Brett Glass to the Rescue: Dealing With Bad Soldered-In RAM

Brett Glass to the Rescue

Solutions to your toughest technical problems. http://www.brettglass.com

Links

Back to the
"Brett Glass to the Rescue" Index

Dealing With Bad Soldered-In RAM

Q: I have a Compaq XE 560 PC which I use at home to dial into the company network. The 8 MB of RAM on the motherboard is dying (the message says "Base memory error" and "Memory parity error"). It takes about 8 reboots to get the PC up and running. Is it possible to replace the soldered RAM? Compaq says that the motherboard needs to be replaced, and my company doesn't want to pay $380 to have this done. Can I buy a different brand of motherboard and swap the other components (CD-ROM drive, disk drive, power supply, floppy, case) myself?

Russ Severson

A: Usually, when a manufacturer solders RAM onto the motherboard, it does so to save a few pennies on the cost of a socket. Buying a system like this may be penny wise, but it's also pound foolish. Individual RAM chips are much harder to come by than standard memory modules, or SIMMs -- if you can find similar ones at all. And hand-soldering surface mount chips into place is quite difficult. Thus, if the RAM goes, the time and effort required to fix the board cost more than getting a new one.

Before you toss out your motherboard, though, check to see if the problem is with system RAM or with cache memory. If you are able to turn off caching via the BIOS settings, and the problems go away when you do so, you know that the cache is at fault. You will then have three choices: run without cache (free, though it will slow the system a bit), replace the cache chips (if they happen to be socketed), or (again) replace the motherboard.

If you want to (or must) replace the motherboard, make sure that the new one you buy will fit your case. Compaq, in particular, often designs its systems so that the parts are not interchangeable with generic ones -- on the theory, I suppose, that buyers will be forced to come back for expensive replacements and upgrades. If a generic board won't fit, you will need to shell out for a new case as well as a new board. Also, if the old motherboard had an on-board IDE adapter, make sure you get a new one that does also.

The lesson here, I'm afraid, is that it's always important to shop carefully for systems that have easily replaceable non-proprietary parts. Watch out for built-in items that can't be removed or disabled -- such as RAM, graphics adapters or sound chips built into the motherboard. Soldered-in RAM (except in laptops, where soldering in the base RAM provides a bit more ruggedness) may be a sign that the vendor is more concerned with the cost of the system than making it easy to maintain and/or upgrade. Check for special case designs that require unique motherboards and peripherals. And avoid "Winmodems" (which are only a few dollars cheaper than complete modems but can't be used with non-Microsoft operating systems). Avoiding systems that unwisely cut corners requires eternal vigilance, but will pay off when you need repairs or upgrades.

About us | Feedback | Trademarks