What happens if the bus speed of my RAM doesn't match?

I am using a Asus K42F laptop (2 GB DDR3 RAM, Intel Core i5 processor), and I want to add an additional 2GB RAM.

According to CPU-z software my bus speed is (532*2) MHz. What will happen if the bus speed of the old RAM and new RAM don't match? IF I install new RAM with a higher bus speed will it increase my performance? Or destroy my Laptop?

Solution 1:

First confirm that the RAM is supported. Sometimes higher-density modules are not supported.

As long you have a supported memory configuration, the clock speed should be set to the lower of the two.

That said, occasionally some memory modules don't perform to spec or don't properly negotiate a compatible speed, and the machine either won't boot or will be unstable.

Solution 2:

In general, when the speed of several memory modules do not match, they will all run at the speed of the slowest module. Unless the system doesn't support the memory at all, the computer should function, but you may not be getting the best possible performance.