Upgrading your computer’s memory is not an extremely difficult task and one that most anyone can complete with a few tips.

First, you need to determine what type of memory your computer needs.  The best way to acheive this is through the use of an online tool that automatically examines your computer system to determine how much memory you have installed, how much more you can add and what type is compatible with your computer.  The online memory analysis tool at crucial is very good.  There are others as well, but the tool at crucial works well and I have never had an issue with memory purchased from crucial.

Once you have determined what type of memory you need to purchase, you should validate the number of free (empty) memory slots in your system.  You can do this by removing the cover of your computer and looking for a bank containing the memory chips that should look similar to the image below:

If you have free slots available, you can simply purchase new ones to increase the total memory in your computer.  Any new memory added to the empty slots will add to your total system memory.  If all of your memory slots are in-use, you will need to purchase new ones that are bigger than the existing ones and remove/replace the old memory. 

Installing the new memory is really easy.  Most memory chips can only be inserted one way.  There are usually slots in the memory chip that help align the memory correctly.  Once installed, you can test the memory upgrade by powering on the computer and looking at the my computer properties to review the total available system memory.

In most cases, if the memory installed is not compatible, your computer will not start.  This is a sure sign that you have the wrong memory.