Windows XP Pro x64 Edition Resource Guide/FAQ

[Sucka]

**Updated 8/19/2005 - 10:30 PST**

The Difference Between 32-Bit and 64-Bit Windows:

				[COLOR=Yellow][B]32-Bit Windows XP Pro[/B]		[B]64-Bit Windows XP Pro[/B][/COLOR]

Processors Supported		1 or 2				1 or 2

Maximum Physical RAM		4GB				128GB

Total Virtual Address Space
(Based on single process)	4GB				16TB

Virtual Address Space Per 
32-Bit Process			2GB (3GB if booted		4GB(if compiled with "/large
				with "/3GB" switch)		addressaware";2GB otherwise)

Virtual Address Space Per
64-Bit Process			N/A				8TB

Supports "No Execute(AMD)"
"Execute Disable(Intel) Bit"	No				Yes

OS Kernal			Windows XP			Windows Server 2003 SP1

Kernal-Mode Device Driver       16-Bit and 32-Bit		64-Bit

Applications Support		DOS,16-Bit,32-Bit		32-Bit, Extended 32-Bit, 64-Bit	
DLL Support			32-Bit Only			64-Bit Only;32-Bit ActiveX applets 
								will not run under WinXP Pro x64*

Some Windows XP Pro x64 Internet-oriented clients (IE, Outlook, and WMP) are 32-Bit apps so that they can support 32-Bit ActiveX applets (among other things). These will need to be rewritten to support 64-Bit Windows Versions.

32-Bit x86 processors are limited to eight 32-Bit general-purpose registers, eight floating-point registers and eight SSE/SSE2 registers. The 64-Bit CPUs double the number of general-purpose registers to 16 and double the width to 64-Bit. The processors also offer eight new 128-Bit SSE/SSE2 registers for a total of 16.

*Taken from CPU Magazine

The main problem with Windows Xp Pro x64 Edition right now is lack of device driver support. While most 32-Bit software will run under Windows x64, if anything requires a device driver it will function. Before upgrading to x64 you will want to confirm that the hardware and peripherals you own are supported by Windows x64.

Current drivers being tracked by AMD:

Here

Other Common Drivers:

ATI Drivers
AMD CPU Driver
NVIDIA x64 Driver 77.77
NF4 Chipset Drivers 6.66 (AMD)
Intel Nvidia Chipset Drivers 7.13
Creative Sound Blaster Audigy 2 ZS

More Drivers Here

Current software written for Windows XP Pro x64:

Avast AV (Available here)
Stardock WindowBlinds (Available here)
ScienceMark (Available here)
POVRay 3.6 (Available here)
SiSoft Sandra 5 (Available here)
Cinebench (Available here)
Tiny Firewall (Available here)
FarCry 64-Bit Patch (Available here )
ESET NOD32 Anti-Virus (Trial available here)
Firefox 64/Deer Park Alpha 2 (Available here) Like IE 64 theres no working active-x, flash, etc.
Passmark x64 Benchmark (Avalable here)
O&O Defrag V8.0 Beta (Available here)

Please input any known software to be added to this list.

Microsoft claims they are currently tracking over 400 64-Bit applications under development.

Known Hardware Issues:

* A known issue exists with installing Windows x64 onto a RAID array with NF4 based chipsets. The work around for this is to use there F6 drivers.
* Limited drivers for Logitech peripherals. (Setpoint drivers and Joystick/Gamepad software)

Please input any known hardware problems to be added to this list.

Known Software Issues:

* Aquamark3
* Daemon Tools
* Winrar Shells (3.5 Beta has working Shell Extensions)
* Alcohol 120%
* Diskeeper Defragmenter Home & Pro
* RegSeeker (Causes instant BSOD after cleaning, unsure on other Registry Cleaners).
* WinFlash

Look here for more info on applications (I do not have confirmation on these, so just use this as a general guide)

Please input any known Software problems to be added to this list.

