What's available in 64-bit?
There's little doubt that 64-bit computing will eventually make 32-bit systems obsolete. Major hardware and software vendors are all headed in that direction. Intel shipped the 64-bit Itanium for high-end servers way back in 2001. AMD introduced its 64-bit Opteron and Athlon 64 processors in 2003 and Intel brought out its EM64T line, updating versions of its Xeon and Pentium 4 lines to 64-bit the next year. In 2005, IBM came out with a dual-core 64-bit PowerPC processor that was code-named Antares, and AMD released dual-core 64-bit Opterons for servers and Athlon 64s for desktops. Today AMD also offers the Sempron and Turion 64, Intel has the Itanium 2 and other platforms, such as MIPS, SPARC and HP's PA-RISC, also support 64-bit computing.
Linux was the first operating system to run on Intel's Itanium. For workstations, Microsoft offers the Windows XP 64-bit edition for the IA-64 (Itanium) architecture and the Windows XP x64 edition for AMD64 and Intel EM64T architectures. Windows Server 2003 Standard, Enterprise and Datacenter editions all come in 64-bit versions. Mac OS X "Tiger" can run 64-bit applications on PowerPC G5 64-bit systems, and the next version ("Leopard") is expected to be a full 64-bit OS.
Should you upgrade to 64-bit for best scalability?
To take full advantage of 64-bit technology, you need 64-bit applications -- and that's where the problem lies. While a number of software vendors in the business space provide native 64-bit server applications (some examples include Microsoft's 64-bit enabled SQL Server 2005, IBM's Tivoli Storage Manager, e-commerce software from Computer Associates and software from Oracle and SAP) -- and in fact, Microsoft made waves by announcing that Exchange 2007 would be 64-bit only -- there are far fewer desktop/consumer level applications available in 64-bit versions.
Should you upgrade now?
If this technology is out there, and the industry is moving towards a 64-bit takeover, does that mean you should buy only 64-bit computers as you add new systems or replace old ones? The answer is (as is so often the case): it depends.
One of the biggest problems with making the transition to 64-bit is finding the appropriate drivers for hardware peripherals. If you need to use older devices, you may want to think twice about making the move to 64-bit. On the other hand, if you need to run memory-intensive applications that will benefit from the larger memory space offered by 64-bit systems, spending the extra bucks to upgrade will probably pay off in the long run.
Your best strategy might be to go to 64-bit when you replace servers or install new ones, then upgrade to 64-bit for graphics and CAD workstations and the like. As for those workstations that are used for ordinary office productivity software, email, web and the like, you probably don't need the scalability of 64-bit anytime soon, so you can save money by sticking with 32-bit systems there.
One thing you can be sure of: if you do buy 64-bit hardware, you'll have more scalability. After all, even if you don't plan to upgrade your operating systems yet, you can always run 32-bit software on the 64-bit machines until you're ready to go to the new OS.
TechRepublic is the online community and information resource for all IT professionals, from support staff to executives. We offer in-depth technical articles written for IT professionals by IT professionals. In addition to articles on everything from Windows to e-mail to firewalls, we offer IT industry analysis, downloads, management tips, discussion forums, and e-newsletters.
7%
1%
