Just got Windows 7, 32bit or 64 bit?

[LFCJohnSmith]

I am sorry but where did you ever see this? For Win7, just as it was for Vista, the ONLY difference between the 32 Bit Version and the 64 Bit version is that the one version was 64 Bit. Other than that all teh rest was exactly the same.

http://www.techist.com/forums/f9/windows-7-faq-questions-172024/



Absolutely no where is there any distinction between 32 bit and 64 Bit. The requirements are exactly the same. The only reason why someone would even think to make a comment like that is because they think that you dont gain anything from running 64 Bit on less than 2GB of RAM which of course is wrong also.

As for the hardware, did you check the device manager? That will flat out tell you what isnt working or have proper drivers. The ONLY thing Windows has to do is make the item work. Which you say the hardware does, so they do have working drivers. For added functions you need the drivers for the manufacturer that are fully compatible with Win7 64 Bit which is NOT Microsoft's responsibility. So as far as Windows is concerned, they did everything they had to. Got your OS installed and the hardware working. Added functions is not part of the task.

It actually says on the packaging that the OS came in. IT says these exact words:

Windows 7 system REquirements
*1GHz or faster 32-bit (x86) or 64 bit (x64) processor

*1GB RAM (32-bit) / 2GB RAM (64-bit)

*16 GB available disk space (32-bit) / 20GB (64-bit)

What I was saying about the hardware which still works, is will I lose any functionality of the devices that I have installed, or should I go to the manufactures page and download the drivers, or will I be fine without checking this. I was worried incase the router which has got my firewall on is not actually working correctly i.e. the firewall isn't protecting cause the proper driver wasn't used to install it.

 

[KSoD]

You should always check for updated drivers at the manufacturer's website. Relying on Windows to keep your drivers up to date is ill advised at the best of times. Windows doesnt keep your drivers up to date unless they are added to the Windows Update area. Which the only time that is done is after the company requests that they be added. Not even nVidia drivers are up to date via Windows update anymore. As they release drivers to fast.

Routers dont need drivers. So i dont know why you would be worried about that. If you hooked it up right to begin with, it will work with windows. Since you are on the net, you must have done it right or you wouldnt have net access.

 

[DoubleHelix]

The system requirements on Microsoft's website differentiate between 32-bit and 64-bit with regards to memory requirements.

Windows 7 system requirements - Microsoft Windows

Windows 7 does a good job of updating drivers. I've installed it on a couple of systems, and the driver updates have popped right up in Windows Update as well as being detected when searching through Device Manager.

 

[KSoD]

That is the first time i have ever seen different requirements. I have installed 64 Bit on less than 2GB of RAM with no issues and it not throwing a fit at me. Which is why i was wondering. I have checked the site and it does show it. Which is odd to me cause all of the documentation i got directly from Microsoft doesnt have that listed. The stuff in the FAQ is directly from one of those documents. Will edit the FAQ to reflect the website.