Comparison of Windows XP Pro 32-Bit vs. XP Pro 64-Bit:

Here

Download 180-Day Trial Version:

Here

Buy Here

FAQ:

Q: Is installing Windows XP Pro x64 Edition any different than Windows XP Pro?
A: No, there is no difference with installing the latest version of Windows.

Q: Will ***** hardware work with Windows XP Pro x64 Edition?
A: Please check this list out before you install Windows x64. Also check with your manufacturers website for the latest driver versions.

Q: Can i still upgrade my copy of Windows XP Pro?
A: Yes! According to this link you have until Aug 31, 2005 to upgrade.

Q: Can i install Windows XP Pro x64 Edition over top of my current 32-Bit XP?
A: No! Windows XP x64 requires system drivers, as such 32-Bit system drivers will not work with Windows XP Pro x64 Edition.

Q: Does Windows XP Pro x64 Edition look different than Windows XP 32-Bit?
A: Not really. The only obvious changes to Windows x64 is the desktop background, there is now a "Program Files" folder for 64-Bit applications and a "Program Files (x86)" folder for 32-Bit applications. In task manager it will put a *32 next to any task that is running in 32-Bit mode.

Q: Does Windows XP Pro x64 Edition feel any different than Windows XP Pro 32-Bit?
A: It feels very similar to Windows XP 32-Bit, i have not noticed any difference in daily performance.

Q: Will my 32-Bit software still run under Windows XP Pro x64 Edition?
A: Please refer to known software issues above to see if your program does in fact work/not work. As long as the program does not require a device driver it should function properly under Windows x64.

Q: Do 32-Bit applications feel faster in Windows x64?
A: No. 32-Bit applications can actually run slightly slower under Windows x64. If you are using over 2GB of memory it can potentially run faster.

Q: Can i install Service Pack 2 for Windows XP Pro x64 Edition?
A: No. Windows XP Pro x64 Edition is based on the Server 2003 SP1 Kernal.

Q: Do 16-Bit and DOS applications run under Windows XP Pro x64 Edition?
A: No. Windows x64 no longer supports 16-Bit and DOS.

Q: Should i upgrade to Windows XP Pro x64 Edition?
A: I would suggest you read this post fully before making any decisions. I would also advise you to try the Trial Version first to ensure all devices/software work on your system.

Q: Can i upgrade to the full retail version from the Trial Version?
A: To the best of my knowledge you will need to completly reinstall the full version losing all saved information.

Q: Can i dual boot with Windows XP Pro 32-Bit?
A: Yes! This is what i have been doing for the past few weeks and it works great. The only known issue is you can not access RAID arrays from the opposite OS as they require device drivers.

Q: Does Windows XP Pro x64 Edition have automatic update?
A: Yes. Although there are problems with ActiveX automatic updates do work on Windows x64.

Q: Sucka, do you personally like Windows XP Pro x64 Edition?
A: Yes! All of my hardware is supported by Windows x64, and it looks/feels the same as Windows XP Pro 32-Bit so why not use it!

This is a work in progress thread. Please feel free to submit anything to be added to this thread.

Check back often as i will keep this post updated.

 

[jack222]

Glad you took action Ben. Looks good. Hopefully will answer people's question's. Just keep it updated.

 

[tenchi86]

Maximum Physical RAM 4GB 128GB

Haha, you better be doing so major photo editing if you need that much ram.

 

[Sucka]

Glad you took action Ben. Looks good. Hopefully will answer people's question's. Just keep it updated.

Lets hope so. Been getting to many questions about this lately, so i figure if i put them all in one post i won't have to answer them over and over

What we really need is the users here to add in their findings as far as drivers/software/compatibility is concerned. Obviously i can't test everything.

 

[jack222]

I'd help with testing but all i have is my laptop now. :/ Send me one of your rigs and i will help with testing.

 

[Dermen]

Current software written for Windows XP Pro x64:
ESET NOD32 Anti-Virus (Trial available here )
Firefox 64 (Available here ) Like IE 64 theres no working active-x, flash, etc.

