ECC Versus Non-ECC Memory

ECC (Error Checking and Correction) is an algorithm for checking the integrity of data stored in DRAM memory. If it detect or sees an error passing through the memory, it will do its best to fix it on the fly. For this to happen, special circuitry and an additional memory chip is put onto the memory module. This allows the algorithm to run so that it can test the accuracy of data as it passes through the memory.

Memory that has ECC technology looks for errors in data traveling through the memory. For gaming this is really not necessary because today’s memory is pretty reliable, and few errors are generated in normal use. ECC is designed more for mission-critical business servers or architectural modeling where extreme reliability counts.

Non-ECC doesn’t note or correct any errors. It is the same memory but without the error checking and correction technology. The reason they make both is because the majority of the computers running don’t need to be that exact or precise. In word processing, for example, any small error in memory has no real effect.

ECC memory is also more expensive than non-ECC memory. There is no need to spend extra money on buying ECC memory because you gain no real results in the PC game world. It is a common opinion that when building your own machine that you buy non-ECC memory because otherwise you are just wasting money.