This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
This chapter is from the book
The System Logical Memory Layout
The original PC had a total of 1MB of addressable memory, and the top 384KB of that was reserved for use by the system. Placing this reserved space at the top (between 640KB and 1,024KB, instead of at the bottom, between 0KB and 640KB) led to what is often called the conventional memory barrier. The constant pressures on system and peripheral manufacturers to maintain compatibility by never breaking from the original memory scheme of the first PC has resulted in a system memory structure that is (to put it kindly) a mess. Almost two decades after the first PC was introduced, even the newest systems are limited in many important ways by the memory map of the first PCs.
The original PC used an Intel 8088 processor that could run only 16-bit instructions or code, which ran in what was called the real mode of the processor. These early processors had only enough address lines to access up to 1MB of memory, and the last 384KB of that was reserved for use by the video card as video RAM, other adapters (for on-card ROM BIOS or RAM buffers), and finally the motherboard ROM BIOS.
The 286 processor brought more address lines, enough to allow up to 16MB of RAM to be used, and a new mode called protected mode that you had to be in to use it. One area of confusion was that RAM was now noncontiguous; that is, the operating system could use the first 640KB and the last 15MB, but not the 384KB of system reserved area that sat in between.
When Intel released the first 32-bit processor in 1985 (the 386DX), the memory architecture of the system changed dramatically. There were now enough address lines for the processor to use 4GB of memory, but this was accessible only in 32-bit protected mode, in which only 32-bit instructions or code could run. Unfortunately, it took 10 years for the industry to transition from 16-bit to 32-bit operating systems and applications. From a software instruction perspective, all the 32-bit processors since the 386 are really just faster versions of the same.
When AMD released the first x86-64 processor in 2003 (Intel followed suit in 2004), the 64-bit era was born. In addition to 16-bit and 32-bit modes, these chips have a 64-bit mode as well. 64-bit processors have three distinctly different modes, with different memory architectures in each. For backward compatibility, 64-bit processors can run in 64-bit, 32-bit, or 16-bit modes, and 32-bit processors can run in 32-bit or 16-bit modes, each with different memory limitations. For example, a 64-bit processor running in 32-bit mode can only address 4GB of RAM, and a 64-bit or 32-bit processor running in 16-bit mode can only address 1MB of RAM. All Intel-compatible PC processors begin operation in 16-bit real mode when they are powered on. When a 32-bit or 64-bit operating system loads, it is that operating system code that instructs the processor to switch into 32-bit or 64-bit protected mode.
When an operating system such as Windows is loaded, the processor is switched into 32-bit protected mode early in the loading sequence. Then, 32-bit drivers for all the hardware can be loaded, and then the rest of the operating system can load. In 32-bit protected mode, the operating systems and applications can access all the memory in the system up to 4GB. Similarly, on a 64-bit operating system, the system switches into 64-bit protected mode early in the boot process and loads 64-bit drivers, followed by the remainder of the operating system.
The 32-bit editions of Windows support 4GB of physical memory (RAM). What many don't realize is that the PC system hardware uses some or all of the fourth gigabyte for the BIOS, motherboard resources, memory mapped I/O, PCI configuration space, device memory (graphics aperture), VGA memory, and so on. This means that if you install 4GB (or more) RAM, none of it past 4GB will be seen at all, and most or all of the fourth gigabyte (that is, the RAM between 3GB and 4GB) will be disabled because it is already occupied by other system hardware. This is called the 3GB limit, which is analogous to the 640K memory limit we had on 16-bit systems in the 1980s. The 16-bit addressing supported 1MB, but the upper 384K was already in use by the system hardware (BIOS, video, adapter ROM, and so on).
Figure 6.23 shows the memory map for a modern system using an Intel G45 chipset, which supports a maximum of 16GB of RAM. For a 32-bit OS, the line labeled "Top of usable DRAM (32-bit OS)" is at 4,096MB. Note that the PCI memory range, FLASH, APIC (Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller), and Reserved areas take up a total of 770MB of the memory below 4GB. You can also see the 384K (0.375MB) of memory below 1MB that is used by the system as well. This means that if you are running a 32-bit OS, even if you have 4GB of RAM installed, the amount usable by the OS would be 4,096MB – 770MB – 0.375MB, which is 3,325.625MB (or about 3.24GB, rounded down).
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Figure 6.23 Memory map for a system using an Intel G45 chipset.
Can any of that unused memory between 3GB and 4GB be reclaimed? For those running a 32-bit OS, the answer is no. However, if you are running a 64-bit OS on a system that supports memory remapping (primarily a function of the motherboard chipset and BIOS), then the answer is yes. Most newer motherboard chipsets have a feature that can remap the otherwise disabled RAM in the fourth GB to the fifth (or higher) GB, where it will be both visible to and usable by a 64-bit OS. Note, however, that if the motherboard doesn't support remapping, then even when a 64-bit OS is being run, the memory will be lost.
Note that the 3GB limit is not as strictly defined as it was with the 640K limit. This means that if you do install 4GB, you might get to use as much as 3.5GB of it, or possibly as little as 2.5GB or less. It depends largely on the types of buses in the system as well as the type and number of video cards installed. With a single low-end video card, you may have access to 3.5GiB. However, on a newer system with two or more PCIe x16 slots, and especially with two or more high-end PCI Express video cards installed, you may drop the usable limit to something close to 2GiB.
For running 32-bit editions of Windows, I used to recommend installing a maximum of 3GB RAM, because most if not all of the fourth GB is unusable. However, on systems that support dual-channel memory, it is often just cheaper to install two 2GB modules to get 4GB than it is to install two 1GB modules and two 512MB in order to get 3GB. On desktop systems that support dual-channel memory, you would not want to install three 1GB modules, because in that case not all the memory would run in dual-channel mode.