How do I know how much RAM to get?

I currently have a mid 2011 21.5" iMac running Mountain Lion with 8G of RAM. I want to exapnd this to 16G but i am not sure of how many slots I have available for extra RAM. Should I get one 8G card or two 4G cards? Can anyone assist?

Lanny wrote:
This one shows; the one in your last post does not (and it's exactly the same as the one that prompted me to ask you):

Similar Messages

15" MBP i7 - How Much RAM to Get?

I am planning to get a new MacBook Pro i7 @2.66 GHz. I am not sure, though, whether I should spend $400 additionally to upgrade the RAM to 8 GB. On my current Core 2 Duo @2.8 GHz, after many days of being on continuously, I see 400 MB - 2 GB listed under Page Outs. After only a few hours since power-up there is 0 GB or only a small value listed. What do you think: should I go for 4 GB or 8 GB RAM? Thanks.

My view is to max out the RAM as it will pay off long term, but don't go with Apple as it's too expensive, get your new macBook Pro with the minimum and then buy an upgrade bundle ($290) from OWC
http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other%20World%20Computing/8566DDR3S8GP/
They will also give you money back for the old RAM you send in ...

How do i know how much RAM

Where do I find how much RAM my iMac has? How much should i have to run OS X Lion...I need to update to snow leopard first as I am running just leopard.
If I need more is it easy to buy and install by myself?
Thanks

Click here and find your model. The entry will contain a link to where compatible RAM can be found, together with its type. You can do this on your own if you're comfortable.
(61976)

How much ram can my iMac take?

Hi all, just bought a iMac a few days ago and I'm just wondering how much ram can it take as I want to upgrade it. It didnt come with a manual, so I don't know.
Here's the spec so far
Early 2008 20"
Processor 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory 2 GB 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM
Graphics ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT 128 MB
Software OS X 10.8.2 (12C60)
Thanks for any help in advance

There are two answers: the official Apple answer and the "you're on your own" answer.
1 - For the official iMac max RAM, see iMac Memory specifications and upgrades
2 - For the "your're on your own" answer, everymac.com has a list of the Actual Maximum RAM you can put in every model Mac. In many cases this is more than the official maximum RAM.
After deciding how much RAM you want to put in your iMac, I suggest going to Crucial.com and use the memory advisor or system scanner to see what RAM modules are compatible with your iMac.

How much Ram can my Macbook use? What Hard drive should I upgrade to?

Hi Everyone.
I have a 2008 ish macBook with 4gb of Ram. I use vmware Fusion to run Windows every day and I also use Aperture on a regular basis.
I'm looking to breath some life into this old machine and want to know how much ram the motherboard will support. Here are the machine's specs.
Hardware Overview:
Model Name:          MacBook
Model Identifier:          MacBook4,1
Processor Name:          Intel Core 2 Duo
Processor Speed:          2.4 GHz
Number Of Processors:          1
Total Number Of Cores:          2
L2 Cache:          3 MB
Memory:          4 GB
Bus Speed:          800 MHz
Boot ROM Version:          MB41.00C1.B00
How muck Ram will the machine support?
My Hard drive is also nearly full and I would like to upgrade to a 500gb drive. Any suggestions on which drive to choose?
Thanks!!

You can install up to 6 GBs of RAM. There are any number of good choices for a hard drive replacement. I suggest visiting OWC for information on pricing, makes, and models. They also provide video tutorials on how to replace a drive in MacBooks.
To prepare for the upcoming release of Lion I also suggest spending $29 to buy a Snow Leopard DVD and upgrade your OS.

How much RAM should I upgrade too?

I recently purchased a 13" MacBook Pro. It is a mid-2012 model. It currently has 4 GB. I connect it to an external monitor which makes it easier for me to use while editing. I always have the application sit and load with the spinning ball icon. I use FCPX, Photoshop, and After Effects on a daily basis. I was wondering if the RAM increase would help me create my videos more efficently. Thanks for all the comments and help ahead of time!

