Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Frequently Asked Questions - Overclock.net

SZayat · 07-22-07

Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Frequently Asked Questions

History

Quote:

The origin of 64-bit support in Windows really begins with support for the Intel Itanium processor. There is no support for Itanium in Windows XP and Windows Vista, so the x64 architecture currently carries the torch for 64-bit Windows client computing. A larger selection of Windows Server 2003 editions are currently available for x64 than Itanium (which has essentially been relegated to ultrahigh-end datacenter workloads)—a trend I expect to continue with the next version of Windows Server, code-named "Longhorn," when it ships.

Support for Windows on the x64 platform became available when Windows Server 2003 Service Pack 1 (SP1) shipped. Though it’s somewhat confusing, this is also when the x64 version of Windows XP became available—meaning that Windows XP 32-bit products and 64-bit products derived from different code trees within Windows. While 32-bit products currently have a second service pack available for them, the 64-bit version of Windows XP technically has no service pack level at all (or you could think of it as having SP1 for Windows Server 2003 slipstream integrated into it already).

[Source: TechNet Magazine]

What Is x64?

Quote:

The term x64 was created by Microsoft to describe processors that support the AMD64 architecture. The AMD64 architecture is an extension of the same processor architecture that has been used to power personal computers since the original IBM PC. Because the x64 architecture extends rather than replaces the existing architecture of personal computers, applications and the operating system still use the same basic language and instructions. You can, in fact, run 32-bit Windows on an x64 processor without any difficulty.

So, are all 64-bit processors x64 processors?

Quote:

No, hardly. There are other 64-bit processors on the market today, running other operating systems. But both AMD and Intel manufacture processors that support the x64 architecture: AMD calls its processors AMD64; Intel calls its processors EM64T.

What’s the difference between 64-bit and 32-bit?

Quote:

The biggest difference between 64-bit and 32-bit processors is that 64-bit processors have a larger address space. That is, they have the ability to communicate directly with more memory. A 32-bit processor can directly address a maximum of 4 gigabytes (GB) of memory. While 64-bit processors goes up to 16EB.

Note: Windows Vista Ultimate, Business, & Enterprise edition only support 128GB.

[Source: Is Windows XP Professional x64 Edition Right for Me? "White Paper"]

Why should we bother with Vista x64:

Compatibility

Windows Vista x64 Edition gives you a robust platform for the integration of 64-bit and 32-bit applications using the Windows on Windows 64 (OpenDNS) x86 emulation layer.
You can move to 64-bit computing while still maintaining your existing investment in 32-bit software and Windows expertise.

Performance

A 64 bit processor can handle twice as much data at a time. That means processor-intensive activities will go much faster. Processor-intensive activities include video editing and numbers crunching, as well as 3D gaming (it’s no coincidence that the first group to adopt 64 bit machines have been serious gamers).
Another advantage, and in some cases a bigger one, is that 64 bit systems can utilize much more RAM.

Security

Many 32 bit programs will run on the 64 bit OS. However, programs that run in kernel mode won’t. This means that some of the most dangerous malicious programs won’t run on 64 bit Windows. Unfortunately, that’s not all it means.

Stability

Windows Vista 64-bit requires that all device drivers be signed.

Benchmarks

Quote:

The 64-bit version of Windows Vista operating system is for about 10.9 percent faster than 32-bit Vista, according to the GeekBench benchmark for 32-bit and 64-bit Windows platforms.

Both 32-bit and 64-bit tests were done on a budget AMD Sempron 2800+ powered desktop PC, featuring Asus K8U-X motherboard with 512MB of main memory.

The 32-bit Windows Vista Ultimate achived 99.8 GeekBench points, while the 64-bit version of the same OS gained 110.7 points. The higher number of points is better. This Windows Vista 32-bit vs 64-bit benchmark consist of measuring integer performance, floating point performance, as same as memory and stream performance.

[Source: 64-Bit Computers]

What are the Limitations:

Vista x64 does not support 16-bit software.
Vista x64 does not backward support x86 (32-bit) drivers.
Little x64 software currently exists.

