When manufacturers first introduced the AGP video card interface, memory was expensive. Because of this, video cards shipped with less RAM than newer PCI-X models. To provide better performance with AGP video cards, many motherboard manufacturers included AGP aperture settings in the system BIOS. This allows users to allocate system RAM to video cards when running memory-intensive 3D games or applications. Generally speaking, the more memory an AGP video card has, the lower the aperture setting. Setting the aperture size in the BIOS is relatively simple and the process is about the same with all motherboards that support the feature.
Instructions
1. Shut down the computer and restart it. As soon as you see the computer manufacturer logo or initial boot screen, press the "Delete," "F1," or other designated key for entering the system BIOS menu. Many computers display the key used to enter the BIOS or "System Setup" menu during the boot process. If you are unsure which key you need to press to enter the BIOS, refer to the user guide or manual for your system or motherboard.
2. Use the arrow keys on the keyboard to move the cursor to the "Advanced," "Advanced Features," "Advanced Chipset" or other similarly named menu heading, and then press the "Enter" key. Alternatively, if your BIOS supports use of a mouse, click the appropriate menu heading.
3. Scroll down to the "AGP Settings," "Graphics Settings" or "Video Settings" header. Position the mouse over the "AGP Aperture" value, then press the "Enter" key. Some motherboard BIOS menus have an "AGP Aperture" setting on the first page of the "Advanced Settings" menu. While manufactures place the setting in different parts of the menu, the "AGP Aperture" value should be somewhere on the "Advanced Settings" or similarly named menu page.
4. Press the "Enter" key after you highlight the "AGP Aperture" value. Use the down-arrow key to select the amount of physical RAM memory you want to allocate to the AGP video card. Values for the setting vary by motherboard. However, most motherboards allow you to select between 64MB, 128MB and 256MB of memory for the setting. Generally speaking, you should choose the lowest value as long as you are not experiencing video card memory issues. A good rule thumb for the setting is as follows:
If your video card has 32MB or less of memory, select the 256MB AGP Aperture setting.
If the AGP video card has between 64MB and 256MB of on-board memory, select the 128MB setting.
If the card has more than 256MB of video memory, set the AGP Aperture setting to 64MB.
Tags: video card, Aperture setting, Aperture value, video cards, Advanced Settings, between 64MB