Memory And 64 Bit CPUs.
March 14th, 2011 | 
Author: COMPUTER SUPPORT Tips from the Gonzales, Louisiana Computer Pro – Memory And 64 Bit CPUs.
One of the more recent developments in the computing industry is the switch from 32-bit to 64-bit CPUs, and – if you’re at all like the average business owner – you’re probably wondering what all the fuss is about. It doesn’t really seem like 64-bit CPUs are any faster, or provide any better performance, so what’s the big deal?
Those of us who provide COMPUTER SUPPORT IN GONZALES, LOUISIANA have heard this question plenty of times, and the simple answer is just that the 64-bit CPU lets you put more memory in the machine. With 32-bit processors, the machine is limited to no more than 4 GB of system RAM, and some operating systems won’t even use that much – stopping instead at only 3 GB of usable memory.
While this may not seem like a big deal, the reality is that almost all of the performance problems people encounter with their PCs in day to day operations are caused by not having enough memory in the machine. Having more memory can improve performance dramatically, and with the sheer number of applications most people run at once on a modern computer, 4 GB is simply not all that much.
Just a few extra GB of RAM can speed systems tremendously, and reducing the amount of time your employees spend waiting for operations to complete can make a big difference on your bottom line – even if all it saves is five minutes a day, that’s over three hours a month per employee. Recovering this lost productivity can mean thousands in annual savings, even for small offices.
With the price of RAM so low, it’s easy to juice up the performance of your workstations with a few extra gigs of RAM – if you have a 64-bit machine. With a 32-bit machine, it’s not that long before you hit the ceiling, and no more RAM can be placed in the system.
When we’re providing COMPUTER SUPPORT IN GONZALES for our customers, we always recommend new workstations have 64-bit processors and use 64-bit versions of the operating system – most 64-bit CPUs can act as a 32-bit system, but you lose most of the benefits from using a 64-bit processor. Using a 32-bit operating system on a 64-bit processor essentially gives up everything you were getting from the 64-bit CPU in the first place.
An important consideration for new workstations, of course, is whether 64-bit operating systems are available – and whether having more than 4 GB of RAM is necessary in the first place. For some tasks, one or two GB of memory are sufficient, and a 64-bit machine is not strictly speaking necessary.
However, when providing IT SUPPORT IN GONZALES, LA we’ve found that having a consistent and reliable configuration for all machines frequently reduces costs overall in the long run… even if the workstations themselves are a bit more expensive at first.
Phillip Singletary is a provider of professional NETWORK SUPPORT IN GONZALES. If you need IT SUPPORT for your small business, please contact us at COMPUTER CONSULTING
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