Why doesn't this RAM work?

I have an old Gateway Professional v series desktop that I'm trying to upgrade for someone, (http://www.crucial.com/store/listparts.aspx?model=Professional v Series&pl=Gateway&cat=RAM) it had 192 mb of ram in it, I pulled them and added 2 of these: http://www.mightymicro.com/IC/t_proddetail.mev?process=100002&prodid=6833 but when I rebooted it came up to start menu options and if I selected anything- safe, last known good, etc. it would just continue to reboot. I'm assuming it doesn't like the ram, I tried swapping the slots, one at a time, no good. Had to put the 192 megs back in, isn't the Micron ram compatable cuz its 32x8 or something???

 

Have you checked the BIOS to see if there's any memory settings (like timings, bus speeds, etc) that relate to the old memory and that aren't compatible with the new memory? You'd think that because the PC will POST, and start to load Windows, that it is 'accepting' the RAM, but I think something in the Windows memory management is conflicting somewhere. I know the RAM is new, but I'd try running an in-depth diagnostic on each new stick individually, then together. It will be monotonous and time consuming, but it may just solve the problem. Also, have you looked in to a possible BIOS upgrade? There may be a newer release than the version you have now, and a newer release might address memory compatibility issues....
Good luck! Keep us posted!

(BTW- here's a bootable RAM diagnostic I like: http://www.majorgeeks.com/Memory_Diagnostic_d3955.html; the download will give you the option of creating a bootable floppy disk, or an ISO image file you'd burn to create a bootable CD; once the diagnostic program has been booted to, press "T" to run the extended tests, and run at least 3 passes per stick and on the pair)

 

to dlb
Clicked on link you provided. Got an Error 404 message( Page not found).

 

Like a dummy I left without thinking to maybe pull the cmos battery or something. I doubt the ram is bad, i was using it in another pc up until i put it in. I did try to get to the bios by esc and del, but neither worked, then i gave up. Hopefully I can get back to it this week. Its being used by a business so I don't like to tie it up very long. But your saying that the ram should work? Why would I need to update the bios is the specs say its the right stuff?

 

The specs might just ASSUME you have the updated BIOS.

 

Do these old pc's usually require some kind of bios tweaking when swapping ram?

 

Not necessarily tweaking, but a check for newer versions couldn't hurt.

 

you don't think the fact that the replacement ram was 32x8, not 32x64 like the old made any diff?

 

Not tweaking, but a lot of them require an update. The JEDEC standard (the industry standard for RAM) was set about the same time as PC133 gained in popularity, and some older PC133 systems predate the current standard for SDR RAM. An update will teach your BIOS what the new standard is and that the new RAM actually is valid and usable.

Your initial assumption that the old PC doesn't like the new RAM is a good one... the question is why? Test with one new stick at a time to rule out that one of them is bad. Test each slot with a known good stick, to rule out bad slots on the board. Try to get into your BIOS setup and see if it reads the memory correctly there, if it does, then the issue is with your windows. If all else fails, update BIOS and try the new memory again.

Edit:
I noticed in your previous posts that you've tried a lot of different things already... BIOS update might be the way to go.

 

I forgot to mention on my first attempt, on boot the screen said there was a decrease in the ram, it said it only had 16mb! I quickly shut down and reseated, thats when it started just rebooting from the boot option menus. I was surprised, i expected maybe beeps if it didn't llike it, and i know the ram is good.

 

You did let it go through the entire POST and boot sequence before you shut it down, right? Right?

Generally, you really do not want to interrupt a computer that is in the middle of thinking, especially not right after you've just made a significant hardware change.

I'd try the memory again, and this time, no matter what it says on the screen, let it boot as far as it can go, and then go from there. If it looks like it's getting stuck, give it at least five minutes, more if necessary, before you start shutting things down again.

 

yes, i knew that, i think i panicked when i saw the 16 mb and shut it down before it messed up windows. But then no matter what i did after, one stick, swap slots, it would just boot in a loop until i put the old ram back in. I tried safe mode, last known too. I guess now I don't want to work on it again and fail again and look like a real idiot when i assured him the ram would fit.

 

Even the best of us can make mistakes. Lord knows I've done my share.

 

Depending on system, shutting it down while it was in the middle of thinking could very well be what caused the problems from then on. The 16MB was most likely in reference to either on-board RAM or to the size of a cache somewhere on the motherboard. One of my laptops claims to have 16MB system memory and 768MB extended memory. The 768MB is the installed RAM a 512MB and a 256MB... and that amount is listed a lot later in the POST messages.

If nothing can make the new memory work, you can also try a CMOS reset and see if that sorts things out.

 

yes it did say 16mb physical memory- and it looked like a warning stating a decrease in memory, I can't believe I just found the service manual for it! I'm going to examine it for bios settings and maybe a jumper. Funny, I just had another ram issue with a pc that had four slots- 2 168 pin and two 184 pin. I could not get the 184 pin slots to work, it was driving my crazy until a found a TINY little jumper hidden- so annoying!