Selvom Windows XP havde en 64-bit-version, var det ikke før Microsoft udgav Windows Vista , at forbrugerne virkelig skulle tage en beslutning om, hvorvidt de skulle købe 32- eller 64-bit-versionen.

Windows 7/8/10 kommer også i 32- og 64-bit versioner, og hvis du valgte 64-bit, har du måske bemærket, at der er to Program Files-mapper på din harddisk. Læs videre for at udforske forskellen mellem 32 og 64-bit Windows , og hvorfor operativsystemet har brug for to separate mapper til at gemme programdata.

Windows 32 og 64-bit

Den reelle forskel mellem Windows 32 og 64-bit har at gøre med, hvor meget hukommelse operativsystemet kan adressere. At "adressere" betyder simpelthen at "holde styr på."

Windows 7/8/10 32-bit (som tidligere 32-bit versioner af Windows ) kan adressere op til 4.294.967.296 bytes information. Det er 4 GB hukommelse. Teoretisk set kan et 64-bit operativsystem adressere op til 1.8446.744.073.709.551.616 bytes information.

Det er 16,3 milliarder gigabyte. Hukommelsesgrænsen på forbrugerversionerne af Windows 7 er dog 192 GB, hvilket stadig er ud over de fysiske grænser på 8 GB til 16 GB for de fleste bundkort. For Windows 8 er det 512 GB og til Windows 10 er det hele 2 TB for hukommelsesgrænsen!

At flytte fra et 32-bit til et 64-bit operativsystem er mere end blot et spring i adresserbar hukommelse. Det er et skifte til en helt anden metode til at holde styr på data. Det er grunden til, at hardware (såsom et lydkort) har brug for en helt anden driver for at fungere i 64-bit Windows .

To programfiler ^(Program)-^(Folders) mapper i Windows

Hvis du har 64-bit versionen af ​​Windows , har du muligvis bemærket, at der er to Program Files-mapper på din harddisk.

Den ene er simpelthen mærket Program Files og den anden er mærket Program Files (x86) . Den første mappe er standardplaceringen for alle dine 64-bit programmer. Det har ikke en ekstra etiket i slutningen, fordi som et 64-bit operativsystem, antages det, at 64-bit applikationerne vil gå ind i denne mappe.

Den anden mappe mærket Program Files ( x86 ) er standardplaceringen for alle dine 32-bit applikationer. På en måde er det en mappe designet til ældre software, der er tilbage fra tiden med 32-bit operativsystemer. x86 - delen af ​​mappenavnet refererer til x86 32-bit arkitekturen, hvorpå de første 32-bit processorer blev udviklet, såsom 386, 486 og Pentium CPU'er^{(Pentium CPUs)} .

Desværre er det ikke så enkelt at skifte fra 32-bit til 64-bit applikationer og operativsystemer, som Microsoft ønsker. For at foretage skiftet ville enhver softwareleverandør, hardwareproducent og bruger pludselig skulle stoppe med at lave og bruge noget, der er bygget på en 32-bit arkitektur og begynde at bruge 64-bit. Dette er helt upraktisk, fordi de fleste mennesker ikke er villige til bare at kassere deres investering i hardware og software og købe alt nyt igen.

Microsofts løsning på denne overgang fra 32-bit til 64-bit har været at tilføje ældre support til de fleste 32-bit applikationer. Med andre ord vil de fleste 32-bit-applikationer fungere i 64-bit-operativmiljøet.

For at hjælpe med at gøre overgangen nemmere har Microsoft udpeget, at alle 32-bit applikationer som standard skal indlæses i mappen Programfiler^{(Program Files)} ( x86 ) i stedet for at blive blandet ind med ægte 64-bit applikationer i den almindelige mappe Programfiler .^{(Program Files)}

Windows bruger en slags emulator til at køre 32-bit applikationer i 64-bit Windows . Du har muligvis set nogle mapper på dit system, der har udtrykket WOW64 . WOW64 står for Windows 32-bit på Windows 64-bit. Når du kører et 32-bit program, og det skal have adgang til programfilbiblioteket, omdirigeres det problemfrit til C:Program Files (x86) ved hjælp af WOW64 .

Du kan hurtigt se, hvilke programmer på din computer der er 32-bit og hvilke der er 64-bit ved blot at browse ind i de to mapper.

Hvert par måneder tjekker jeg normalt softwareudviklerens hjemmeside for at se, om de har udgivet en 64-bit version af programmet. Nogle gange skal man grave lidt for at finde 64-bit versionen af ​​et program. De fleste leverandører selv i dag skubber stadig 32-bit versionerne som den primære download. For eksempel kan du installere 64-bit versionen af ​​Office 365^{(install the 64-bit version of Office 365)} , men det er ikke standard download.

