Q&A for How to Identify the Motherboard

Go to the manufacturer's website and search your motherboard or computer type. The specs will be available there, and you will be able to quickly discover the chipset.

Check to see what kind of RAM your motherboard needs (DDR2, DDR3, etc.). Don't worry too much about RAM speed unless you're a PC gamer or do video edits, as it won't make much of a difference.

Search your computer's model on the producer's website and look for an online parts and service manual. If there is no manual, pull one of the sticks of RAM out of your computer and look for a number or set of numbers and letters you can search on Google. These searches almost immediately bring you to the exact type of RAM you need. If you have certain types of RAM, there may be a QR code on the stick. (This is the case with most.) If you have a smart phone, download a QR scanner and scan that code. This will bring you to a Google search which can always find you compatible RAM.

You should go to your motherboard's manufacturer's website and look for its manual. The manual should specify how many gigabytes of RAM it supports. Once you have these values, you need to find an information page on your processor to find the amount of RAM it supports as well. Now that you have both of these values, you want to make sure that one of the two values isn't higher than the other. If one of the values is lower, then buy that amount.