What is the maximum amount of memory that Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard Edition requires?

That's not a limit of Windows Server 2008, it's a limit of any 32 bit OS.  To increase this limit to 32GB, you'll have to build a new server using the x64 architecture and migrate your services across.

This should help:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa366778(v=vs.85).aspx#physical_memory_limits_windows_server_2008

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Probe

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datil

I doubt it as x86 will only take 4Gb RAM, so i don't beleive that there is any way to increase that limit.  You can install as much RAM as you like but the OS will never see it.

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Windows 2008 R1 32 bit has a maximum limit of 4GB of RAM.  This is the same as any other 32 bit OS weather it be windows or Linux.  The only way to get a server to access more is to upgrade to a 64bit OS..

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4GB...anything 32 bit will only see 4GB Max

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Actually, if you currently have 2008 32bit standard edition installed you can upgrade to 2008 32bit enterprise edition and it will recognise up to 64GB.

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Sajiin

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thai pepper

Spiderbox wrote:

Actually, if you currently have 2008 32bit standard edition installed you can upgrade to 2008 32bit enterprise edition and it will recognise up to 64GB.

Can you please add the link to where you got this information?  A 32-bit OS will never recognize more than 4GB of RAM.

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I think you are looking into Physical Address Extension.

"Physical Address Extension (PAE) is a processor feature that enables x86 processors to access more than 4 GB of physical memory on capable versions of Windows."

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa366796%28v=vs.85%29.aspx

Edit: You need Datacenter or Enterprise however.

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I was hoping for someone to direct me into PAE for W Server 2008 Standard or any similar solution.
Exabit - are you 100% sure you need datacenter or enterprise no other way?

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Exabit wrote:

I think you are looking into Physical Address Extension.

"Physical Address Extension (PAE) is a processor feature that enables x86 processors to access more than 4 GB of physical memory on capable versions of Windows."

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa366796%28v=vs.85%29.aspx

Edit: You need Datacenter or Enterprise however.

This is also dependent on your hardware being able to see the memory, which most x86 based systems will not. I seem to recall there being a PCI/PCIx RAM expander that 2008 DC/E servers could utilize for PAE, but we decided to upgrade to x64 based servers so it was never looked into it.

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you're wrong, a 32bit Linux with PAE support more than 4GB of RAM

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Server 2003 you need enterprise to enable PAE to go beyond 4gb.

Server 2008 Standard and up you can use PAE.  You don't need any special hardware, its all handled by the OS.  I've been doing PAE for years, I am surprised at the ignorance on this thread..

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There is not a limit of PAE, but Microsoft hard codes a ceiling so that you have to get the next higher version of OS.  Server 2003 it was 64GB PAE, Server 2008 I think it is 32GB (not completely sure on that, guess someone could look it up.) They also do this on physical processor limits.

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So my problem now is that system can see 12GB of ram but in task manager it will only use 4GB.

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please try the following steps to enable PAE on Windows 2008 Server 32bit.

1. Click Start- All Programs-Accesories-Command Prompt - "Right Click-Run as administrator"

2. "Bcdedit /set PAE forceenable"

3. Restart Server

Best Regards,

Mark

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Thanks for that Mark. That solved my issue with the memory.

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I am curious was Xapmat using Windows 2008 Server Standard?

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Hi All,

Please see attachment and tell me how to fix this.

The system is showing me 10GB of RAM but the Task Manager is only showing 4GB of RAM.

Best,

Tom Emnace

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What does this command do exactly?

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Marcin Szczygiel wrote:

So my problem now is that system can see 12GB of ram but in task manager it will only use 4GB.

Marcin, were you ever able to resolve this?

Mark C O'Donnell wrote:

please try the following steps to enable PAE on Windows 2008 Server 32bit.

1. Click Start- All Programs-Accesories-Command Prompt - "Right Click-Run as administrator"

2. "Bcdedit /set PAE forceenable"

3. Restart Server

Best Regards,

Mark

Mark, I ran this command & rebooted but it still shows 4GB in Task Manager. This is running as a VM in Hyper-V, on Server 2012 R2. It has 8GB RAM assigned to the VM. 

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Hi

this might help

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa366778(v=vs.85).aspx

X86 client versions with PAE enabled do have a usable 37-bit (128 GB) physical address space. The limit that these versions impose is the highest permitted physical RAM address, not the size of the IO space. That means PAE-aware drivers can actually use physical space above 4 GB if they want. For example, drivers could map the "lost" memory regions located above 4 GB and expose this memory as a RAM disk.

https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa366796(v=vs.85).aspx

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Marcin 

did you run it on the host or the virtual server?

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http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/windows/desktop/aa366778(v=vs.85).aspx#physical_memory_limits_windows_server_2008

32bit Server 2008 is not limited to 4GB.  Don't believe everything you read on the internet. People who say never can usually be proven wrong.

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