Stepped out of the stone age, Goodbye Dialup

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 2:19 pm

I finally got DSL. I have waited for years, literally

Don't have cable routed out here so it wasn't an option. I kept checking on it every couple of months and last week they finally said YES

Keep calling Brule, keep calling.

May seem like an insignificant victory to most of you but, Is a major step for me

Post by **HenryJ** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 2:27 pm

On a day like today, I am very jealous.
My dial-up has stalled a dozen times forcing me to disconnect / reconnect

I doubt my area will be serviced with faster options anytime soon

border man · Post by **border man** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 2:31 pm

There is satellite ya know.... DIRECWAY.

Post by **HenryJ** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 2:36 pm

border man wrote:There is satellite ya know.... DIRECWAY.

I just can't justify $10 per day + the equipment. And then it is still just one way. I still have to use the phone line to send.

EDIT: Looks like the price has come down some. The 2-way satellite would speed up things considerably. I wonder about down time though? Aren't we coming up on another 11 year cycle of solar flare activity?

top_sgt · Post by **top_sgt** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 4:01 pm

i'll stick with my cable!!!!!!

glad to see you are getting up to speed reed!!!!

04crewvt · Post by **04crewvt** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 4:15 pm

DSL is great I get 1.29mbps downloads 789 uploads for 29.95/month with my local rural telcom company and they give you the modem free with a one year contract.

Blaze One · Post by **Blaze One** » Wed Nov 23, 2005 10:39 pm

HJ , you are the mod on this site , with all those rightups and howto's and pictures and you only have Dial up ? holy crap , that's dedication

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 3:09 am

Blaze One wrote:HJ , you are the mod on this site , with all those rightups and howto's and pictures and you only have Dial up ? holy crap , that's dedication

Not only dial up but, SLOW dial up

We compared speeds one day and his was about a third of what mine was

chumley · Post by **chumley** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 4:18 am

We got Verizon fiberoptic back in the spring, as they ran the lines thru our development last winter. LOVE IT!!! Was thinking about cable but our provider, Comcast, already gets enough of my money for T.V. FiOS is @ $42 a month but it is also supposed to be faster than cable. I DO know that it absolutely smokes dial-up. Well worth the price!!

jeff024 · Post by **jeff024** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 5:27 am

my connection speed this morning

CABLE CONNECTION

3.3 megabits per second

Communications 3.3 megabits per second
Storage 408.6 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 2.5 seconds
Subjective rating Awesome

Info
Date & time Thursday, November 24, 8:53AM*
Test type IDT4 Free
Connection type Cable
Region Maryland
Data size 1024KB

jeff024 · Post by **jeff024** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 5:29 am

Adelphia im now able to upgrade to over 6.0megabits per second just havent done it yet

gocntry · Post by **gocntry** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 5:43 am

jeff024 wrote:my connection speed this morning

CABLE CONNECTION

3.3 megabits per second

Communications 3.3 megabits per second
Storage 408.6 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 2.5 seconds
Subjective rating Awesome

Here's My Results

Communications 9.7 megabits per second
Storage 1.2 megabytes per second
1MB file download 0.9 seconds
Subjective rating Unbelievable
Date & time Thursday, November 24, 9:09AM*
Test type IDT4 Free
Connection type Cable
Region Virginia
Data size 1024KB

That's On An older Laptop w/ A Wireless Connection Thru Comcast Cable

jeff024 · Post by **jeff024** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 6:53 am

gocntry
if your gettin that im upgrading

Post by **HenryJ** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 6:56 am

f9k9 wrote:
Blaze One wrote:HJ , you are the mod on this site , with all those rightups and howto's and pictures and you only have Dial up ? holy crap , that's dedication

Not only dial up but, SLOW dial up

We compared speeds one day and his was about a third of what mine was

It can really be frustrating at times. A good day here is 26.4k.
All the information I have uploaded has been over a very long period, years in fact.
I make sure everything is optimized for the web. Size does matter.

