Upgrading to Windows 7 64Bit

He all,

I hope I've put this in the right subforum, apologies if I haven't.

I recently decided to purchase some more RAM as in the past it's always been a good first step to slowly upping my computer spec and getting a better response. It's also extremely cheap nowadays and not having a brilliantly paid job a good way to go while I save up to upgrade the rest of my components.

I've bought 8GB of DDR3 which is compatible with my motherboard and then realised I'm only running windows 7 32bit which I believe will only use 4GB's of this. Is this correct and do I need to now upgrade to windows 7 64bit?
I've had a look online and there are so many versions of windows 7 that they make my head spin!
I'm happy to spend the money if I need to but I'm not sure which version to get or if this is even the best course of action.

CPU-Z says my processor is EM64T under the instructions column so I think this means I can run a 64bit OS.

I'm happy to post my specs if needed and I mostly use my computer for some gaming, browsing and home office work.

Thanks in advance.

Ed

 

You are correct in assuming that a 32 bit system will only use 4gb of ram.
A 64 bit OS will improve your gaming speed but will be inhibited by the CPU speed and Only 64 bit operating systems can utilize EM64T to it's full advantage,in short your system will be much faster with a 64 bit OS.
The number of windows 7 OSs can be confusing but basically if you choose "Home premium" you will not be able to use more than 16gb of ram.
I personally recommend "windows 7 pro" as it has all the bells and whistles except "bitlocker" and unless you specifically need it i do not see the need for the extra bucks.
All round with a 64 bit OS and the ram you have bought then coupled with your EM64T CPU you will have a fast and very capable PC.
If you post your PC specs we will have a look if any other improvements are needed in the future.

Bill

 

Hi Bill, thanks for your swift and clear reply.

Looks like Windows 7 Professional it is then! Although I may wait a little while to save up as it's obviously not cheap and I'm happy to sit with only 4GB of usable RAM for a month or so.

Here are my specs. My thoughts for upgrading in the future were to improve the graphics card (as it isn't too brilliant) then follow up with the processor at some point, although that may necessitate a motherboard upgrade as well.

Gigabyte P43T-ES3G Motherboard
Intel Core 2 Quad Q8400
2 x 1GB Corsair CM3X1G1333C9 (I have just ordered Corsair 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1333MHz XMS3 Memory Kit as a replacement)
Radeon HD 5770 1GB
Samsung HD103SJ Spinpoint F3 1TB Hard Drive SATAII 7200rpm
OCZ Stealth Xtream 500W PSU

I hope that's useful.

Thanks.
Ed

 

Having looked at your specs you have a good gaming PC for anyone other than the most die hard gamers who would overclock everything (i personally do not do this) it will serve you for some time to come and the only rcommendation that i would make for the future is that if you intend to upgrade the graphics card is that you first purchase a bigger power supply (what you have now is perfectly adequate for you system as it now stands but more powerfull graphics require more power and 500watt will be hard pushed and may run a bit hot.
Other than that you have a good quality motherboard (i have installed several of these and with the 775 socket you have a plethora of CPUs to choose from at some time in the future, your hard drive is plent big enough for home use and if i may suggest that you create a partition on it for a backup just in case you have a crash (i have an external drive for my backups but then i always go for overkill.
You have a system that many would envy so you need not spend any more $ just unfortunately on the OS to get the best out of it.

 

That's great, thank you very much for your help on this.

I'll definitely look into a new PSU and Grafx card in the future but I'm more than happy to wait and just a new OS when I get a chance to make the most of my RAM.

I haven't created a partition but that seems sensible. Something to do when I install Windows 7 pro I think.

Thanks again.
Ed

 

Just one little side note: you cannot "upgrade" Windows 32-bit to Windows 64-bit; you will have to do a fresh install over the 32-bit OS. See http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/...and-64-bit-Windows-frequently-asked-questions

 

Ah Ok, thank you.

I was debating whether to backup my important files and format the hard drive. If I have to do a fresh OS install then I think this will be the best route to take in that case.

Thanks.
Ed

 

HI folks!

OK - maybe this is a stupid question, but I was looking at doing exactly the same thing! - do the applications I run on my current system - Windows XP Pro - run on the Windows 7 64-bit? The physical system will handle it for sure.

Let me know - thanx! - AOL

 

Most software that runs on Windows XP can run on W7. However, not all software can run in native W7 mode, some can only run in XP compatibility mode.

Before the upgrade you should run the Upgrade Advisor http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/downloads/upgrade-advisor

 

Good morning pwillener!

Thank you for the info!!

How about 32-bit vs. 64-bit? Do I need to "shop" for applications that are designed for 64-bit, or will the same applications run, only faster (my opinion...!!)? Let me know what you think!

Hope you're having a great weekend!! - AOL:cool

 

If you have a 64-bit operating system, then you should install the 64-bit version of applications that provide both.

Example: Office 2010 comes with both 32-bit and 64-bit installers; you should install the 64-bit version.

Other installers decide that for you: Adobe CS6 will install available 64-bit applications (e.g. Photoshop), but others are only available as 32-bit (e.g. Acrobat).

Or: Flash Player will automatically install both 32-bit and 64-bit installer on a 64-bit system.

However: for Java you will need to download and install both 32-bit and 64-bit versions manually.

So it's not always easy to decide what is best; ask if you are unsure about certain applications.

 

Hi my friend , welcome to MG's :major

Be careful some peripherals causing problems with 64 bit driver ( especially old printers etc ) :wave