Quick question … I’m installing a 64 bit version of Windows 7 Professional. I will need to used the 32 bit version at times. Does switching from 64 to 32 bit (XP Mode) versions require a reboot or does it do it on the fly?
There’s no separate 32-bit mode in Windows 7. It’s just that 32-bit programs run as normal. If you’re talking about XP mode, like you seem to be, it’s a virtual machine, so it runs in a window, on the fly.
Unless I’m misunderstanding something they are two separate OS’s. You’ll need to dual boot them. Why do you need to run 32 bit windows? Legacy 16 bit code?
Nope. They are two separate OS’s, but you run XP mode through Windows Virtual PC. You’ll need Windows 7 Professional, Ultimate or Enterprise to access Windows XP mode, though. And yes, legacy 16 bit applications are about the only reason you need to run XP mode.
ETA: Link to download everything you need for XP mode.
Actually Microsoft themselves are the problem. They haven’t really caught up and some of their own apps only run in 32 bit mode.
Drivers are another reason. I have an older but not ancient (5 years) printer/fax/scanner, and Canon refuses to release a 64-bit driver for it. So I’m stuck running XP Mode when I want to use it.
Are you sure you need to use XP Mode? Most 32 bit applications run just fine under Windows 7 64 bit (without XP Mode). The only blanket exception, that applies to most users, is drivers; due to the fact that all drivers must be signed by Microsoft in order to be used in a 64 bit version of Windows.
You can run any 32bit app on a 64bit system just not the other way around, that is why you have to Program Files folder one for 64bit programs and one for 32 bit programs, I have a 64bit machine and have never once had to use Windows XP mode other then to give myself free dropbox referrels
such as?
I second the call for an example here.
I have never found a 32bit application bit that doesn’t work in 64bit Windows either from installing into the x86 Program Files folder or using compatibility mode. As has been stated the only issue seems to be with drivers for old hardware and that is the fault of the hardware manufacturer, not Microsoft.
the only issues I’ve ever heard of are either:
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applications which install a kernel-mode component or driver (anti-virus/anti-malware programs, as an example)
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32-bit programs that are packaged with a 16-bit version of the installer (don’t laugh, they exist.)
I too am genuinely curious as to whether there is a legitimate example for this.
It also be noted that driver issues are in a way Microsoft’s fault, since if they didn’t require the drivers to be signed (by Microsoft for a hefty fee) many of them would work just fine. The requirement for signed drivers was introduced with Vista x64. As far as I know it still applies only to the 64 bit version of Windows 7.
A fair point but you can’t really blame Microsoft for trying to make the system as a whole more stable and secure. It is down to the manufacturers to submit their drivers for approval which only costs $250 per driver, or, as the Wiki article on WHQL testing states:
So the manufacturers could do it, it is just a question of how much work they are prepared to do to support legacy hardware on a new OS. In the case of printers this seems to be ‘not very bothered at all’ since most people replace their printers when the ink runs out.
damned if they do, damned if they don’t. If a hardware manufacturer can’t stump up the “hefty fee” of $500, then it’s probably a good thing that I can’t install their driver.
Oh and BTW, Microsoft doesn’t sign drivers, the vendor does after paying that $500 to Verisign for a certificate.
Unfortunately, I have two such programs (both of which, fortunately, run just fine under Windows 7’s XP mode). I suspect it’s because both programs meddle with the innards of the underlying OS much more than they should.
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Microsoft’s own 32-bit Visual Studio 6.x (the last version before Microsoft switched to its “.net” technology, and I’ve got waaayyy too many old VB programs that would be a nightmare to convert). Microsoft hasn’t supported version 6.x for many years now.
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Compaq’s 32-bit Visual FORTRAN compiler (which uses Microsoft’s Visual Studio 6.x as an underlying interface). Same problem: I support many huge, old programs which rely on idiosyncratic interfaces of that old compiler, which is no longer sold, updated, or supported.
The Win 7 Professional package comes with both the 32 and 64 bit install options. You can either live with a 32 bit install, as the performance difference probably will be fairly negligible in real world use, or you can install both 32 and 64 bit installsand dual boot. You cannot switch on the fly.