Which system is better to install 32 or 64. How to find out the bitness of the operating system and processor in Windows. Comparison of performance in office applications

Hello, dear readers! Today I will tell you how to quickly find out the bitness of your Windows system (32 or 64 bits). Why might this be needed? For example, you needed to download a certain program, but the site offers two versions: for 32-bit Windows and for 64-bit. And you have a logical question: which version should I download? You will find the answer in my short note.

Let's define the accepted designations for the bit depth of the system. For 32-bit systems, you may see different abbreviations: x86, 32-bit, 32-bit, 32bit. But the main name, most often, is x86. For 64-bit systems, the designation is used x64(x64-bit, 64bit, 64-bit, 64-bit). Now let's get down to business and find out the bit depth;)

How to find out the bit depth of Windows Vista/7/8/10?

For all versions of Windows from Vista to 10, you can find out the bit depth in the system properties. Access to these properties may vary slightly on different systems, but in general you can simply right-click on the icon. My computer on the desktop and select Properties.

I’ll show you using Windows 10 as an example. There are two options to go to system properties. The first is to right-click on the icon This computer on the desktop (if this icon is not there, then it is) and select Properties. The second is to right-click on the button Start in the lower left corner of the screen and select System.

There is another universal way - using the Win + Pause/Break hotkey combination. This combo immediately opens a window with system properties in different versions of Windows. And in the section System -> System type you can find out the bitness of your Windows system.

How to find out the bitness of Windows XP?

Right-click on the icon My computer and press Properties.

In the properties on the General tab, in the System section, we see the inscription Microsoft Windows XP Professional version 2002 Service Pack 3. This means that the system is 32-bit, since for the 64-bit version of XP the bitness is indicated explicitly next to the name. It looks something like this: 64-Bit Edition, x64 Edition. If this inscription is not present, your version of XP is 32-bit.

There is also a quick way to open the system properties window using hotkeys Win+Pause/Break. The Win key is located in the lower left (sometimes also in the right) row of the keyboard, and the Windows logo is drawn on it.

There are two most common architectures for computer processors, amd64 and i386, or as they are simply called 32 and 64 bits. The first was developed at the very beginning of the computer era and had some drawbacks. The second is more modern and created relatively recently. New computer users often wonder what is better, 32 or 64 bit, as well as which system architecture to choose for their computer.

In this article we will try to fully answer this question, we will look in detail at how a 64-bit system differs from a 32-bit system, what is the fundamental difference between these architectures, and also why you should choose one option or another.

First of all, it must be said that 32 bit or x86 or i386 are almost the same thing, and this is the processor architecture, and the operating system is designed to work on this architecture. The x86 architecture was first used in Intel processors. This name was derived from the first processors where it was used - Intel 80386. Later, processors from AMD began to support it and x86 became the standard for personal computers. Then it was improved and refined, but that’s not the point.

64 bit architecture

The 64-bit architecture was developed much later by AMD. This architecture is also called x86-64 or amd64. Despite the name, it is also supported by Intel and AMD processors. It is fully compatible with x32. The difference between them is mainly in bit depth, but we will look at what this is in much more detail below.

What is the difference between 64 and 32 bits?

To understand the difference between 32 bits and 64, you need to dive even further into the basics. The processor is the most important component of a computer; it can even be called the brain. It is the processor that operates with all the data that we want to process, controls external devices, sends commands to them, receives information from them and interacts with memory. During execution, the processor needs to store all addresses and instructions somewhere, and no, not in RAM, because addresses in RAM also need to be stored somewhere.

To solve this problem, each processor contains several dozen ultra-fast memory cells, they are also called registers, each of these cells has its own purpose, name and specific size. What is the difference between 32 bit and 64? It's the size that matters. For 32-bit processors, the size of one cell is 32 bits. In 64-bit architecture processors, the register size is no longer 32, but 64. The larger the cell size, the more data it can accommodate, which means the resource address space can be larger.

Thus, 32-bit architecture processors could only access addresses within the 2^32 power. A larger address simply will not fit in the cell. This limitation is most noticeable when working with RAM. This range only includes memory up to 2^32 bits or 4 GB; the processor cannot read anything higher without special emulation by the operating system.