You should benefit from adding more RAM. How much is hard to say but at least to 8 GBs. You might know more if you observed your memory usage in Activity Monitor.
About OS X Memory Management and Usage
Using Activity Monitor to read System Memory & determine how much RAM is used
Memory Management in Mac OS X
Performance Guidelines- Memory Management in Mac OS X
A detailed look at memory usage in OS X
Understanding top output in the Terminal
The amount of available RAM for applications is the sum of Free RAM and Inactive RAM. This will change as applications are opened and closed or change from active to inactive status. The Swap figure represents an estimate of the total amount of swap space required for VM if used, but does not necessarily indicate the actual size of the existing swap file. If you are really in need of more RAM that would be indicated by how frequently the system uses VM. If you open the Terminal and run the top command at the prompt you will find information reported on Pageins () and Pageouts (). Pageouts () is the important figure. If the value in the parentheses is 0 (zero) then OS X is not making instantaneous use of VM which means you have adequate physical RAM for the system with the applications you have loaded. If the figure in parentheses is running positive and your hard drive is constantly being used (thrashing) then you need more physical RAM.
Adding RAM only makes it possible to run more programs concurrently. It doesn't speed up the computer nor make games run faster. What it can do is prevent the system from having to use disk-based VM when it runs out of RAM because you are trying to run too many applications concurrently or using applications that are extremely RAM dependent. It will improve the performance of applications that run mostly in RAM or when loading programs.

How much ram and processing power in my imac will meet my graphic design needs?

Hi,
I'm in the market for a new imac. I'm trying to figure out how much ram I'll need and which processor will be sufficient for my graphic design needs.
I'm gonna need it to be robust enough to have InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator open at once along with spotify, safari with many tabs open, and a couple other apps including evernote and game from time to time. Also, I'm gonna be managing a good deal of fonts in font explorer. How much ram and processing power will I need in my imac to keep everything snappy with all these apps going at the same time?
Any advice on this would be much appreciated. Feel free to include any other relevant information you think I should know.
Thanks, Nick

Computers are out of date when you open the box
Ok, getting serious, that iMac should be a viable workhorse for what you want for a good five years, and taht depends on how much ram you put in it, add really fast external storage, and so on.
Didn't throw this in earlier so as to not influence the discussion: my daughter is the senior art director, VP, at a graphics design firm in NYC. Has been in the business for a number of years. When she changed out her Mac at work, bought, or company bought, the 27" iMac model just before the latest, with maxed out CPU/GPU, and storage. They maxed the memory to 32 GB for her, then added a 30" Apple cinema display so she has almost 5' of display in front of her. There is nothing she cannot have open all spread across that display area. She works almost exclusively in print media, occassionally condescends to do web stuff. And has a massive array of RAID drives hanging on it. But that is a setup an individual would be hard pressed to go with.
At home she uses a MacBook Pro with top cpu and display but that is all.
The point, just how massive do you want to go depends on how fast you have to work; in the office where time is money you need tons of horsepower. At home, you scale it to your abilitty to juggle other tasks at the same time.
I think your choices have been great, the discussion has focused on what is important and especially what can and cannot be changed in the future.
Best of luck setting this up.

How much RAM & CPU should I allocate for Windows 7 Ultimate?

I am in the process of setting up my new 27" iMac i7. I'm brand new to Apple computers so this is a learning curve for me! I have installed Parallels Desktop 5 so I can run Windows 7 side by side with Snow Leopard. Now I am trying to install Windows 7 Ultimate but I don't know how much RAM and CPU to allocate to my virtual machine. Has anyone done this and can anyone help? I have 8 gb RAM and 1 tb Hard Drive.
Thank you for your help!

Hello SwissCanuck,
Just FYI, with regard to 32-bit and 64-bit Windows 7:
You will not be able to "upgrade" from a 32-bit version of Windows 7 to 64-bit -- the architecture between the two is too drastically different to allow such a change. To learn more about the differences between a 32-bit operating system and 64-bit please go to the following link: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/32-bit-and-64-bit-Windows-frequ ently-asked-questions
Additionally, check out the requirements here for Windows 7:
If you want to run Windows 7 on your PC, here's what it requires:
•1 gigahertz (GHz) or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
•1 gigabyte (GB) RAM (32-bit) or 2 GB RAM (64-bit)
•16 GB available hard disk space (32-bit) or 20 GB (64-bit)
•DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver
Obviously covered as per your hardware. Essentially, it is always better if you run Windows 7 as a "Native OS" you can do this with boot camp from Apple. Typically, the performance is not as fast in virtual environments
John M
Microsoft Windows Client Team

How much RAM do I need to run FCP effectively?

As you can see below, I have an iMac 2.1 Ghz 20 in. (isight) w/ 512 MB of RAM, and I also have FCP, but have been experiencing some playaback framerate issues. So I have decided to upgrade my RAM to either 1 GB, 1.5 GB, or 2.5 GB... My question is how much RAM do you have and how well does it run. I know 2.5 GB's would be the ideal amount, but if I only need 1.5 GB then I would prefer to go with that and use the extra cash for new speakers.
Thanks, and I posted this over at the Final Cut Express board on accident so if any of you feel you have read this before... thats why.

