~
OK, but how do I fully match the info, say, crucial is asking me with
what IBM says.
~
The part I don't see is
~
3.) DDR2-533, DDR2-677 or DDR2-800
~
Would it be safe to get DDR2-800 if some of the existing memory may
be DDR2-533?
~
Which one do I need?
~
Thing is that I would like to be very careful, because I know some
RAM not playing well with the rest of a system may cause all kinds of
random problems including freezing your box and losing data
~
lbrtchx
Go here, then click the "show all" link in the middle of the page:
http://www.crucial.com/store/listparts.aspx?model=ThinkCentre+A52+Series+Type+8288+All+Models
The first item in the "show all" list, is this one. A pair of DIMMs.
Pull the existing UDIMM (unbuffered DIMM) from the machine. Then
stick the pair of these into the two available slots. Now you
have a matched pair running in dual channel mode.
2GB kit (1GBx2) US $119.99
CT577442 DDR2 PC2-4200, CL=4, UNBUFFERED, NON-ECC, DDR2-533, 1.8V, 128Meg x 64
Once the memory is installed, you don't boot from the hard drive as
is normal. The first thing you do, is a test with the new memory.
Download the memtest86+ program from memtest.org . Scroll down the
page until you see "Download (Pre-built & ISOs)". The ISO version
is something you burn to a CD and the CD can be used to boot
the machine. The floppy version is used to format a blank floppy,
and put a file on it. The floppy cannot be listed in Windows, but
the floppy is also bootable straight into the memtest program.
In order for the floppy to boot, you'd go into the BIOS for the
computer and make sure the floppy is the first in the boot order.
Same with the CD, as you'd want the hard drive to be last in the
boot order in the BIOS. What that does, is make sure that the
memtest86+ boot CD or floppy, is the one that boots the machine.
(I leave the boot order on my computer as floppy, CD, hard drive,
for that reason. The hard drive is last in the order.)
The memtest86+ screen is a 640x480 window, and it displays test
results while the program runs. You want it to do two complete
passes (takes a couple hours), and in that time frame, you want
no errors listed in the middle of the screen. The memtest86+ program
would run forever, unless you quit it. When you quit, you quickly
remove the floppy diskette, so that on the next boot, the hard
drive will be used. The machine will then reboot.
If you see errors, then you know there is something wrong with
either the memory or the machine. If there are no errors listed,
that is not a guarantee of no problems, but it is an encouraging
sign.
Another program of a similar nature, can be downloaded from
Microsoft. It does the same kinds of things as memtest86+.
http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp
If the new memory passes, then try booting into Windows. So far,
using memtest86+, I've had one report where a user passed memtest86+
clean with no errors, and then when he booted into Windows, there
was a massive corruption. And that is why I cannot guarantee that
memtest86+ is a sufficient test. But for most people it is a good
enough test.
Once you are in Windows, there is another test you can run. If you
download Prime95 from mersenne.org , that program has an option
called "Torture Test". The torture test carries out a mathematical
calculation with a known answer. (A lot of FFTs in fact.) Prime95
can run for hours, and as long as it reports no errors, it means
the computational and memory facilities in your machine are in
good shape. It will also give the cooling system on the computer
a good workout, and that test program is sometimes used to see
whether a computer has enough cooling. It will make the processor
get hot.
With the test tools above, you can run them on the computer as it
currently stands, and see how well the machine is currently working.
As with any computer, you do have backups of the contents of your
hard drive ? A business machine should always have backups, and the
places I've worked had that process automated. A backup was done
every day. A backup is a good thing to have, because a computer
can get scrambled any day of the week - it could even be something
like a virus or trojan that slips past your security software or
the like. If you have a good backup, then you have much less to
worry about.
Finally, while documents like this are highly technical, it is what
I use to research what kind of memory a machine might like. The
945GZ in your computer, is the Northbridge. The Northbridge
contains the memory controller (talks to your new memory), and
in your particular case, also contains the graphics logic.
ftp://download.intel.com/design/chipsets/datashts/30750203.pdf
If you look at page 17 there, you'll notice a couple of things.
Your Northbridge does not have a PCI Express interface for a
video card upgrade. Which means your only other option for
improved graphics, is to stuff a graphics card in a PCI Express x1
slot or a PCI slot, if either of those is available. Page 17
also lists DDR2-533 and DDR2-400 as the speeds the memory
interface will run at, and that is why I picked the CT577442
kit above, because it is DDR2-533, and means not spending any
more money than is necessary.
HTH,
Paul