The frustrating part is when there are major updates, or the need to restore data. Some times it takes many trys, or assistance from another location. Bennie had to install the database when we made the switch to his server. My connection would just not handle the transfer.

Heaven forbid things should go really bad, and I would need to completely restore all the information. The forums database is nearing 50mb now. Backing it up becomes a rather long process.

gocntry · Post by **gocntry** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 8:38 am

jeff024 wrote:gocntry
if your gettin that im upgrading

Comcast Gives Me The 8 Megabits Per Second Cuz I Use Their Video / Internet Combo And It Was A Free Upgrade From 6 Megabit To 8 Megabit For Customers That Use Both. I Went From Dial-Up To This. All I Have To Say Is WOW!

I'll Run A Couple More Test From Your Link Tonite And Let You Know The Results...

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 1:30 pm

gocntry wrote:
jeff024 wrote:gocntry
if your gettin that im upgrading

Comcast Gives Me The 8 Megabits Per Second ..................... I Went From Dial-Up To This. All I Have To Say Is WOW! .............

I don't think mine is anywhere close to that (I know it isn't) but, downloading a meg in near 4 secounds would have Brule doing handsprings. Maybe you gurus would interpret this for me. It is from a System Mechanic Pro test....

Data Transfer Start: 11/24/2005 4:52:15 PM
Data Transfer Complete: 11/24/2005 4:52:21 PM
--->Total Data Received: 1048566 bytes
--->Time to Complete Transfer: 00:00:06:375
--->Average Speed: 157311 bytes per second
--->Peak Speed: 281688 bytes per second

It was a little over four seconds yesterday

jeff024 · Post by **jeff024** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 2:03 pm

hit yhe link I posted above and run a test it puts it simply

Post by **HenryJ** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 2:15 pm

jeff024 wrote:hit yhe link I posted above and run a test it puts it simply

Here's mine:
21.9 kilobits per second
Communications 21.9 kilobits per second
Storage 2.7 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 6.4 minutes
Subjective rating Very slow

Steve2003 · Post by **Steve2003** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 2:17 pm

Here's my results

Communication 319.5 kilobits per second
Storage 39 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 26.3 seconds
Subjective Rating: Not bad

I'm completely happy with what I have. ADSL through the phone company SBC $21.95/mo. It certainly beats dial up.

Jeff024

HJ

We ought to all chip in and pay for HJ to get DSL

Steve

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 2:23 pm

jeff024 wrote:hit yhe link I posted above and run a test it puts it simply

I saw that but, have not a clue of what type of DSL I have.......hence, the question for a guru.

I tried

other DSL

and this was the results. Mine is through Alltel phone company which I am sure is small.

2.3 megabits per second
Communications 2.3 megabits per second
Storage 278.4 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 3.7 seconds
Subjective rating Great

Post by **HenryJ** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 2:41 pm

Steve2003 wrote:...We ought to all chip in and pay for HJ to get DSL

Right now that would require moving the service closer, or moving me. I don't like moving, so no amount of "chips" will help right now

Thanks for the thought though

adrenalnjunky · Post by **adrenalnjunky** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 8:43 pm

Alltel's not that small -

I'm a supervisor in a DSL Tech Support call center for CenturyTel. (If any of youguys happen to have Ctel service and have problems - let me know)

Anyways - since we were talking about ISPs and such - just thought I'd share.

I'm on Time Warner cable at home:
3.6 megabits per second

Communications 3.6 megabits per second
Storage 435 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 2.4 seconds
Subjective rating Awesome

Blaze One · Post by **Blaze One** » Thu Nov 24, 2005 8:52 pm

thought i would do better , oh well .

Communications 1.3 megabits per second
Storage 154.2 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 6.6 seconds
Subjective rating Good

Steve2003 · Post by **Steve2003** » Sat Dec 10, 2005 1:42 pm

Steve2003 wrote:Here's my results

Communication 319.5 kilobits per second
Storage 39 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 26.3 seconds
Subjective Rating: Not bad

I'm completely happy with what I have. ADSL through the phone company SBC $21.95/mo. It certainly beats dial up.

