How to identify the size of RAM modules ?

Question::

You have purchased a large collection of RAM modules - SIMMs and DIMMs - that you want to resell, but you have no idea of how to identify the memory capacity in megabytes (MB) of the individual modules, and you want to know if there is any way to determine the size of a module other than by installing it on a motherboard in a computer that supports that type of RAM.

Answer::

It is possible to identify the chips by part number. You have to identify the size of each the chips on a module, and then multiply the size by the number of chips on the module to determine its memory capacity.

Different RAM manufacturers have developed their own methods of identification, so it is has become difficult to identify the chips without looking up the exact part number on a website that provides the information.

Luckily, the Internet has made doing this fairly easy via the Google search engine.

Unless they have been remarked by unscrupulous dealers that are selling substandard modules not passed for use in a computer as computer-quality, all of the chips on a particular module will have the manufacturer's name (or logo), and a part number printed on them.

For example, a 30-pin SIMM module with nine chips on the module, could have the part number - KM41C4000AJ-8. Drop the AJ-8 (the first letter is usually the quality - A, B, C, etc.), then use KM41C4000 to conduct a Google search.

The KM indicates parts made by Samsung. The 41 indicates that it is a 1Mbit x 4 part. This means that the chip holds 4Mbits. Eight of the nine chips hold memory, so this is a 8 x 4Mbit, or 32Mbit module. There are eight bits to a byte, therefore this is an 4MB module. The ninth chip is there to add parity. This was used as a means of checking for memory errors that is no longer used.

For a 168-pin DIMM module that has eight chips (no parity chip), and the part number - TMS626812DGE-12A - you would use TMS626812 to search for information on it.

Each chip is a 2Mbit x 8 (16Mbit) SDRAM chip. There are eight chips, so this is a 16MB SDRAM module, which is slow compared to the fastest speed that SDRAM modules reached. The 12 in the part number indicates that the module has a maximum frequency (speed) of 66MHz. SDRAM modules, now superseded by DDR and Rambus RAM, reached a maximum speed of 133MHz.

If you have any problems with identifying which memory module is supported by your system, please do not hesitate to contactus.

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