Looking to boost your skills as a developer? Dual channel or extra RAM can really help.
Looking to boost your skills as a developer? Dual channel or extra RAM can really help.
You're considering a RAM upgrade for your Asus FX705 laptop. Since you often run Windows but also use Linux in a VM for development, you'll want to balance performance and compatibility. With your current 8 GB RAM, adding more memory can help, but whether you need 8 GB or 16 GB depends on your workload. Running large commit sizes (up to 15 GB) on an 8 GB chip may strain performance, so a 16 GB stick would likely offer better stability and speed. Dual-channel configuration can improve memory performance, so consider that if you're using two RAM sticks. Overall, a 16 GB upgrade seems more suitable for your needs.
It depends on what you prioritize more—bandwidth or capacity. If extra capacity is required, choose that option. For better latency and speed, go with the 8 gig stick. Edited July 10, 2020 by TofuHaroto
Adding a 16GB drive to the existing 8GB increases capacity, with the first 16GB operating in dual channels (each stick handling 8GB) and the remaining 8GB on the larger drive running in single channel after reaching capacity. Dual channel works best with matched capacities, though it's less reliable if the drives differ significantly.
Consider dual channel setup but if you own an 8 GB stick, adding a 16 GB one would give you 24 GB total. You could also upgrade later with another 16 GB and swap it in for the 8 GB version, reaching 32 GB. I'm thinking the same but whether extra dual channel speed adds about a third more capacity depends on what matters more—bandwidth or total storage. I'm also unsure about using "Windows Hypervisor" and WSL; setting the UMA buffer size to auto uses 2 GB of RAM, which is why I prefer an 8+16 GB configuration.
Sorry if I'm incorrect, but doesn't dual channel require identical RAM sizes.
It doesn’t. It will operate at the pace of the slowest component.