A processor with a register size of 64 bits can access addresses up to 2 ^ 64, and this is much more, if converted into conventional values, then this is 1 EB (exabyte) or a billion gigabytes. In fact, no other operating system, not even Linux, supports such an amount of RAM. Compared to 4 GB, this is a very big difference.

But that is not all. In one cycle of operation, a processor with a register size of 32 bits can process 32 bits or 4 bytes of data, 1 byte equals 8 bits. Thus, if the data size exceeds 4 bytes, the processor will have to perform several cycles to process it. If the processor is 64-bit, then the size of the data to be processed in one cycle doubles and is now 8 bytes. Even if the data is larger than 8 bytes, the processor will equally need less time to process it.

But during real-world use, you're unlikely to notice much of a performance boost unless, of course, you're running very heavy applications. In addition to everything described, there are many other differences between 32 and 64 bit systems. These architectures still differ in many ways. The 64-bit architecture is more optimized, designed for newer hardware, multitasking and very fast work. These days, all processors operate in 64-bit mode, but support 32-bit for compatibility in emulation mode. But you shouldn’t immediately run and reinstall the system to 64 bit because it is better, and below we will look at why.

Should I choose x32 or x64?

Now you know how a 64-bit system differs from a 32-bit system. There is a lot of debate among users about which architecture to use. Some say that only 64, others advocate x32. As you understand from what was written above, everything depends on RAM. If you have less than four gigabytes, then you can use 32 bits, if more, then you need to use 64 bits so that the system can see all the memory. Yes, there are PAE extensions that allow the processor to see more than 4 gigabytes, but it will be much faster if the system works with memory directly, without any hacks.

You may have a question: why not use 64-bit architecture if the memory is less than 4 gigabytes? Since the size of the processor registers is larger, everything stored in RAM automatically becomes larger, program instructions take up more, and metadata and addresses stored in RAM take up more.

And this all means that if you install a 64-bit system on a computer with less than 4 GB of RAM, then you will have very little RAM. You will not notice a performance increase, it will only get worse, because part of the RAM will go to the disk in the swap partition. and the speed of working with a disk, as you understand, is very different from the speed of RAM.

Even if you have 4 GB, it is not advisable to use 64 bits, because there will not be enough memory. By modern standards, this is already not enough for a personal computer, and you will reduce it even more by using this architecture. In the end, you can use PAE technology, this option can be enabled in the Linux kernel to access all four gigabytes of 32 bits. This will be completely justified.

But if you have 6 GB or more, then it is no longer advisable to use PAE here; it is better to use a normal 64-bit architecture, fortunately there is enough memory. and the processor is designed specifically for it.

conclusions

In this article, we looked at the differences between 32 and 64, and now you can choose the right system so that it works with optimal performance. What do you think is better to use for certain amounts of RAM? If everything is clear with 3 GB and 6, then 4 GB is causing a lot of controversy, what is your opinion? Write in the comments!

To conclude, a short video about the differences between 64-bit processors and 32-bit processors; in the video, the emphasis is on mobile processors, but the technology is the same:

Usually, after purchasing a computer, people think about which Windows is better to use, 32 or 64-bit. Below is detailed information on how a user can accurately decide whether Windows 32 or Windows 64 is best for their computer. A careful approach at this stage of PC setup will avoid unnecessary labor and time wasted on reinstalling the system in the future, and will also ensure optimal performance of the existing computer.

Main differences

Windows uses x86 and x64 processor architectures, which determine the length of addresses and types of data supported by the OS. Thus, the main difference between 32 and 64-bit OS is the amount of RAM that Windows sees, i.e. if in a 32-bit OS it is possible to use no more than 4 Gb of RAM, then in a 64-bit OS this value reaches 192 Gb.

Nowadays, almost all manufactured processors have support for both architectures, and mostly on modern computers, after installation, both 32 and 64-bit Windows will function, using x64 or x86 processor instructions. However, when it comes to old PCs, installing 64-bit Windows on it is neither possible nor advisable. Therefore, 32-bit OSes are still very common among users.

