Is 32-bit better for performance in gaming on 64-bit?

faisal6309

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I had installed 64-bit Windows 8 (not 8.1) and it was awesome in performance while playing games. I enjoyed playing many games like Black Mesa, Half Life etc. Now I have switched to other computer who have 32-bit of Windows 8.1. Windows 8.1 is awesome but it gets slow for some time when I quit the game. That was not the case in 64-bit Windows 8.
Is 64-bit operating system is better in performance if you are a gamer?? That's what I want to know so I can switch to other computer for gaming. I switched to this computer because of its higher specification but it comes with pre-installed Windows 8.1 32-bit.
 

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Hi Faisal6309,

It depends on your system and how much RAM you have installed to whether or not you are going to see the benefit. This is because with a 32bit(x86) operating system your computer is only going to be able to use a maximum of 4gb. This cannot be said for when you have a 64bit machine it can use a far higher Ram profile.

So if you are gaming with more than 4gb of ram than you are going to better performance running the 64bit operating system then you would with 32bit. for example running a 32bit operating system when you have greater than 4gb of Ram is like buying a 3 litre car and putting a limiter on it making it only be able to use 1 litre.

This is not just limited to gaming though you are going to see benefit of using 64bit architecture doing heavy work load tasks

Cheers,
Harry
 
Last edited:

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It's not the math that is the limiter. It's artificial restriction imposed by Microsoft.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3_GB_barrier

"In Microsoft's "non-server", or "client", x86 editions of Microsoft Windows: Windows XP, Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8, and Windows 8.1, the 32-bit (x86) versions of these are able to operate x86 processors in PAE mode, and do so by default as long as the CPU present supports the NX bit.[SUP][11][/SUP] Nevertheless, these operating systems do not permit addressing of physical memory above the 4 GB address boundary. This is not an architectural limit; it is a limit imposed by Microsoft as a workaround for device driver compatibility issues that were discovered during testing.[SUP][16][/SUP]

Thus, the "3 GB barrier" under x86 Windows "client" operating systems can therefore arise in two slightly different scenarios. In both, RAM near the 4 GB point conflicts with memory-mapped I/O space. Either the BIOS simply disables the conflicting RAM; or, the BIOS remaps the conflicting RAM to physical addresses above the 4 GB point, but x86 Windows client editions refuse to use physical addresses higher than that, even though they are running with PAE enabled. The conflicting RAM is therefore unavailable to the operating system whether it is remapped or not."


Generally, the only advantage of 64 bit operating systems is that they will address more RAM and speed itself is not very much a factor, unless doing heavy video encoding or the like, where it takes advantage of a large RAM space.
 

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Is 64-bit operating system is better in performance if you are a gamer?? That's what I want to know so I can switch to other computer for gaming. I switched to this computer because of its higher specification but it comes with pre-installed Windows 8.1 32-bit.

It kind of depends on the game - old vs. new. But generally speaking you'd probably see better performance with new(er) games, especially with the 64-bit's ability to handle more system RAM. Example Skyrim

Recommended Specs

•Windows 7/Vista/XP PC (32 or 64 bit)
•Processor: Quad-core Intel or AMD CPU
•4GB System RAM
•6GB free HDD space
•DirectX 9.0c compatible NVIDIA or AMD ATI video card with 1GB of RAM (Nvidia GeForce GTX 260 or higher (i.e GTX550Ti); ATI Radeon 4890 or higher).
•DirectX compatible sound card
•Internet access for Steam activation

Though a 32-bit's OS max RAM is 4 gig, understand it is at most 3.5 gig as at least 512MB of it is reserved for hardware, mainly the video card. Thus the max "system" RAM available would be about 3.5gig. With a 64-bit OS, you would get the full 4 and beyond.

Anyway here's some articles on the 32 vs. 64 debate...

- 32 bit vs 64 bit Comparison - Windows 7 Help Forums

- 64-bit: More than just the RAM

Peace :cool:
 

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I would consider a 64 bit installation,a one way decision without any hesitation and this is why:Want to be able to play Call of Duty Ghosts?It has got to be on a 64 bit platform.First of all,official minimum memory requirements are up to 6GB (although there are 4GB "editions" out there) ,thats a no go for 32 bit because of RAM limitation and if that wasnt enough,a 64bit environment is requested.Sure,for the time being,its only Ghost's requirement,but by the way and frequency todays games are published,it will not take long,till everybody follows.
 

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The reason why 64 bit systems were developed never was about the ability to access more RAM. It is all about address space. Both articles linked to by sygnus21 mention this but never really explain what it means. Through the "magic" of the CPU and memory management functions of the OS each 64 bit process sees an address space of 8 TB. But it is important to understand that this address space is in no way limited or even influenced by how much RAM you have. Most applications have no idea how much RAM is in the system. This larger address space is an enormous advantage for some applications. And that address space is private, it is not shared with other processes. A process can't accidentally trample over memory belonging to other processes because it can't even see it. How this is accomplished is very complex and I won't even attempt to describe it.