Jeff024
HJ

We ought to all chip in and pay for HJ to get DSL

Steve

My phone company called last week and asked if we would like to double our speed for $4 less a month. Uhmmmmm

OK !

Here's what it is now:
Communications 901.6 kilobits per second
Storage 110.1 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 9.3 seconds
Subjective rating Good

Steve

Post by **Walt** » Sat Dec 10, 2005 2:25 pm

My home service is poky

Here's my work specs tho

Communications N/A
Storage 38 megabytes
1MB file download 0.1 seconds
Subjective rating Unbelievable

For some reason it can't rate my connection (top field)

I guess having 11 servers and a cellular data switch here really helps things

Snoman002 · Post by **Snoman002** » Sat Dec 10, 2005 7:13 pm

Hmm, wonder what it would be for me if I tried it from work. It's a government line so like everything else it's probably slow as hell. Can an internet connection take three coffee breaks for one download??

From home I was at 1.2 for download.

The funny thing was I was playing with my modem trying to get it to communicate with my router and I noticed that it said maximum download was 384k and my plan said "up to" 1.5M. I wasn't to upset because it is only $15 a month when we were paying $13 for dialup but I decided to ask, sure enough they came out and checked the line and bumped my speed max up and now it consistantly runs at 1.2M.

Long story short, check your settings, you might get something out of it.

Post by **HenryJ** » Mon Jul 09, 2007 4:17 pm

My connection speed today:

Communications 18.9 kilobits per second
Storage 2.3 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 7.4 minutes
Subjective rating Very slow

Hopefully close to the end of those speeds as I have ordered DSL that has recently become available.

I may lose my personal webpage disk space and email, but I will find a way to make it all work.

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Mon Jul 09, 2007 5:07 pm

adrenalnjunky · Post by **adrenalnjunky** » Mon Jul 09, 2007 5:19 pm

Congrats!

Who's the ISP that finally decided you were worth their equipment?

Post by **HenryJ** » Mon Jul 09, 2007 5:23 pm

The local phone lines belong to Malheur Bell. They offer a deal with Qwest or MSN for $31.99 mo.
Lousy dial-up is $20 mo.

I went with Qwest.

adrenalnjunky · Post by **adrenalnjunky** » Mon Jul 09, 2007 5:45 pm

good deal - my company has some properties in Oregon, but I don't think we provide service in your neck of the woods - we're all up closer to Washington and over/down to about Bend as far as my company provides service.

04crewvt · Post by **04crewvt** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 12:41 am

Communications 2.7 megabits per second
Storage 325.4 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 3.1 seconds
Subjective rating Great
This is through Verizon. Best I have ever tested at. It does fluctuate a lot but way better than dialup.
Glad to see someone decided to help you out and get the equipment out your way. One of the driving forces for more access seems to be real estate values a house with high speed access is much more salable then one without at least around here.

border man · Post by **border man** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 7:59 am

I have Qwest and pay 36.00 buck I think. It's their fastest plan (so they say). No complaints here. You don't have to use the MSN, I don't. I just click on the Expl icon. I loaded the MSN software on my two other CPUs to get the free Norton Virus Scan though.

killian96ss · Post by **killian96ss** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 9:08 am

Checked mine today.

Communications 4.7 megabits per second
Storage 567.9 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 1.8 seconds
Subjective rating Awesome

Comcast Cable

Steve

2kwik4u · Post by **2kwik4u** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 9:37 am

Communications 4.4 megabits per second
Storage 535.8 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 1.9 seconds
Subjective rating Awesome

Thats on the office connection though....I'm sure home is a good deal slower.

Glad to hear you are finally moving off dialup. We just got high-speed in my area about a year ago. Previously we were ~500' outside the radius to make it work. I guess you have to be within so many feet of a switching station to make it happen....