What's better?

32-bit Windows is not able to use even the entire 4 GB of RAM, since most system devices use a certain part of the space.

Although the 64-bit OS has some advantages, it is not without its disadvantages.

The main advantages of a 64-bit system include the following:

1. Allows you to use the entire available amount of RAM;
2. Most tasks are completed at a much higher speed.

And the main disadvantage of 64-bit is that it requires more memory, which increases the amount of RAM used by programs.

It turns out that it is impossible to give an unambiguous answer and it is necessary to consider each specific case separately. For example, a person has a computer with the following parameters:

1. Motherboard: “ASRock FM2A88X PRO3+”;
2. Processor supporting: "x86-x64";
3. RAM: “4 GB”.

Thus, we basically have a good set in the form of modern equipment, and the RAM can be easily increased over time. In this case, both versions of Windows are suitable and will function successfully with this configuration, but if you install, for example, 32-bit Windows 7, then after expanding the RAM the OS will not be able to use it in full (limited to 4 GB).

As a result, the user will have to reinstall his “Seven”. That is, we can make an unambiguous conclusion that it is advisable to immediately install 64-bit Windows 7.

Finding out the bitness of installed Windows

To determine this in Windows XP, you need to do a few simple steps:

To find out this parameter for Windows 7 you need to perform several steps:

You can find out the bitness of Windows 10 by following these steps:

Performance Differences

The performance of 32 and 64-bit Windows differs:

1. The best increase in this indicator in 64-bit Windows XP, Vista and Seven can only be achieved by using optimized 64-bit modifications of applications, for example, computer toys. And if you use simple programs without optimization for 64-bit, then there will be no increase in speed;
2. When running most programs, there is no significant increase in performance after expanding the available RAM to more than 3Gb. The list of some exceptions included only special graphics programs or for utilities for working with video. Of course, the number of such utilities is growing every day. Therefore, for example, for design specialists or for video editing, the use of a 64-bit OS is completely justified.

How to determine the hardware capabilities of a computer?

An important criterion is the ability of the main element of the PC - the processor - to operate with 64-bit commands, and to determine it is necessary to take the following sequential steps:

You can also find out the supported bit type using special programs. For example, which is available for download on the Internet page “www.cpuid.com”. If you open the program, the following window will appear:

In the “CPU” tab, you need to study the “Instructions” section. For example, if “x86-x64” is written here, then installation of both versions of Windows is available on the computer.

If you run the application on an older PC, “x86-x64” will not be indicated.

That is, the only option is to install a 32-bit OS.

The "CPU-Z" utility functions well on all Windows that are currently supported by Microsoft.

Conclusion

The time will inevitably come, and quite soon, when 32-bit Windows will no longer be used at all, and as for 64-bit ones, they will still function successfully on modern computers in the coming years. Even mobile operating systems (Android and iOS) support 64-bit, i.e. very soon they will not be released in 32-bit.

Before comparing the 32-bit and 64-bit editions of Windows, you should understand what these editions are and what their significance is. First, let's talk about processors. Many may have heard about the existence of 32-bit and 64-bit processors. Let's look at what these bits mean.

It’s probably not worth saying that the processor is a rather complex device. It consists of many different blocks, including cache memory, different levels, instruction selection and decoding blocks, branch predictive blocks, and different types of computational blocks. Some modern processors also have memory controllers, a PCI-Express bus controller, and a graphics core. In this article, computational units are important to us.

A processor may have different types of such blocks. Some perform calculations with integers, others perform operations with real numbers or floating point numbers. In addition, there are blocks for the so-called. complex instructions. As an example, consider blocks that perform calculations with integers or ALUs. During operation, these blocks must store intermediate data somewhere. Registers were created for these temporary stores. They are distinguished from conventional memory and cache memory primarily by minimal latency and very high operating speed. So these same registers hide the main difference of the so-called. 32-bit and 64-bit processors. Let's look at this in more detail.