Snart vil de fleste programmer dog være 64-bit, hvilket gør behovet for flere Program File-^{(Program Files)} mapper unødvendigt. Alligevel undlod selv Microsoft , da det udgav Windows Vista 64-bit, at udvikle og frigive en 64-bit version af ^{(Windows Vista)}Office 2007 , der blev udgivet på samme tid. Også mange af standard Windows Store apps fra Microsoft i Windows 10 er stadig 32-bit apps.

Husk på, at når vi alle skifter til 64-bit applikationer, er det sandsynligt, at tale om 128-bit arkitekturer vil tvinge os til at gennemgå hele processen igen. God fornøjelse!

Why Does 64-bit Windows Need Two Program Files Folders?

Although Windows XP did have a 64-bit version, it wasn’t until Miсrosoft released Windows Vista that consumers rеally had to make a decision of whether to buy the 32 or 64-bіt version.

Windows 7/8/10 also comes in 32 and 64-bit versions and if you opted for the 64-bit, you may have noticed that there are two Program Files folders on your hard drive. Read on to explore the difference between 32 and 64-bit Windows and why the operating system needs two separate folders in which to store program data.

Windows 32 and 64-bit

The real difference between Windows 32 and 64-bit has to do with how much memory the operating system can address. To “address” simply means to “keep track of.”

Windows 7/8/10 32-bit (like previous 32-bit versions of Windows) can address up to 4,294,967,296 bytes of information. That’s 4GB of memory. Theoretically, a 64-bit operating system can address up to 1,8446,744,073,709,551,616 bytes of information.

That’s 16.3 billion gigabytes. However, the memory limit on the consumer versions of Windows 7 is 192 GB which is still beyond the physical limits of 8GB to 16GB for most motherboards. For Windows 8, it’s 512GB and for Windows 10, it’s a whopping 2 TB for the memory limit!

Moving from a 32-bit to a 64-bit operating system is more than just a jump in addressable memory. It is a change to a completely different method of keeping track of data. This is why hardware (such as a sound card) needs a completely different driver to work in 64-bit Windows.

Two Program Files Folders in Windows

If you have the 64-bit version of Windows, you may have noticed that there are two Program Files folders on your hard drive.

One is simply labeled Program Files and the other is labeled Program Files (x86). The first folder is the default location for all of your 64-bit programs. It does not have an extra label at the end because as a 64-bit operating system, it is assumed that the 64-bit applications will go into this folder.

The second folder labeled Program Files (x86) is the default location for all of your 32-bit applications. In a sense, it is a folder designed for legacy software that is left over from the days of 32-bit operating systems. The x86 portion of the folder name refers to the x86 32-bit architecture upon which the first 32-bit processors were developed such as the 386, 486, and Pentium CPUs.

Unfortunately, switching from 32-bit to 64-bit applications and operating systems is not as simple as Microsoft would like. To make the switch, every software vendor, hardware manufacturer, and user would suddenly have to stop making and using anything built on a 32-bit architecture and begin using 64-bit. This is entirely impractical because most people are not willing to just junk their investment in hardware and software and buy everything new again.

Microsoft’s solution to this transition from 32-bit to 64-bit has been to add legacy support for most 32-bit applications. In other words, most 32-bit applications will function in the 64-bit operating environment.

To help make the transition easier, Microsoft has designated that all 32-bit application should, by default, be loaded into the Program Files (x86) folder rather than getting mixed in with true 64-bit applications in the regular Program Files folder.

Windows uses an emulator of sorts to run 32-bit applications in 64-bit Windows. You may have seen some folders on your system that have the term WOW64. WOW64 stands for Windows 32-bit on Windows 64-bit. Whenever you run a 32-bit program and it needs to access the program files directory, it is seamlessly redirected to C:\Program Files (x86)\ using WOW64.

You can quickly see which programs on your computer are 32-bit and which are 64-bit by simply browsing into the two folders.

Every couple of months, I normally check the software developer’s website to see if they have released a 64-bit version of the program. Sometimes you have to dig a little to find the 64-bit version of a program. Most vendors even today still push the 32-bit versions as the main download. For example, you can install the 64-bit version of Office 365, but it’s not the default download.

Soon, however, most applications will be 64-bit, making the need for multiple Program Files folders unnecessary. Still, even Microsoft when it released Windows Vista 64-bit, failed to develop and release a 64-bit version of Office 2007 that was released at the same time. Also, a lot of the default Windows Store apps from Microsoft in Windows 10 are still 32-bit apps.

Keep in mind that by the time we all make the switch to 64-bit applications, it is likely that talk of 128-bit architectures will force us to go through the whole process again. Enjoy!

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