BADs Crew · Post by **BADs Crew** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 2:13 pm

Heres mine with Comcast High Speed,

Communications 3.7 megabits per second
Storage 447.6 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 2.3 seconds
Subjective rating Awesome

I'm going to run the test again in the morning to see if its any faster. Even though I am in the middle of one of the last farms in my area there is still about 10'000 homes in my zip code using cable tv and internet rite now. I am sure it will be faster in the morning.

Congrats on the step up Reed. Now you can catch some BobSeger and not fall to sleep while waiting for the download

Wrangler · Post by **Wrangler** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 3:48 pm

I've been complaining how slow my connection is for downloading movies. I guess I shouldn't. LOL

BADs Crew · Post by **BADs Crew** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 4:20 pm

How I tested there.

The connection is a lot faster in early morning.

killian96ss · Post by **killian96ss** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 5:23 pm

Here is mine a few minutes ago.

Steve

Post by **HenryJ** » Tue Jul 10, 2007 6:44 pm

I can't wait for this week to end:

daevans315 · Post by **daevans315** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 9:49 am

There is always somebody faster!

http://www.thelocal.se/7869/20070712/

And... its nice to have multiple OC3 connections through multiple providers at work. I will have to test again when there are not 40,000 + other employees competing for my bandwith.

killian96ss · Post by **killian96ss** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 12:27 pm

daevans315 wrote:There is always somebody faster!

http://www.thelocal.se/7869/20070712/

40 gigs per second!

Steve

Post by **HenryJ** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 1:34 pm

Today:

460.5 kilobits per second
Communications 460.5 kilobits per second
Storage 56.2 kilobytes per second
1MB file download 18.2 seconds
Subjective rating Not bad

I have to agree, not bad!

It may not be the fastest, but from where I sit it is literally out of the stone age

04crewvt · Post by **04crewvt** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 2:13 pm

Oh Great ! now no one will get a chance to answer a question first.

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 2:34 pm

killian96ss · Post by **killian96ss** » Thu Jul 12, 2007 5:13 pm

04crewvt wrote:Oh Great ! now no one will get a chance to answer a question first.

Steve

Post by **HenryJ** » Tue Apr 29, 2008 2:33 pm

Had a DSL problem yesterday. DSL was down all evening and repaired sometime around lunch time today.

Seems to be working again now

BADs Crew · Post by **BADs Crew** » Thu May 01, 2008 2:34 am

Just had comcast here Sunday because of failed connections.

border man · Post by **border man** » Thu May 01, 2008 6:17 am

It's way too slow here..

WileyHunter · Post by **WileyHunter** » Thu May 01, 2008 7:38 am

green02crew · Post by **green02crew** » Thu May 01, 2008 8:00 am

Yeah mine is pretty slow

PATRICKH · Post by **PATRICKH** » Thu May 01, 2008 9:26 am

Now that is a neat site!

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Tue May 06, 2008 6:38 pm

Quick question for you computer gurus out there. Is there any way I can adapt a laptop "aircard" to a PC? I ask cause I'm trying to get higher speed than dialup without robbing fort knox to pay for it.

F9K9 · Post by **F9K9** » Tue May 06, 2008 6:47 pm

I would think so. They just plug into a USB port.

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Tue May 06, 2008 7:38 pm

f9k9 wrote:I would think so. They just plug into a USB port.

Yeah, I thought that too but the cell-phone folks who were doing the promo said no it won't. Said it is designed to plug into a special port on a laptop only.

I asked em if there was an adapter for a pc and they said no to that also. Having never seen one of these I have no idea what they look like.

They also conveniently didn't have one I could look at other than ordering and paying for one.

Post by **Walt** » Tue May 06, 2008 9:53 pm

Several companies sell PCMCIA to PCI adapters, which require you to install the card in your PC. In my experience, most of these are a bit buggy. I can't remember the name, but there is a company out there that makes broadband routers that accept PCMCIA cellular cards...

Alltel sells a usb dongle that performs the same function. Check with your provider to see if they offer the same. Do you actually have a notebook, or are you just wanting the card to use with a desktop PC?

