Your computer acting laggy and sluggish? Maybe it is demanding for more memory to run smoothly. Here is how to check the RAM usage on your MAC and Windows computers.
Sometimes we feel that our computer is lagging, spinning wheels, or even an error message about the low memory that might need some more RAM to operate smoothly. Common people always think that the more RAM a PC has it means it will be super fast. But in reality, it's not true. The speed of a PC depends on many things like software optimization, RAM type, Storage technology(HDD or SSD), and other components. In the below guide we will be discussing what is RAM and why we need it.
What is RAM and Why we need it?
RAM generally is a super-fast memory type whose full form is Random Access Memory. Its main function is to store the data which your computer needs to hold in a short term.
Think that your RAM is like your desk and your hard drive is the cabinet where all your data is stored. And on that desk, you put the things which you need you are currently working with the right.
The more RAM your computer will have the more short-term fast memory you will have to do multiple tasks. For multitasking more RAM is needed to run those applications smoothly.
On some laptops and PCs, you can’t upgrade the size of the RAM because they don’t support it and sometimes most of them don’t have the slot for the other RAM stick.
But all the modern Laptops and PCs support RAM up-gradation and they have dedicated slots in the cabinet for inserting other RAM sticks. On laptops, you get the option for complete removal of the old RAM stick and insert a higher memory RAM stick into the existing slot.
But in some highly modern and slim laptops, you may not find the option because the RAM is soldered to the motherboard in that case you will have to change your laptop completely.
But if you have a desktop PC then you have plenty of options to customize it according to your need whether it is RAM-related, graphic card up-gradation, and many more. You can do it easily with a desktop PC.
Simply buy any compatible RAM stick and insert it into the extra RAM slot inside your CPU cabinet which is very easy to do, no much technicality is needed.
So let’s see how to see how much RAM is currently installed on your PC and should you upgrade it?
How Much RAM your computer Have
If you are using Windows 10 on your computer checking the RAM size on it is extremely easy. Simply go to the settings> System > About and look for the device specification section you will see the RAM size on your PC.
In case you are using Windows 7(officially discontinued by Microsoft recently). Click on the start button and right-click on the computer and then click on properties. This will take you to a popup window where you can see the specifications of your computer with the installed RAM on that computer.
Another way to check the RAM size on a windows computer is simply right-clicking on the My Computer icon on your desktop and click on properties that are it. You will see all the specs of your machine there.
For MAC users
MAC users also have a simple way to check the specs of their computer. Simply click on the Apple icon in the upper right corner of the screen and select about this MAC. In the overview tab, you will be presented with a simple list of the specs of your MAC computer with the amount of currently installed RAM on your device.
Some RAM problems? How to fix them - Consult Task Manager or Activity Monitor
The general RAM size in all the computers we get is 4GB which is not sufficient, 8GB is fine for general usage of PC(with high-end gaming and workstation PCs going up to 16GB of ram or more).
But it varies from person to person and their usage. Some need more RAM like a video editor, graphic designer, and web developer because they have to run the heavy applications/ software on their PC.
If your work is limited or normal and your computer goes slow down then press the Ctrl+Shift+Esc key to open the Windows task manager. Now click on the Performance tab and select the memory in the sidebar to see a graphical representation of your current RAM usage.
You don’t want to see the graph empty after all, some RAM is wasted but if your RAM is completely full when you are trying to do some basic tasks like browsing or using some word processing software(word, notepad, OneNote, etc). Then in that case you should go for a RAM upgrade.
If your RAM is not burning at the seams during those slowdowns then your problem is somewhere else and you should look for other solutions for speeding up your PC.
On MAC computers you can check the activity monitor to see the RAM usage. When you experience a slowdown on your MAC computer simply press the Command+ Space button to go to the spotlight and type “Activity Monitor” and press the enter button.
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