Random Access Memory (RAM) is an essential component for your modern PC since the CPU needs to cache the processed data. It dumps the data temporarily in the RAM. Before RAM, a computer used non-volatile memory to store processed information. However, the method wasn't efficient as RAM. You want to run on your PC; you need RAM and a USB or external drive storage device.There are a few operating systems that you can run entirely from RAM or install the OS in RAM. However, the usage of doing such things in particular. Not only is RAM crucial to start an operating system, but RAM is also crucial to Run multiple applications smoothly on your PC.
RAM requirements were low earlier for the Operating system and for an app to run it; however, the specs have changed drastically. Now, you will need a minimum of 4GB RAM to run Windows, even though the experience will not be significant. You will face lags, suddenly window or application crashing due to low RAM and too many processes running.
Apps for Image and Video editing consume demands memory, games demand more memory, so if you are a gamer or a designer, you should know your RAM specs to play or edit smoothly. The more RAM you will have, you can play the game more smoothly with a higher framerate, and you will be able to edit, render images and videos more efficiently and smoothly. We have mentioned a few ways to determine the amount of RAM available on any PC for those who don't know how much RAM they have in their PC.
How to Check RAM on Windows 10
How to Check RAM From Windows Settings
Widows provide system utility tools to view the system specifications; however, to get the general specs of your PC, you can view it from the Windows Settings. Follow the steps mentioned below to find out your PC RAM using Windows Settings.
- Firstly, press the Windows + I keys on your keyboard to open up the Windows Settings, or you could click on the Windows Start Menu and click on the Settings icon.
- In the Settings, go to the System section, then click on the About tab on the left column of the window.
- Lastly, under About information of Windows Settings, look for the Installed RAM label. Besides that, the value of Installed RAM will mention the amount of RAM your PC has.
How to Check RAM using System Information
To get all the system and hardware-related information in detail on your Windows PC, we could use the system information utility in Windows.
- Press the Windows Key on your keyboard to bring the Start Menu, then start typing System Information.
- Windows will show the search result shortly. Click and open the System Information app from the Windows search result.
- In the System Information utility, select the System Summary option from the window's right pane.
- On the left pane, look for the Installed Physical Memory (RAM) line. Besides the label, the value of Installed Physical Memory will mention the RAM installed on your PC in the system information tool.
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How to Check RAM using Task Manager
Task Manager is a native Windows application for users to have some control over the system processes. The task manager can kill and terminate processes; however, the task manager also provides information like CPU, RAM, Network usage, and much more. Follow the steps mentioned below to use Task Manager to get information about the RAM you have on your PC.
- Right-click on the Windows toolbar and select the Task manager option from the menu to open up the Task Manager.
- In the Task Manager, go to the Performance tab, and then select the Memory tab from the left column of the window.
- Task Manager will show your current memory usage. However, below the graph, all the necessary information about your RAM is provided, like the paged file information, RAM info, Speed, and much more.
How to Check RAM using the Control Panel
- Go to your Windows Desktop, right-click on the Computer icon and select the properties option. It will open up the Control Panel system section. Under the System category in the Control Panel, look for the Installed Memory (RAM) label because, besides that, the value of Installed Memory will mention your PC RAM.
- If you don't have the computer icon on your desktop, press the Windows Key + R to bring the Run Dialog box, type the control panel, and press Enter to open up Control Panel.
- In the Control Panel, go to System and Security and then click on the System option from the left column of the window.
How to Check RAM on your Mac Device
To find out the RAM installed on your device, Mac users follow the simple steps mentioned below.
- Firstly, click on the Apple icon located at the top-left corner of the Menu bar. From the menu, select the About this mac option.
- From the Prompt window, select the Overview tab to show all the specs about your Mac device. Look for the Memory line. Besides that, memory value will mention the amount of RAM you have on your Mac device.
How to Check RAM on your Linux Device
All the Linux/GNU distributions come pre-installed with a tool to check your system specs, even in the minimal distribution like Arch. Here, we will mention a few steps to look at Installed RAM on your Linux distro, whether it is Debian based or Arch based.
- Firstly open up the terminal on your PC, press Ctrl+Alt+T keys or your keyboard, or press Mod Key + enter if you are on a Tiling Window Manager.
- Also, you could open the terminal using the Application menu bar on the panel, or you can use system search tools on Linux like dmenu and rofi.
- Type the following command free -h in the terminal and press enter to see your Memory and Swap value. To check more specs and system processes running on your PC, type the command top in the terminal and press Enter.
- However, the top utility is not pretty on the eyes, and you can't read the readout output easily. To fix that, you can install the htop utility on your Linux PC. Type the command sudo apt-get install htop command if you are on Debian-based distro, or type sudo pacman -S htop if using arch-based Linux distro.
- Press enter, type the password and install the htop application. Type the command htop in the terminal to run the application. It will show you all the system specs and running processes in color, and it also provides plenty of features that would come in very handy for monitoring your system.