Unfortunately that doesn't mean much to a 32 bit process. A 32 bit process will have a 4 GB address space of which by default 2 GB is reserved for the system. This is address space, not RAM usage as so many Internet articles have implied or stated outright. The difference between address space and RAM usage is difficult enough without the articles that get it hopelessly wrong. 32 bit applications that explicitly indicate they are compatible will receive a 4 GB address space. They can handle no more.

While 32 bit applications don't directly benefit much from a 64 bit OS they do receive significant indirect benefits. A 64 bit OS has an internal 8TB address space and that gives it much greater flexibility. A big winner is the file cache which is much more efficient in a 64 bit OS. For applications that handle large amounts of data that can make a considerable difference, particularly if there is sufficient RAM to really make it work well.
 

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Depends mostly of your computer specs in general as there is a limit on 32 bit systems.
 

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A process can't accidentally trample over memory belonging to other processes because it can't even see it.
Unless it is shared?
 

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If the memory is shared then the modification isn't accidental. Memory sharing is used extensively in Windows but this requires deliberate steps by all processes involved. I didn't mention memory sharing to keep things simple.
 

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The reason why 64 bit systems were developed never was about the ability to access more RAM. It is all about address space. Both articles linked to by sygnus21 mention this but never really explain what it means. Through the "magic" of the CPU and memory management functions of the OS each 64 bit process sees an address space of 8 TB. But it is important to understand that this address space is in no way limited or even influenced by how much RAM you have. Most applications have no idea how much RAM is in the system. This larger address space is an enormous advantage for some applications. And that address space is private, it is not shared with other processes. A process can't accidentally trample over memory belonging to other processes because it can't even see it. How this is accomplished is very complex and I won't even attempt to describe it.

Unfortunately that doesn't mean much to a 32 bit process. A 32 bit process will have a 4 GB address space of which by default 2 GB is reserved for the system. This is address space, not RAM usage as so many Internet articles have implied or stated outright. The difference between address space and RAM usage is difficult enough without the articles that get it hopelessly wrong. 32 bit applications that explicitly indicate they are compatible will receive a 4 GB address space. They can handle no more.

While 32 bit applications don't directly benefit much from a 64 bit OS they do receive significant indirect benefits. A 64 bit OS has an internal 8TB address space and that gives it much greater flexibility. A big winner is the file cache which is much more efficient in a 64 bit OS. For applications that handle large amounts of data that can make a considerable difference, particularly if there is sufficient RAM to really make it work well.

Short and clear explanation !

+1

~edit~

x64 all the way
 

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Describing complex technology clearly in a relatively short post is difficult. Sometimes I succeed, sometimes not. It is nice to hear when I do.

64 bit systems have come a long way since their first introduction. Unless a critical application or device is not supported by a 64 bit OS 64 bit is probably best. The day is coming when many applications will be 64 bit only. The advantages are just too compelling for it to be otherwise.
 

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I switched to 64 bit while on Vista, straight to 64 bit on 7, now only 64 bit with 8 and 8.1. Haven't looked back. Very few problems even getting DOS games to run using emulators. A virtual CD/DVD drive to mount iso/mdx images is also good.
 

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The reason why 64 bit systems were developed never was about the ability to access more RAM. It is all about address space. Both articles linked to by sygnus21 mention this but never really explain what it means. Through the "magic" of the CPU and memory management functions of the OS each 64 bit process sees an address space of 8 TB. But it is important to understand that this address space is in no way limited or even influenced by how much RAM you have. Most applications have no idea how much RAM is in the system. This larger address space is an enormous advantage for some applications. And that address space is private, it is not shared with other processes. A process can't accidentally trample over memory belonging to other processes because it can't even see it. How this is accomplished is very complex and I won't even attempt to describe it.

Unfortunately that doesn't mean much to a 32 bit process. A 32 bit process will have a 4 GB address space of which by default 2 GB is reserved for the system. This is address space, not RAM usage as so many Internet articles have implied or stated outright. The difference between address space and RAM usage is difficult enough without the articles that get it hopelessly wrong. 32 bit applications that explicitly indicate they are compatible will receive a 4 GB address space. They can handle no more.

While 32 bit applications don't directly benefit much from a 64 bit OS they do receive significant indirect benefits. A 64 bit OS has an internal 8TB address space and that gives it much greater flexibility. A big winner is the file cache which is much more efficient in a 64 bit OS. For applications that handle large amounts of data that can make a considerable difference, particularly if there is sufficient RAM to really make it work well.


Good explanation because it all about the number of address available in 32 bit environment.

Also 64 bit environment address has to be along all layers from a 64 bit processor to 64 bit OS to a 64 bit program to fully utilize 64 bit.

I Think you did a great job in explaining it. +1
 

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