32 bit or 64 bit ?

If you're attempting to upgrade your existing system, you might have dealt with this problem lately, which is to select one from either 32 bit or 64 bit.

In fact, I had to do the same research like others & decided to note down my personal experience on this.

But, you've to remember that, 32 bit & 64 bit that you might have referred until now, should be either one of ;

1. Processor Technology or
2. Application Technology.

Processor Technology - 64 bit Processor Technology refers to the Processors which use 64 bit long Memory addresses , Integer Size and Data Path widths.

Sometimes, your Processor might be 64 bit or 32 bit. To know that, if you're Linux user Use your terminal & Type the following command.

$ grep flags /proc/c

The output will surely be messy. So, for the knowledge if your processor is 64 bit Then, you'll see an output similar to this.

flags           : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx lm constant_tsc pni monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr lahf_lm
flags           : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx lm constant_tsc pni monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr lahf_lm
flags           : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx lm constant_tsc pni monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr lahf_lm
flags           : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx lm constant_tsc pni monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr lahf_lm

You'll notice that in your output, you find a 'lm constant_tsc'.  Do you ? Then, your processor is 64 bit  and if not, it might be 32 bit. 


And if you use windows, Go to your Start Menu & type, 'Performance Information and Tools'.

Then, you'll find that, the 'View and print detailed performance and system information' link. Click on it. Under the categories find, '64-bit Capable'. If it says Yes, your processor might be 64 bit.

Basically, 64 bit Processor;

1. Theoretically, Supports RAM to Maximum Level of 16 EB (Exabyte) . Approximately, 17.1 Billion Gigabyte.
2. Supports 32 bit Applications. (Still Limited Number) and 64 bit applications.
3. Application Support is still in an emerging state.
4. Faster - RAM keeps more Memory.
5. Supports High Quality Graphics Applications.

And, 32 bit Processor ;

1. Only Supports for limited amount of memory which is around 3.25 GB. Memory beyond that limit will ultimately, be erased from RAM to HDD. (Processor Address Extension (PAE) is an improvement)
2. Only supports 32 bit Applications.
3. Application Support is higher.
4. Slow - Interaction between HDD & RAM due to Memory Limitation makes it slower.
5. Graphic Quality is less than 64 bit.

Application Technology - 64 bit in terms of Applications can be defined as applications that handles large amount of memory in RAM. In Simple Terms, 64 bit Applications are designed to run on 64 bit Processors & Vice-Versa.

According to PC Magazine  for the month of July, 2010 the percentage of 32 bit version Windows 7 is around 54% , Compared to the 64 bit Version of the same OS. But, the gap was somewhat, larger in previous version of Windows OS s.

For example, In Windows Vista the Percentages were approximately, 89 % to 11% of 32 bit Users.

So, when the demand goes up, the supply chain of modern applications that use, 64 bit technology is in its ascendancy.

If you use Linux, to know your  Kernal of OS is either 64 bit or 32 bit, Take out your terminal & type following Command.

~$ uname -a

If you see an output that shows x86_64 GNU/Linux it indicates that you have a 64bit Linux kernel running. If you use see i386/i486/i586/i686 it is a 32 bit kernel.

In windows, Go to Control Panel > System and Security > System   and look for System Type.

So, that's enough I guess. You can search Google & even Youtube contains some videos on this.

Enjoy your day !