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Wed May 07, 2008 8:26 pm

Don't have a notebook. Just trying to figure out an economical way to use an air card or something like it to be able to get higher speeds than dial-up where I live. If I could use the air card on my pc then I would be able to have high speed for $49.00 per month. The only other viable option that has been presented to me is to use my cell-phone as a modem. Only problem with that is then you burn your cell air-time minutes. If I go to a high enough plan to have sufficient minutes it gets really expensive. Hence my attempts to figure out a way to use the air card on my pc.

Post by **HenryJ** » Thu May 08, 2008 4:02 am

buy a laptop to take advantage of the aircard other places too.
My primary computer has been a laptop for close to 10 years now.

WileyHunter · Post by **WileyHunter** » Thu May 08, 2008 12:38 pm

I'd go for a USB version over PCMCIA as the USB is universal (to laptop/desktop PC/MAC). I work with a guy who had the PCMCIA thinking he only needed it for his PC laptop... That machine died, he crossed over to the dark side and played h3ll getting the USB style, cost him an early termination on the contract... Now he has the MacIntrash and a Eee, works with both.

Just my 2 pennies.

WH

edit: Also, I believe that none of them will allow you to share your connection so no networking off of the aircard. Again with USB portability that adds value IMHO.

BobbleSmitty · Post by **BobbleSmitty** » Thu May 08, 2008 5:18 pm

I'm pretty satisfied with my new ATT U-Verse internet/TV connection. Everything (3 computers and 6 TVs) are run off of the residential gateway in my house. We're only paying like $15 more a month than we were for basic cable and dsl, but now we have 100s of channels on the TV, many HD channels, and super fast wireless internet!

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Thu May 08, 2008 6:50 pm

Walt wrote:Several companies sell PCMCIA to PCI adapters, which require you to install the card in your PC. In my experience, most of these are a bit buggy.
Alltel sells a usb dongle that performs the same function. Check with your provider to see if they offer the same.

Stopped in at cell dealer today and asked about the adapters (PCMCIA/PCI). At first they just looked at me like I'd grown a second head. Then one of them went over to a peg board and they had one hanging there. She then told me their resident tech had tried unsuccessfully to get it to work for someone else in a poor reception area. Your comments and her statement pretty well quashed my interest in that. I then mentioned Alltel and the "dongle". Blank stare in return followed by suggestion I talk with their tech tomorrow which I plan to try.
Smitty: I know this will sound like I'm a

and I probably am but I don't have sat. tv just over air antenna and am too far out of town for anything high speed over any sort of phone lines. No fiber optic out this far yet either. PS we watch a lot of dvd's and tapes instead of all the garbage that's on regular over air tv anyway. Used to have large sat. dish at previous domicile but even then sometimes it was 500 channels of stuff already seen or not wanted to be seen.

04crewvt · Post by **04crewvt** » Fri May 09, 2008 2:17 am

Guess it's a good time to look at upgrading since in 7 months your TV's gonna go out unless you by a digital adapter box. I would look into either WildBlue or Directv internet packages. Not cheap but usable anywhere you can get a clear view to the satellite. Up side is fast downloads down side uploads are slow since they still use a phone line.

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Fri May 09, 2008 5:05 pm

Just got my two "coupons" for convertor boxes in the mail today.
I take it the sat. hookup deal is a receiver only since you still need phone lines for uploads?
How expensive is it to get transceiver sat. usage? Or is it one of those "if you have to ask you can't afford it" things?
Talked to the cell tech today. Big waste of time. I think I knew more than he did unless he was playing dumb. D****d sure been getting better info from here on the forum then from him!

04crewvt · Post by **04crewvt** » Fri May 09, 2008 5:11 pm

Yup it's a receiver on the roof with a modem in the house connected to a land line. Govt would not like you trying to beam data into orbit and you wouldn't want the electric bill. Not sure on the pricing, I would guess it's in the $60/mo range but it varies depending on your location you would have to contact them for pricing.

