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quad121

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 25, 2007
139
9
Hi all, Please could you advise?

I have a Macbook Pro 17" 2010 model with 4gb memory.

I was thinking of upgrading the memory to 8gb using crucial etc.

Would i see any improvement with this upgrade?

Thank you in advance.
Paul
 
This article will tell you if you need more RAM or not.

http://osxdaily.com/2010/10/29/does-your-mac-need-more-memory-how-to-know-if-you-need-a-ram-upgrade/

Here's an excerpt.
Page Ins vs Page Outs – In addition to checking out the memory pie chart, look at your Page ins vs Page outs. If you have a high number of Page outs to Page ins, you probably need more RAM. I always just do a quick calculation, if Page outs are 10% or more of Page ins with regular computer use, I recommend a memory upgrade. In the screenshot above, Page outs represent 17% of Page ins. This user would benefit from more available system memory.

You may recall that paging is the Mac virtual memory system, which essentially uses your hard drive as virtual RAM when the real thing runs out. Virtual memory is a great feature, but it’s significantly slower than physical RAM, and a lot of page use will cause system slow downs.
 
Launch Activity Monitor and look at the System Memory tab at the bottom. If your "Page Outs" are zero under normal use, you're not maxing out the RAM that you have, and additional RAM will have no effect on performance. Be aware that the Page Outs are cumulative, since your last restart.

This article will tell you if you need more RAM or not.
Except the article is wrong. You will always have Page Ins, but you won't always have Page Outs, so any ratio between the two is irrelevant. You only need to look at Page Outs. Also, having Page Outs when doing something you infrequently do does not mean you will benefit from additional RAM. What matters is if you're paging out during regular use.
 
Heck yeah the first thing I do when I change or get a new MBP is to upgrade the memory. The most reliable and cost-effective RAM brand is Crucial in my experience. It is something like £40 for a 8GB (2x 4GB memory modules). Especially when you're using photoshop or iMovie etc. you will see a huge improvement.
 
Thanks guys. Ill have a look at the Activity Monitor and see what it shows.

If i decide to upgrade does it matter which make of RAM i use e.g. Crucial, Corsair ,etc

I know it uses DDR3 PC3-8500
 
Last edited:
If i decide to upgrade does it matter which make of RAM i use e.g. Crucial, Corsair ,etc

I know it uses DDR3 PC3-8500
The brand is irrelevant. RAM is RAM, but price, warranty, etc. are factors to consider.
 
Launch Activity Monitor and look at the System Memory tab at the bottom. If your "Page Outs" are zero under normal use, you're not maxing out the RAM that you have, and additional RAM will have no effect on performance. Be aware that the Page Outs are cumulative, since your last restart.


Except the article is wrong. You will always have Page Ins, but you won't always have Page Outs, so any ratio between the two is irrelevant. You only need to look at Page Outs. Also, having Page Outs when doing something you infrequently do does not mean you will benefit from additional RAM. What matters is if you're paging out during regular use.

Agreed. I should have actually read the article. :eek:

I was too lazy to post my own thoughts so I pasted the first link on google.
 
Hi, I noticed that the link showed that they were using Parallel?
Is this a good program to use?
 
I certainly like it! I have Win7 running in its own VM, with 3gb of its own and one processor core. I run it full screen it its own space, so just takes a 4 fingered swipe to switch between OSX and Win7....needs the 8GB though, struggled without it...
 
Well I'll up the ram to the max 8gb and as I have Win7 on the mac I'll give Parallel a go
 
I run windows on my macbook pro also, and I think I need to upgrade to the 8GB of Ram. Going to look today.
 
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