So-called 32-bit processors have 8 general purpose registers, the volume of which is 32 bits. And 64-bit processors have twice as many such registers, and their volume is 64 bits. This is the main difference between 32-bit and 64-bit processors. It is worth saying that almost all modern processors are 64-bit.

Now let’s talk about why these registers are needed in practice. Generally speaking, a 64-bit processor in normal 64-bit mode will be able to work with 64-bit numbers without using any tricks, such as splitting one complex operation into two. In addition, in this way 2 simple operations on 32-bit numbers can be combined into 1 complex one. However, not every operation can be combined with another, but this is not small.

Important: Performance can only be increased by working with 64-bit x86-64 instruction sets. It should also be noted that in addition to the integer ALU, the processor also has a floating point unit, or FPU. It contains larger 80-bit registers and uses x87 instructions. In addition, the processor has other blocks and registers. For example, SSE registers. Their length is 128 bits.

We remember that there is a 64-bit operating mode. But there are others. The 64-bit processor also supports the so-called compatibility mode, in which the additional eight registers are turned off and the behavior of the 64-bit processor becomes the same as a 32-bit one. This is required primarily to ensure compatibility of system software and programs that cannot work with a 64-bit processor. Why is it actually called compatibility mode?

In order for the processor to work normally in 64-bit mode, you will need a 64-bit OS and the appropriate drivers. If a 32-bit OS is installed, the processor will operate in compatibility mode and behave like a 32-bit processor.

Important: Some readers may quite rightly ask how 32-bit programs can run on a 64-bit OS. This problem was solved quite logically: the system has 2 sets of system libraries for 64-bit and 32-bit applications.

But the register capacity has a more pressing problem. The fact is that the address space for memory is limited. To put it simply, the processor can only address 4 GB of address space. After all, the laptop has 4GB of RAM, and the system should be able to see all of these 4GB. But in addition to RAM, there is also video card memory, buffers of different devices, and the BIOS can allocate some more memory for the same video core. As a result, the memory that was available to the user will decrease by 2.5 - 3.5 GB. And this limitation does not depend on the operating system. Let's move on to a more detailed consideration of this problem.

There is nothing complicated here. Registers store both data and address pointers. In a 32-bit processor, the volume of this register is 32 bits. This is where this 4GB or 232 byte limit comes from.

To summarize all of the above, it is worth saying that any 32-bit OS cannot operate using all 4 GB of RAM for the reason that most system devices require part of the address space to operate, and it is limited to 4 GB. Therefore, the system has to take it away from RAM. Unused RAM can be used as a temporary disk by using the RAM Disk utility.

Important: For 32-bit operating systems, a mechanism has been created that allows you to use an address space of more than 4GB. This is the so-called PAE (Physical Address Extension), in this case the OS can address up to 64 GB of memory. This technology was developed from the very beginning for server systems. In order for it to work normally, the appropriate corrected drivers are required. Since there are almost no such working drivers, this technology is disabled by default even on server operating systems. In regular editions of Windows OS it was also disabled by default. And for the same reason. Today there are specialists who have learned to turn it on; the system can see all the RAM that is available to it, but errors occur in a variety of places. And their diagnosis is not so simple. Therefore, if you want to use more than 3 - 4 GB of RAM, then you need to install a 64-bit OS.

As you can see, the 64-bit operating mode has the following advantages and disadvantages:

• The 64-bit OS works with the entire amount of RAM;
• Some of the operations on a 64-bit processor can be performed much faster;
• 64-bit pointers require more memory, which increases the amount of RAM consumed by applications.

As you can see, not everything is so simple. Let us now consider how this manifests itself in practice.

Comparison of performance of 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows

First, let's talk about what testing methodology was used.

The measurements were carried out on an Asus N61Vn laptop with a quad-core Intel Core 2 Quad Q9000 processor, and an nVidia GeForce GT 240M video card with 1 GB of dedicated memory. It is important to note that the laptop had 4 GB of DDR3-1066 RAM. The comparison used 32- and 64-bit versions of Windows Vista SP2 with the latest updates installed. The drivers had the same versions, which made it possible to level out the difference in performance between different versions. For the reasons stated above, the 32-bit version of Windows had approximately 3GB of available RAM, and the 64-bit edition had approximately 4GB.