Get an external hard drive - Firewire 400 min/ firewire 800 if your machine will support it.
Having media and the os on the same disk is a recipe for disaster.
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Do your part in supporting your fellow users. If a response has been Helpful to you or Solved your question, please mark it as such as an aid to other lost souls on the forum.
Also, don't forget to mark the thread Answered when you get enough information to close the thread.

How much RAM should my system utilise?

Hello,
Sounds like an odd question and maybe it is, so apologies i am utterly Newbie here.
I am running a i7 5930 with 64 gig's of DDR4, typically i am using 70% CPU but the RAM is seldom reaching over 30% usage? Is this odd, am i not applying the software setting correctly?
Any advise is very welcome
Simon Brumby

I've been searching for and reading web pages and white papers put out by Adobe all afternoon and can't find anything suggesting that large amounts of RAM specifically benefits Premiere users.
System requirements | Adobe Premiere Pro
4 GB of RAM (8 GB recommended)
How much Ram do I need? (getting a new laptop, help me please!)
Todd Kopriva, Adobe staff, says "16GB is plenty" for Premiere.
http://www.adobe.com/content/dam/Adobe/en/products/aftereffects/cc/pdfs/Configuring_Your_S ystem_20140312.pdf
It reads: "If you plan to use Adobe Premiere Pro, 4 or 6 GB of RAM is minimum, while 8 or 12 GB is suggested for most users. SpeedGrade is the least RAM-dependent of the applications discussed here; 4GB is the minimum recommended amount, with 8 GB preferred. Although Photoshop’s Minimum System Requirements states only 1 GB is needed, you should consider allocating 4 GB, with 8 GB allowing you to work on very large documents. Remember that each of these numbers are for the software running alone (along with the operating system); add at least their minimum requirements together if you plan on having them open at the same time."
From what I can gather, Premiere performance is dependent on processor speed, storage speed, and GPU mainly - RAM is not a major player as long as you have "enough" - adding a bunch more does not speed things up any more. The OP was not asking how to build a system, or if he should upgrade RAM, just wanted to know why Premiere was not using all the RAM he has installed. I think the answer is that the software architecture is not written to utilize RAM beyond a certain point. Maybe this is incorrect, then please show me the specs from Adobe.
I agree that more RAM never hurts - certainly will help if running multiple Adobe apps (or other software) at the same time, as I often do. I mentioned this in my first post, did not say 16GB was total anyone ever needs. After Effects can use gobs of memory!
Thanks
Jeff

How much RAM can I put in my mid 2010 17" MacBook Pro?

Hello-
I'd like to upgrade my memory. Would anyone happen to know how much RAM (the max amount) I can place into my mid 2010 MacBook Pro 17"?
Thanks-

8 GB.
Purchase memory from OWC / MacSales or Crucial. There may be other vendors of reliable Mac RAM but those are the only two I have used and can recommend.

How Much RAM????

I am a Pentium 4 laptop owner, and have been interested in anything APPLE for 10 months now. I am into heavy video editing and photography, as well as web design. Since I never owned a mac, I don't own any apps that are POWER PC native, and I don't think I'll buy Adobe products untill they are universal in CS3. Nontheless, I want a FAST system, and be able to multitask. How much RAM do you suggest I put into this beast....and in what pairs (i.e. 2 x 2GB etc.) Thanks a lot,
Michael

If I were to go back in my Time Machine to June 2003, just as the G5 was announced, there was a dearth of DDR400/PC3200 and 1GB chips that worked were hard to come by , and sometimes lead to incompatibilities and the need for "matched pairs" in particular.
Maybe in a year some "Mac Pro II" (well, that brings back memories of IIx and IIfx memory as well and doubt we'll see that name used anytime again), as long as the Mac Pro is tied to Xeon then ECC is probably a given but...
does anyone know the size of the market using FB-DIMMs like these? sure there are some server farms with TBs of memory, but 4 million Mac Pro users might get some real marketing attention too.
The "sweat spot" for many G5 owners even with lite use as a general desktop computer was 1.5GB RAM due to the way G5 code is written and laid out in RAM. I wonder, outside of Rosetta, if the Pro has as much of an appetite.
3GB might - for now - be that "sweat spot". With more for any apps that are memory-hungry. Having to spend $800 on memory might keep more than a few people on the side-lines, so it really is in Apple's interest that RAM prices decline to help the Christmas shoppers.
G4 MDD WD 320 OEM 9600 1.75GB SoftAID 3 Mac OS X (10.4.7) Mac Pro "rev 2" (hopefully)

How much RAM for ONE App & does OS X limit allocation?

