stupid question, i think

ok, so...........

i have a 64 bit HP laptop which i inadvertently obliterated the Windows
install on.

i took it to a guy i paid to do a clean reinstall on it.
i get it back, and realize he installed 32 bit Windows on it.

i called him back, concerned about this. his explanation is that since
the laptop only has 4GB of RAM, 32 bit is fine and the other 32 bits
won't be utilized anyway.

my concern is... i write music. processing music is resource intensive.

am i kinda screwed here?
can someone confirm or deny his reasoning?

i've heard conflicting reports that 64 bit only uses over 3, 3.5 and 4GB
of RAM.

should i even care?

On 03/12/2011 07:16, james nigh wrote:
> ok, so...........
>
> i have a 64 bit HP laptop which i inadvertently obliterated the Windows
> install on.
>
How did you "obliterate" the Windows install?

> i took it to a guy i paid to do a clean reinstall on it.
> i get it back, and realize he installed 32 bit Windows on it.
>
Are you talking about a Win7 OS? If so, and the original install was
Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit, then as on my HP laptop, there should
have been a recovery section (D: partition) on the hard drive. By using
that option when you boot, you return your laptop to the original
Win7HPx64 OS install that you had when you bought it. In fact, a day
after I bought my laptop, for some reason it wouldn't accept my logon
password. The retailer's recommendation was - as I hadn't done much at
all in the day I'd had it - to just run the reinstall program. Took
around an hour, but allowed me to set it all up again (with a new
password). Never had a problem since.

> i called him back, concerned about this. his explanation is that since
> the laptop only has 4GB of RAM, 32 bit is fine and the other 32 bits
> won't be utilized anyway.
>
See link below.

> my concern is... i write music. processing music is resource intensive.
>
> am i kinda screwed here?
> can someone confirm or deny his reasoning?
>
> i've heard conflicting reports that 64 bit only uses over 3, 3.5 and 4GB
> of RAM.
>
> should i even care?

For differences between a 32 and 64 bit OS, see here:
http://lifehacker.com/5431284/the-li...rating-systems

If you wiped the HD completely, and don't have the recovery partition,
it might be worth contacting Microsoft to see if they can get a new
64-bit OS to you on DVD.

--

Jeff

Actually, it would be HP and not Microsoft. HP is the OEM and responsible
for support. The following may help.

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=hp+recovery+disk

--
______________

BullDawg
In God We Trust
______________
"Jeff Layman" <> wrote in message
news:jbctv2$t4f$...
> On 03/12/2011 07:16, james nigh wrote:
>> ok, so...........
>>
>> i have a 64 bit HP laptop which i inadvertently obliterated the Windows
>> install on.
>>
> How did you "obliterate" the Windows install?
>
>> i took it to a guy i paid to do a clean reinstall on it.
>> i get it back, and realize he installed 32 bit Windows on it.
>>
> Are you talking about a Win7 OS? If so, and the original install was
> Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit, then as on my HP laptop, there should have
> been a recovery section (D: partition) on the hard drive. By using that
> option when you boot, you return your laptop to the original Win7HPx64 OS
> install that you had when you bought it. In fact, a day after I bought my
> laptop, for some reason it wouldn't accept my logon password. The
> retailer's recommendation was - as I hadn't done much at all in the day
> I'd had it - to just run the reinstall program. Took around an hour, but
> allowed me to set it all up again (with a new password). Never had a
> problem since.
>
>> i called him back, concerned about this. his explanation is that since
>> the laptop only has 4GB of RAM, 32 bit is fine and the other 32 bits
>> won't be utilized anyway.
>>
> See link below.
>
>> my concern is... i write music. processing music is resource intensive.
>>
>> am i kinda screwed here?
>> can someone confirm or deny his reasoning?
>>
>> i've heard conflicting reports that 64 bit only uses over 3, 3.5 and 4GB
>> of RAM.
>>
>> should i even care?
>
> For differences between a 32 and 64 bit OS, see here:
> http://lifehacker.com/5431284/the-li...rating-systems
>
> If you wiped the HD completely, and don't have the recovery partition, it
> might be worth contacting Microsoft to see if they can get a new 64-bit OS
> to you on DVD.
>
> --
>
> Jeff

On Dec 3, 10:34*am, Jeff Layman <JMLay...@invalid.invalid> wrote:
> On 03/12/2011 07:16, james nigh wrote:> ok, so...........
>
> > i have a 64 bit HP laptop which i inadvertently obliterated the Windows
> > install on.
>
> How did you "obliterate" the Windows install?
>
> > i took it to a guy i paid to do a clean reinstall on it.
> > i get it back, and realize he installed 32 bit Windows on it.
>
> Are you talking about a Win7 OS? *If so, and the original install was
> Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit, then as on my HP laptop, there should
> have been a recovery section (D: partition) on the hard drive. *By using
> that option when you boot, you return your laptop to the original
> Win7HPx64 OS install that you had when you bought it. *In fact, a day
> after I bought my laptop, for some reason it wouldn't accept my logon
> password. *The retailer's recommendation was - as I hadn't done much at
> all in the day I'd had it - to just run the reinstall program. *Took
> around an hour, but allowed me to set it all up again (with a new
> password). *Never had a problem since.
>
> > i called him back, concerned about this. his explanation is that since
> > the laptop only has 4GB of RAM, 32 bit is fine and the other 32 bits
> > won't be utilized anyway.
>
> See link below.
>
> > my concern is... i write music. processing music is resource intensive.
>
> > am i kinda screwed here?
> > can someone confirm or deny his reasoning?
>
> > i've heard conflicting reports that 64 bit only uses over 3, 3.5 and 4GB
> > of RAM.
>
> > should i even care?
>
> For differences between a 32 and 64 bit OS, see here:http://lifehacker.com/5431284/the-li...4+bit-vs-32+bi...
>
> If you wiped the HD completely, and don't have the recovery partition,
> it might be worth contacting Microsoft to see if they can get a new
> 64-bit OS to you on DVD.

