Embodiments of the present invention provide a method and apparatus for detecting an interruption in memory initialization. A status bit for indicating whether memory initialization was interrupted or not is stored in a register. A basic input/output system (BIOS) sets the status bit prior to initialization and clears the status bit after initialization. The status bit cannot be reset by a standard platform reset. In operation, as the system is reset or turned on and prior to initialization, the BIOS checks the status bit to detect possible improper memory initialization. When the status bit is set, the BIOS concludes that a memory initialization had not completed and thus might be incorrect. The BIOS then causes power to be cycled to memory and any other steps needed are taken to return the memory to a functional state.