Important Also note that this test was conducted on Windows XP and Windows 7 on an Acer Timeline 3810T laptop with a single-core Intel Core 2 Duo SU3500 processor and 4GB of RAM, which had more limited capabilities. The results in these cases did not change and were approximately the same.

For convenience, we divided the performance comparison into 2 parts:

• 1. First, we examined the performance of conventional 32-bit programs on 32-bit and 64-bit versions of systems;
• 2. Then we measured the operating speeds of 32-bit and 64-bit versions of programs on the corresponding editions of Windows.

Performance testing of 32-bit application programs

The purpose of this testing is to determine the performance increase when moving from a 32-bit to a 64-bit version of Windows. This research is relevant, since today many games and programs do not have specially optimized 64-bit versions. It is also important to note that the 32-bit system can work with 3 GB of memory, and the 64-bit version with 4 GB.

The following applications helped compare performance:

• 3DMark03 3.6;
• 3DMark05 1.3;
• 3DMark06 1.1;
• PCMark05 1.2.

These applications were chosen because they fairly accurately reflect the real-world performance of most programs and games. If various software applications had been used in this study, the research methodology would have become much more complex. And the percentage of measurement error would be increased due to the worse repetition of a particular test and the limitation of accuracy in the measuring instruments.

Applications were configured by default. Screen resolution 1024 x768:

Applications were configured by default. Screen resolution 1280 x720:

4. Performance comparison results in PCMark05

Separate additional tests were performed in this test. Below are the results of each.

You can see the result obtained thanks to the additional gigabyte of RAM on a 64-bit system.

Results of comparison of performance of conventional applications

The results obtained after this study were very expected. Due to the fact that the compatibility mode for a 64-bit OS was used, performance was lower when working with regular 32-bit applications.

This performance comparison also revealed that 4 gigabytes of RAM does not provide any real benefit in this set of applications. It is necessary to emphasize here that in reality, for heavy applications, which include graphic editors, computer-aided design (CAD) systems and others, the amount of RAM is very important. Those extra gigabytes of RAM are really useful.

Comparison of performance of 32- and 64-bit programs

The purpose of this study is to measure the performance improvement when running optimized 64-bit applications on a 64-bit OS.

The following programs were also used to compare performance:

• Archiver 7-Zip version 4.65;
• PCMark Vantage test package.

Here it is used as a test application, since it is available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions, it can work with multi-core processors, it can load the processor quite heavily, and it has a set of built-in tools that allow you to test performance. During testing, the dictionary size was 32 MB.

Now let's look at the results:

As you can see, the performance of the archiver of the 64-bit optimized version on a 64-bit OS was better in comparison with a similar 32-bit version on a 32-bit system. This is to be expected. Optimizations were able to show themselves.

2. Testing using the PCMark Vantage test package

There are both 32-bit and 64-bit versions of the PCMark Vantage benchmark suite. There are different tests in this test package. Let's look at each of them.

Like 7-Zip, overall the 64-bit PCMark Vantage benchmark performed better than the 32-bit benchmark on a 32-bit OS. An important point here was optimization for 64-bit processors, and more available memory: 4 GB for the 64-bit system and 3 for its 32-bit version.

The result of comparing the performance of the 32-bit version of Windows with the 64-bit

It's time to summarize this test:

• The greatest increase in performance in 64-bit versions of Windows XP, Vista, 7 was observed when optimized 64-bit versions of applications and games were used. When working with regular applications, without optimization for the 64-bit version, performance does not increase;
• Many programs and games failed to show a noticeable increase in performance when the amount of available RAM was increased beyond 3 GB. An exception is complex programs that allow you to work with videos, images, design systems and others. There will be more of these applications in the future. For such programs, using a 64-bit system would be very reasonable.
• Some of the applications on the 64-bit OS showed unstable operation for various reasons. But there are not many of these applications.

In the end, I would like to note that you yourself choose the version of Windows for your needs. And if this research could help you, then we will be only glad.