Thank you for being a valued part of the CNET community. As of December 1, 2020, the forums are in read-only format. In early 2021, CNET Forums will no longer be available. We are grateful for the participation and advice you have provided to one another over the years.

Thanks,

CNET Support

Resolved Question

Can I put more RAM than the stated maximum?

by May 15, 2012 4:13PM PDT

Hi folks

I've seen it mentioned that some machines will take more RAM than their stated maximum? Is that true? And if so, how can I find out if mine is one such machine and how much it can take?

My machine is a June 2007 white MacBook, 2GHz Core 2 Duo, 1G RAM, 80G Hard drive, running Tiger 10.4.11 (looking to upgrade to Snow).

Discussion is locked

AssafSoudry has chosen the best answer to their question. View answer
8 Posts
- Collapse + Expand Details

Best Answer

- Collapse -
Hardware limitation
by May 18, 2012 12:03PM PDT

Without getting into the specifics of the OS, the maximum RAM capacity for computers is dictated by the motherboard chipset. I am assuming your Mac is running an Intel processor and as such should be supproted by an Intel chipset. If you can identify the chipset and check on the Intel website the RAM limit, that would be the practical limit. I would anticipate the maximum Apple is advising for your machine corresponds with the Intel determined limit. Otherwise you are stuck with the theoretical ceiling of 4GB for a 32 bit system and no practical limit for 64 bit systems.

I would also recommend you check your processor as it may only support 32 bit operations, which was not uncommon for mobile processors of the vintage you have indicated.

The other queston is, how much RAM are you using for your operations? I would recommend going to 4GB if the chipset suports it.

Good luck

- Collapse -
Thanks
by AssafSoudry May 19, 2012 7:13PM PDT

Great. Thanks for your answers folks.

A couple more question please:
If a mistake is made and I put in more RAM than it can take, then is there any risk to my machine or data?
How will I know if it worked? Eg if i put in 3G and it runs fine then does that mean all 3G has been 'accepted' and working, or could it be that even though i put in 3G only 1G or 2G were 'accepted'. Will System Profiler show it?
Ps. I fully intend to upgrade the OS, infact that's the reason for buying the RAM.
Thanks again

- Collapse -
No
by Jimmy Greystone May 19, 2012 11:28PM PDT

No. For the most part, the system will either boot and use the RAM or it won't, there's no real in between. You might get the system to beep at you three times and the SIL will flash in sequence with the tones, which is the error tone for bad RAM. However, all of this will take place pre-POST, so the HDD hasn't really been more than powered up to test whether or not it's there, so no risk to the data on it.

- Collapse -
Great
by AssafSoudry May 20, 2012 12:25AM PDT

Great.
Thanks everyone for your help

- Collapse -
Answer
Doesn't the results of the scan
by Forum moderator May 15, 2012 9:41PM PDT

tend to indicate that your machine does not support more?

"Each memory slot can hold DDR2 PC2-5300 with a maximum of 1GB per slot.*
*Not to exceed manufacturer supported memory."

P

- Collapse -
Answer
Sometimes
by May 15, 2012 11:39PM PDT

Sometimes, but it's kind of a case by case basis. I had a 17" first gen MBP, and after I tried putting in more than like 2GB of RAM, it wouldn't even POST. However, I have seen other models where people have put like say 8GB into the Aluminum MacBook and it worked fine.

If it were me, I wouldn't risk the money. If you have the RAM sitting around, or someone is willing to give it to you, then you have nothing to lose. But what happens if you buy more RAM, put it in, and it doesn't work? So, do not spend more than you are willing to eat if things go a bit sideways.

- Collapse -
Answer
Sometimes.
by Forum moderator May 16, 2012 3:58AM PDT

But you will encounter folk that DEMAND to know if it will work on their machine. So far I have yet to find any answer other than to try it.
Bob

- Collapse -
Answer
Yeah, you can go past 2 gigs ...
by May 18, 2012 11:06AM PDT

I had two 2GB chips in my MacBook with your same specification and it ran fine. But you're definitely going to need to upgrade your OS to see past 4GB of RAM.

Check out www.macsales.com to get more info about the upgrade path for your system. OWC says your machine can read up to 6GB of RAM in your machine, provided you're running on a full 64-bit OS (e.g. 10.6.x Snow Leopard or 10.7.x Lion), and offer very competitive prices for the RAM to do it with.

Back to MacBooks forum

CNET Forums

Operating Systems
Software
Electronics & Gadgets
Hardware
Tablets & Mobile Devices
General Help
Brand Forums
Roadshow Autos
Off Topic

Other Forums

Forum Info