Minor supplement - it's possible to persuade some 32 bit Windows
editions to give applications 3 GB of real RAM instead of a limit of
2, but that can be shaky.
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet...linkID=9240697
discusses.

In particular, hardware such as especially the video controller makes
some memory inaccessible in a 32-bit OS. But some cheaper video
hardware is just using that system memory as its own anyway - if they
still do that - and you could only release it by using a less rich
video mode, i.e. less colour range. But on a 64 bit laptop I think
it's unlikely that you'd have cheap video.

Also, a mature music (audio) application may support PAE, although
that probably only matters if you have above 4 GB. Windows itself is
using up about 1 GB anyway. Or you might not need so much RAM, since
an entire 74(?) minute audio CD is only 650 MB. But you probably want
to multi-track that.

I gather that a recovery-partition install or recovery-CD/DVD install
(which with HP you have to create yourself, or maybe buy) is liable to
have less or none of "extra" third party software included, which you
may prefer. Trials of anti-virus, of MS Office, that sort of thing.

However, if you have more than 3 GB RAM installed, then definitely you
lose some capability by having a 32-bit copy of Windows.

Windows 7 does have a built-in option to buy - buy - a different
version, but I don't know if that covers 32 versus 64 bit. I think
any version you do buy may be supplied as both, but not so that you
can switch at will.

I don't think you got what you paid for from the guy. But he may
disagree.

On 03/12/2011 12:56, BullDawg wrote:
> Actually, it would be HP and not Microsoft. HP is the OEM and responsible
> for support. The following may help.
>
> http://lmgtfy.com/?q=hp+recovery+disk
>

Good point!

--

Jeff

Actually, if this is an OEM version of Windows (highly likely), then
installing a different bit-ness is a violation of the EULA and not
supported. The person the OP paid to do this did something illegal, and
clearly not supported by either the EULA or sanctioned by the OEM. (HP OEM
Windows versions are locked to HP hardware only, and I'd be extremely
surprised if the installer had access to HP bits. )

Beyond that, if the OP's laptop supports 4 GB (or more), then you really
should be using 64-bit Windows, especially for the kind of work he's doing.

--
Charlie.
http://blogs.msmvps.com/russel


"Robert Carnegie" <> wrote in message
news:84938056-cafd-4505-b1e1-...
On Dec 3, 10:34 am, Jeff Layman <JMLay...@invalid.invalid> wrote:
> On 03/12/2011 07:16, james nigh wrote:> ok, so...........
>
> > i have a 64 bit HP laptop which i inadvertently obliterated the Windows
> > install on.
>
> How did you "obliterate" the Windows install?
>
> > i took it to a guy i paid to do a clean reinstall on it.
> > i get it back, and realize he installed 32 bit Windows on it.
>
> Are you talking about a Win7 OS? If so, and the original install was
> Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit, then as on my HP laptop, there should
> have been a recovery section (D: partition) on the hard drive. By using
> that option when you boot, you return your laptop to the original
> Win7HPx64 OS install that you had when you bought it. In fact, a day
> after I bought my laptop, for some reason it wouldn't accept my logon
> password. The retailer's recommendation was - as I hadn't done much at
> all in the day I'd had it - to just run the reinstall program. Took
> around an hour, but allowed me to set it all up again (with a new
> password). Never had a problem since.
>
> > i called him back, concerned about this. his explanation is that since
> > the laptop only has 4GB of RAM, 32 bit is fine and the other 32 bits
> > won't be utilized anyway.
>
> See link below.
>
> > my concern is... i write music. processing music is resource intensive.
>
> > am i kinda screwed here?
> > can someone confirm or deny his reasoning?
>
> > i've heard conflicting reports that 64 bit only uses over 3, 3.5 and 4GB
> > of RAM.
>
> > should i even care?
>
> For differences between a 32 and 64 bit OS, see
> here:http://lifehacker.com/5431284/the-li...4+bit-vs-32+bi...
>
> If you wiped the HD completely, and don't have the recovery partition,
> it might be worth contacting Microsoft to see if they can get a new
> 64-bit OS to you on DVD.

Minor supplement - it's possible to persuade some 32 bit Windows
editions to give applications 3 GB of real RAM instead of a limit of
2, but that can be shaky.
http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet...linkID=9240697
discusses.

In particular, hardware such as especially the video controller makes
some memory inaccessible in a 32-bit OS. But some cheaper video
hardware is just using that system memory as its own anyway - if they
still do that - and you could only release it by using a less rich
video mode, i.e. less colour range. But on a 64 bit laptop I think
it's unlikely that you'd have cheap video.

Also, a mature music (audio) application may support PAE, although
that probably only matters if you have above 4 GB. Windows itself is
using up about 1 GB anyway. Or you might not need so much RAM, since
an entire 74(?) minute audio CD is only 650 MB. But you probably want
to multi-track that.

I gather that a recovery-partition install or recovery-CD/DVD install
(which with HP you have to create yourself, or maybe buy) is liable to
have less or none of "extra" third party software included, which you
may prefer. Trials of anti-virus, of MS Office, that sort of thing.

However, if you have more than 3 GB RAM installed, then definitely you
lose some capability by having a 32-bit copy of Windows.

Windows 7 does have a built-in option to buy - buy - a different
version, but I don't know if that covers 32 versus 64 bit. I think
any version you do buy may be supplied as both, but not so that you
can switch at will.

I don't think you got what you paid for from the guy. But he may
disagree.