Known Software Issues:
Alcohol 120%
Diskeeper Defragmenter Home & Pro (I heard server edition works)

Known Hardware Issues:

*No drivers exist for Logitech peripherals.

Known Software Issues:

*Winrar Shells

Logitech has Setpoint drivers and Joystick/Gamepad software.
Newer versions of WinRAR have working Shell extenstions.

Thats all I remember off the top of my head.

 

[Sucka]

Thanks!

This is exactly what we need. Obviously i can't test everything, and this new tech is evolving daily. Updating now

Updated the first post, and added to the FAQ.
(8/17/05 - 19:37)

 

[NiTrO bOiE]

Winflash doesn't work. I found out the hardway...

 

[Sucka]

Winflash doesn't work. I found out the hardway...

Very good to know. Thanks.

 

[Axis]

Thanks for the update!

 

[NiTrO bOiE]

Toms Hardware just realeased an article about XP 64.

http://www.tomshardware.com/howto/20050823/index.html

 

[shiyan]

my experience with XP x64 edition:

Sil3114 RAID controller: works

Creative SBLive 5.1 Digital: digital output (for 5.1 sound) doesn't seem to work, so no good for connecting to my Creative DTT3500 speaker set

HP Scanjet 4400c: no drivers at all so totally unuseable

Logitech Driving Force Pro: Force Feedback doesn't work so I can't drive properly

I've also not found any programs to auto control the fans on my DFI nF4 SLIDR, which results in a noisy system

I'm probably going to reinstall regular XP again

 

[fight556]

speedfan isn't native 64...but it works perfectly good to monitor/control fans

 

[willybeef]

so basically, is it worth installing 64bit on my new rig?

 

[thegrouch]

so basically, is it worth installing 64bit on my new rig?

to be honest x64 seems faster and more responsive than 32-bit windows. but alot of the programs i used before dont work like steam, fulltilt poker, java plugins, and itunes wont recognize my burner. if i were you i would get the trial version(180 days of full functionality) of x64 from microsoft, and test it out to see what you think, but i would also have a install of 32 bit so if you need to use something its there. btw nice as motherf**** rig. what type of cooling you got on your 4800+, also what is your fsb/multi set at

 

[dpgthing]

my attitude towards XP-64 is this...i did some testing of my own.

WinXP Pro 64-bit scored 1000mb/s faster on Sandra Memtest than did XP-32bit. It also scored 4000 higher on CPU test.
However, SuperPI 1M scored the same on both OS's.
WinRAR scored 736kb/s (2x=695 ea) on 32-bit windows and a mere 730kb/s (2x=680 ea) on 64-bit.
This is as far as I got in my testing. I will not use 64-bit edition until all vendors have produced compatible drivers for it. I think Microsoft will need to do a few bits and bytes of testing with it and make it a little more stable before they release the official copy.

I'm baffled at the difference in Sandra scores though. But since my SuperPI and WinRAR were no different, and slightly slower, I can't say that I'm impressed really.

 

[DeRose306]

WinRar and SuperPi are 32 bit programs. Any 32 bit program runs in 32bit compatability mode, meaning they are not going to show any difference.

Sandra is 32 and 64 bit compatable. so that is why your #'s show a difference.

As software comes out that supports 64 bit processing, you will see a reasonable performance difference.

I'd really love to see some of the newer games optimised for 64 bit.

Hope this helps

 

[WillS]

One thing you might want to add to the sticky. There are Hewlett Packard "pre-beta" drivers over at www.planetamd64.com in the download section. They work for DeskJets printers and OfficeJet/PSC All-In-Ones (network printing and scanning do work with these).

 

[dpgthing]

please update Nvidia display drivers to 81.85 as x64 is supported
http://www.nvidia.com/object/winxp64_81.85.html

 

[spyware]

Sorry If I missed this somehow is there any info about soundblaster x-fi?
will my awesome new card work? or am I goin 32 bit?
Ok sorry I checked and soundblaster x-fi has full 64 bit support.
I was gettin antsy my ups is here now (see sig) back soon.
IT"S ALL HERE WHOOO HOO.