What is the difference between 32-bit and 64-bit?

What is the difference between 32-bit and 64-bit?

Answer: In computing, 32-bit and 64-bit are two different types of processors. The bit number (usually 8, 16, 32, or 64) refers to how much memory a processor can access from theCPU register.

Most computers made in the 1990s and early 200s were 32-bit machines. A 32-bit system can access 2³² (4,294,967,296) memory addresses. Practically speaking, a 32-bit computer is limited to accessing 4,294,967,296 bytes (4 GB) of RAM. Since most computers released over the past two decades were built on a 32-bit architecture, most operating systems were designed to run on a 32-bit processor.

▶ Around 2008, 64-bit processors became mainstream and personal computersstarting including 64-bit CPUs. Therefore, popular operating systems, such as Windowsand Mac OS X began shipping in both 32-bit and 64-bit editions, which allowed them to run on either 32 or 64-bit hardware.

While a 32-bit processor can access 2³² memory addresses, a 64-bit processor can access 2⁶⁴memory addresses. This is not twice as much as a 32-bit processor, but rather 2³²(4,294,967,296) times more. This means a 64-bit machine could theoretically access 18,446,744,073,709,551,616 memory addresses or more than 18 billion GB of RAM. However, as of 2013, there are few computers that can physically support more than 64 GB of RAM.

While many 32-bit programs can run on a 64-bit operating system (OS), 64-bit programs are not compatible with 32-bit operating systems. Additionally, many 32-bit drivers and systemutilities are incompatible with 64-bit systems. Therefore, when purchasing or downloading new software, it is important to know if a 32-bit or 64-bit OS is installed on your computer.

Definition: In the personal computing world, 32-bit and 64-bit refer to the type of central processing unit, operating system, driver, software program, etc. that utilizes that particular architecture.

32-bit hardware and software is often referred to as x86 or x86-32. 64-bit hardware and software is often referred to as x64 or x86-64.

32-bit systems utilize data in 32-bit pieces while 64-bit systems utilize data in 64-bit pieces. In general, the more data that can be processed at once, the faster the system can operate. There are several other advantages to a 64-bit system as well, most practically the ability to use significantly greater amounts of physical memory.

Most new processors today are based on the 64-bit architecture and support 64-bit operating systems. These processors are also fully compatible with 32-bit operating systems.