or point to a third linux distribution if you have more partitions containing that third install which might be Ubuntu or Mint or ....
Either way although getting to understand how uefi boot works is a learning curve it is actually generally simpler than the old legacy BIOS boot. With uefi you no longer need an MBR on the drive, and only a suitable EFI System Partition which has to be VFAT formatted. However if you want to have one of the linux distributions booting from legacy MBR then you need to create an MBR at the start of the drive - so you would need to move the start of the first partition and create a suitable sized Master Boot Record otherwise MBR boot can't work. If you do that then of course you have to be careful if the Windows partition is the one being re-sized that it doesn't mess up the Windows boot! However since using uefi to boot rEFInd allows a chainload to grub/gummiboot or other bootloaders then there should be no need to mess with MBR booting if you go down that route.
If you are interested in rEFInd then the author Rod Smith has a good set of documentation that describe the details at http://www.rodsbooks.com/refind/
He is also the author of a really excellent disk partitioner for GPT disks - http://www.rodsbooks.com/gdisk/
Clearly it is necessary to read up on the boot facilities available for any linux distribution that you plan to put on the system.
One nice thing is that uefi boot with an efistub supported kernel build is really fast on the Y510p. My system boots Arch linux in about 7 seconds to the KDE login prompt once the POST is complete and that only takes a couple of seconds. Of course Windows is much slower once it is selected at the rEFInd screen and takes somewherearound 40 seconds or so to boot, but at least Linux is super fast!
Anyway I hope that this helps.

To Daniel_K and Creative about RAM issues

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