XP does not recognise more than 2GB memory

[Peter]

Although I have 4 GB of memory installed, Windows XP SP2 only seems to recognise 2 GB. I do not want to install Vista just yet, for all the reasons highlighted over the last year in Micromart. However, I need as much memory as possible for Photoshop CS2, and for video editing (once I have Iinstalled a suitable capture card for analogue video).

I found a reference on the Adobe Photoshop users' forum to adding a 3 GB switch to the boot.ini file in Windows, but could not quite understand how this is done. Could anybody give some advice on this matter, and whether there is a risk that Windows might not boot if the switch is added. What safeguards should be taken, in the event of boot failure after insterting the switch, and how to revert to the originial boot.ini should the worst happen?

[Ket]

Typically a 32bit OS can only recognise 2GB. If you want to use all 4GB hassle-free your options lay with XP 64bit or *shudder* Vista 64bit.

[Imhuge]

What if... what if... what if... Physical Address Extension?