Minimum Requirements:

Processor:

AMD:
- AMD K8:
  - Athlon 64
  - Athlon 64 X2
  - Athlon 64 FX
  - Opteron
  - Turion 64
  - Turion 64 X2
  - Sempron ("Palermo" E6 stepping and all "Manila" models)
Intel:
- Intel NetBurst:
  - Xeon (some models since "Nocona")
  - Celeron D (some models since "Prescott")
  - Pentium 4 (some models since "Prescott")
  - Pentium D
  - Pentium Extreme Edition
- Intel Core microarchitecture:
  - Xeon (all models since "Woodcrest")
  - Core 2
  - Pentium Dual Core (E2140/E2160)
  - Celeron (Celeron 4x0; Celeron M 5xx)

RAM: 1 GB of system memory
HDD: 40 GB hard drive with at least 15 GB of available space
Optical Drive: DVD-ROM drive
Drivers: all drivers must be 64-bit.

[Source: Windows Vista System Requirements]

Resources:

More Information

Workarounds

PS: Please P.M Me if there is any Technical or Grammatical Errors.

lightningfr · 07-22-07

i have 64 bit

**ENTERPRISE** · 07-23-07

Very nice. Some good info there !

**t4ct1c47** · 07-23-07

Sorry to nitpick but the statement that 64-bit supports only 16TB maximum is wrong, it's actually 16777216TB, which equates to 16EB.

An operateing system would also have to be coded to support a certain amount of memory aswell. As an example, although 64-bit allows for up to 17179869184GB of RAM, Windows Vista Premium only allows 16GB, whilst the Business and Ultimate versions only support 128GB.

When working out the maximum amount of addressable memory you use the simple 2^x formula, where "x" is the address space available, 32-bit, 64-bit, 128-bit, etc...

Addressable Memory In 32-bit

2^32 = 4294967296 Bytes
4294967296 / 1024 = 4194304 KiloBytes
4194304 / 1024 = 4096 MegaBytes
4096 / 1024 = 4 GigaBytes

Addressable Memory In 64-bit;

2^64 = 18446744073709551616 Bytes
18446744073709551616 / 1024 = 18014398509481984 KiloBytes
18014398509481984 / 1024 = 17592186044416 MegaBytes
17592186044416 / 1024 = 17179869184 GigaBytes
17179869184 / 1024 = 16777216 TeraBytes
16777216 / 1024 = 16384 PetaBytes
16384 / 1024 = 16 ExaBytes

SZayat · 07-23-07

Quote:

Originally Posted by ENTERPRISE

Very nice. Some good info there !

Thanks

Quote:

Originally Posted by t4ct1c47

Sorry to nitpick but the statement that 64-bit supports only 16TB maximum is wrong, it's actually 16777216TB, which equates to 16EB.

All corrections are welcomed. updating ...

pato88 · 08-01-07

Is there any other type of Vista supports more than the 128GB? I thought Ultimate was pretty much everything, nothing hidden, all features.

SZayat · 08-01-07

Quote:

Originally Posted by pato88

Is there any other type of Vista supports more than the 128GB? I thought Ultimate was pretty much everything, nothing hidden, all features.

binormalkilla · 08-30-07

That codec pack didn't seem to work correctly for my files....I'd suggest the combined community codec pack. This includes Mastroka for HD support.
http://cccp-project.net/

McHugh · 08-30-07

Thanks for the info. I learned something new. I thought x64 was the same as 64 bit!

SZayat · 08-30-07

Quote:

Originally Posted by binormalkilla

That codec pack didn't seem to work correctly for my files....I'd suggest the combined community codec pack. This includes Mastroka for HD support.
http://cccp-project.net/

Vista Codec x64 Components worked flawlessly with me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by McHugh

Thanks for the info. I learned something new. I thought x64 was the same as 64 bit!

You are mostly welcomed

, 64-bit is a colloquial misnomer

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Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Frequently Asked Questions

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