Will a 32 bit operating system on Core i7

[roszmoef]

Hello,
Will a 32 bit OS benefit in terms of speed from a 64 bit, multi-core processor such as Core i7-860, not withstanding the limitation on the usable RAM of a 32 bit OS?

 

[saaiello]

All Desktop Intel CPUs are 64bit processors since the second generation P4's. The main benefit you get going with a 64 bit OS is the ability to use more RAM.

 

[Leaps-from-Shadows]

Yes, 32-bit operating systems can support multi-core CPUs. Not all of them do though.

 

[jprahman]

64-bit processors offer additional benefits besides high RAM capacity. For one they offer twice as many CPU registers, both SSE and general purpose, allowing for more data to be held in registers, rather than in memory. They also offer new memory addressing modes that can boost performance of linux SO libraries.

There are downside though in that code size is larger with 64-bit code, which could cause issues with code not being able to fit into caches that it could have fit into with 32-bit code. Overall a 64-bit program will run faster than a 32-bit code even with the same amount of memory.

 

[loosley]

Hello,
Will a 32 bit OS benefit in terms of speed from a 64 bit, multi-core processor such as Core i7-860, not withstanding the limitation on the usable RAM of a 32 bit OS?

Yes, you should still see a benefit in speed, but how much of a benefit depends on what CPU you are upgrading from, and what programs you are running. Regarding the usage of RAM in a 32 bit and 64 bit OS, Tom's Hardware had a good article on this:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/ram-memory-upgrade,2778.html

 

[voltagenic]

If you have a choice between running a 32 bit OS or 64 bit, why would you want to install a 32?

Now to get to your question....I do not think that the 32 bit OS would benefit from using a 64 bit processor. It will benefit greatly from being multi core-but as far as speed is concerned in comparing running a 32 bit OS on a 64 bit processor, no, you would benefit from running 64 bit. You would, however notice the latter....running a 64 bit OS. It will be slightly faster.

 

[roszmoef]

Best answer selected by roszmoef.