Hello all,
This question concerns how much RAM I realistically need to run ONE application to it's fullest. I mainly use ProToolsLE 7.3, but sometimes use LogicPro 8 and Final Cut Express 4, again, only one running at a time. I've read on the ProTools forum that Windows (yuck) limits the amount of RAM that can be allocated for 1 application. Does Mac OS 10.4 or 10.5 do this?
Right now I have the stock 1GB (2 x 512MB). I plan on pulling it and installing a matched quad of either 1GB sticks (4GB total) -OR- 2GB sticks (8GB total). I understand that matched quads in slots 1/2 of both risers is optimum for the early Mac Pros.
The ProTools forum isn't helping much. A ProTools support person said that starting with 4GB will be good to start and that they test their systems with 4GB installed. What did they mean by "good to start"? Will it increase jumping to 8GB or is 4GB all ProTools can really use?
Another guy on there said "keep in mind that to use 4GB of ram - you'd need a 64bit Operating system (not supported by pro-tools) or on a MAC PAE support enabled, which depending on your hardware may not be a great move." I dont know what that means! Mac OS 10.5 IS a 64bit OS, right? And ProTools 7.4 NEEDS OS 10.5 to run....even if it is only a 32bit app. (though right now I am running PT 7.3 on OS 10.4....not sure if 10.4 is 64bit)
A quad set of 1GB is under $170 and a quad set of 2GB is under $270. Funds are tight right now, but I think I can swing the extra $100 to double the RAM -IF- it will make a difference.
Any thoughts as to wether the extra $100 will be worth it, or am I wasting my money? Thanks!

Hatter,
Thank you so much for your advice! If I may bother you to receive one final suggestion....
Based on the best prices I have found from all of the well known Mac Pro memory dealers, I have narrowed it down to 3 configurations that are balanced. Even though I'm still not 100% confident that 8GB of RAM will give me any noticable imporvement over 6GB, the price is only $42 more to get 8GB. Am I correct in saying that the early Mac Pro would do better to have one matched quad set of RAM over the new Mac Pro's increased performance of having all eight slots filled? Here are the 3 configurations and prices.
4 x 1GB + 4 x 512MB = 6GB Quad+Quad $220 (using my stock 2x512MB sticks)
4 x 2GB = 8GB Quad $262 (pulling my stock 2x512MB sticks)
8 x 1GB = 8GB Octal $278 (pulling my stock 2x512MB sticks)
Which do you think would be the best route?
I already purchased a WD Caviar for my dedicated audio drive. I installed a Seagate 7200.9 in my PowerMac G4 for it's audio drive, but after reading various reveiws, concluded the WD Caviar is a better performer. I LOVE my WD My Book Studio external. I hadn't considered replacing the boot drive, but after reading articles suggesting that it improves overall system performance, and now that you've recommended it as well, I will probably buy a second Caviar for the boot/system drive.
This computer is a DEDICATED audio computer, for ProTools & Logic only....other than a bit of fiddling in Final Cut Express. It's not even connected to the internet and all unnecessary apps are not installed or uninstalled. I also never migrate apps, but always do a fresh install of everything from the ground up.
Thanks again for your advice! It's been a big help!

How do I find out how much ram my macbook has?

I clicked on hardrive and clicked info but it only says my hardrive space, I want to know my processor size and how much ram I have so I can add some more if I can
Thanks

or you could use the scan my system tool from Crucial:
http://www.crucial.com/uk/?click=true
I was being an idiot when I said the limit was 2GB. I wrote that on a macbook with 4GB!! Sorry, the stupid is burning brightly tonight.
make sure you buy good quality memory.

How can I tell how much RAM I have...?

I just got an HP dv9000 that doesn't work. I want to sell it but I would like to know the specs like how much RAM it has, what processor, how big is the hard drive, etc.
How can I do that?
Thank you

Look at the tag on the bottom and give us the full model number. That will tell us original specs. The memory and hard drive are under removeable covers on the bottom. If you can't boot it up the only way to be sure somebody did not upgrade it from original specs (or remove the memory and/or hard drive entirely) is to look at what is there. It is very unlikely the processor has been changed from original.

How do I know how much RAM to get?

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