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Fri May 09, 2008 5:15 pm

I was just curious about the transceiver idea cuz at the post office they used to use sat for their computers and only recently went back to dedicated hi-speed land lines. I know they received over air but not sure about sending. Seemed pretty slow so probabley a land-line modem setup there also.

24digger · Post by **24digger** » Fri May 09, 2008 6:13 pm

They don't use the telephone line for directv internet anymore with the newer systems.

A friend of mine has it, he had problems with it at first being real slow.

Not sure if he got it resolved or not.

Post by **Walt** » Fri May 09, 2008 7:46 pm

The biggest issue with satellite internet is latency. In most cases, you're looking at 500ms to 1000ms latency when doing anything. Streaming video or audio is fine once you get the stream started, and browsing websites is ok, but you can forget online gaming of any kind. I had Wildblue for about a year, and it worked fairly well. Simple design too, just a dish and receiver. The receivers are, in most cases, a reworked cable modem. The biggest complaint I have with them, and there are thousands that will back me up on this, is the relationship between Wildblue/HughesNet, and their installation companies. Simply put, it's horrible. They don't communicate effectively, and the satellite companies do absolutely nothing to help you if the installation company screws you over, or jerks you around.

Would I do it again? Depends on how desparate I am.

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Sat May 10, 2008 6:37 pm

Thanks for the info guys. I'll let ya know if I get anywhere with anything. Still need to research a few more things as to what's available out here in the middle of nowhere.

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Wed Jun 04, 2008 4:33 pm

Got a flyer in the mail today from ]]Hughes.net. Looked kinda pricey for setup and equipment and I see another member warning on them as well. Of note though, they send and receive from the dish with no phone line required.
Waiting for Sprint/Nex-Tech to catch up with everybody else on the air-card thing. Alltel and Verizon have them now for laptop or PC. I'd get one of theirs but their reception is lousy at best in my area. So I guess I'll continue to wait on Nex-Tech.

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Fri Jan 30, 2009 7:52 pm

Finally got a decent option from Nex-Tech on the internet deal. Phone as modem. For ten bucks a month more than I was paying for dial-up with 24kbps speed I now have 921kbps. I know that's slow to you true high speed guys but to me with dial for so long it's like the difference between an old clunker car and a hot corvette in performance. At least now I can look at my mail etc in minutes instead of hours. Me happy now!

DLP · Post by **DLP** » Tue Feb 03, 2009 9:05 pm

I am running a test tonight. I just installed 10 meg DSL at my house. It would seem that I now need a faster puter. Ebayers watch out!

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Wed Feb 04, 2009 2:25 pm

Along the "speed" lines, what limits port speed in a computer? My phone as a modem is at max port speed when I open that box. RAM? Processor speed? Cell phone? Software? Just trying to get my head around it and perhaps increase download speed further.

04crewvt · Post by **04crewvt** » Wed Feb 04, 2009 2:53 pm

Fist run a speed test online like This one set it to wireless and see what it reports if you are close to the 921kbps data rate apx 85% is a good figure you really won't be able to tweak the download part. If you are using an old slow computer with a small amount of ram your overall system performance will be poorer than with a new system to check out that I would use internet explorer( they don't support FireFox) and try running pcpitstop full tests and see what it has to say about your system. Then let us know what it says.

BobbleSmitty · Post by **BobbleSmitty** » Wed Feb 04, 2009 6:43 pm

I just got 12439 kbps with my ATT U-verse

roadrunner · Post by **roadrunner** » Wed Feb 04, 2009 6:48 pm

I ran the speed test and it came up with 751.5kbps. I did not run the pcpitstop as it required me to "make my pc naked". I was not comfortable with that as I've had virus and crash troubles in the near past. The pc is a hp with xp pro pentium IV 2.66ghz with 504mhz ram with dual channel capability. It is currently running in single channel mode with only 3 of the 4 ram slots occupied. It is upgradable to 4ghz ram and if installed balanced in all 4 sockets is supposed to then run in dual channel mode. I got it used off E-bay so am unsure if the dual channel mode is functional or not.