Maximum RAM

paradigm · 10 May 2011 at 07:36

I'm looking to create a little portable box (custom frame/case/whatever) that can be used to demo platforms and services, but to keep the weight down, I'm looking at going mITX (or at worst mATX).

Which mITX boards offer the most potential RAM capacity (not really bothered if AMD or Intel)? Is there anything in between the sizes of mITX and mATX?

I need a minimum of 8GB (which I know most mITX boards will cope with), but preferably I could do with 16GB, and I'm just not sure if that's possible?

gropingmantis · 10 May 2011 at 08:45

Unless someone has released an 8GB stick of RAM then 8GB (2x4GB) Is the most you can get on a mITX board as they only have 2 DIMM slots.

eddiew · 10 May 2011 at 08:47

I sympathise, but as far as I'm aware there are no mITX boards with more than 2 memory slots - being significantly smaller than mATX, there just isn't the physical space available on the PCB. If I ever see one, it will soon be on my desk with 4x4 gigs in it though

Possibly some high end laptops could do 12GB? There's certainly some with 3x2 floating around, so they may support 3x4.

paradigm · 10 May 2011 at 17:00

I've found some that claim to support 16GB, based on laptop SO-DIMMs, so I assume that 8GB sticks are available, although most likely very expensive.

Not going the laptop route as don't want/need a screen, and need the ability to have PCI/PCIe add-in cards.

LePhuronn · 11 May 2011 at 12:07

The Sandy Bridge ITX boards support 16GB RAM on 2 slots, but you'd need 2x 8GB non-ECC sticks to do it, which I've not seen. Plenty of ECC 8GB sticks about, but they won't work.

Which is annoying.

eddiew · 11 May 2011 at 15:11

On the up side, it's surely only a matter of time until 8GB sticks appear in mainstream. Not that long ago that 2x4 gig was impossible to find