What Causes Faulty RAM?

Question

I just did a memory test and it says that one of my RAM cards is faulty (from all the errors on the test). I was just wondering before I buy a new card, can software cause faulty RAM or is it all based on the quality of the hardware?

Answer 1

ram just goes bad some times. just remember you get what you pay for. Maybe your ram just got old  

Answer 2

RAM is basically all hardware. I suppose a faulty motherboard could cause it (a short in the RAM slot or something) but I would say 99% chance your RAM is bad.

It could be a multitude of things. If the memory is really old then it could just be wearing out.

If it is new, it may be a bad piece of silicon. Occasionally a bad stick just leaves the factory (they only do minimal testing. If it boots up they send it out.) Some RAM that boots up fine still has bad sectors and will cause memory errors.

Over voltage can damage RAM. If you were trying to overclock it is possible that the memory is damaged.

These are really the only issues with memory. Like many things you get what you pay for, but sometimes the cheapest RAM performs amazingly well if you are willing to take a chance.

I try to stick to brands like Crucial, Corsair, Kingston, and Patriot if that helps your buying decision. All 4 companies have "value" lines that I have had good luck with. Currently running 4GB of the cheapest kingston memory there is, and it all tests out perfect.

Good luck!!

Answer 3

A power surge can damage you ram modules as well as touching the connectors of the RAM. Software will not damage your RAM. What I would do before buying new RAM is to remove it and re-seat it. You should also switch the RAM around when you re-seat and this will give you an more accurate read on whether your RAM is bad or not.....hope this helps

Answer 4

Yeah, RAM can never be made faulty by software.  It can certainly be corrupted, which means that the data that is stored there temporarily loses it's integrity and can become unreadable. But corruption is a software problem that the computer is able to resolve on its own.

Faulty RAM is caused by failure of one or several components. RAM itself is made in such high volumes that some faulty RAM can end up in your machine when it leaves the factory. On the other hand, RAM can become faulty if it is subject to environmental extremes (such as temperature) or if the system into which it is installed has been altered   (such as overclocking or faulty motherboards).

To give you an idea of how volatile RAM is, try to imagine how small an electron is. Yet, it only take one tray electron to cause a RAM fault.

So, unless you've altered your hardware in any way, it is likely that you're safe to go ahead an buy and install new RAM without the situation recurring!