Each licensed edition of Windows 8, which includes Windows 8, Windows 8 Pro, and Windows 8 Enterprise, is available in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions. The 64-bit versions of Windows 8 are designed to work with computers that utilize the 64-bit processor architecture.
While the 64-bit versions are similar in features to
their 32-bit counterparts, there are several
advantages of using a 64-bit edition of
Windows 8, including:
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Improved performance. The 64-bit processors can process more data for each clock cycle, enabling you to scale your applications to run faster or support more users. However, to benefit from this improved processor capacity, you must install a 64-bit edition of the operating system.
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Enhanced memory. A 64-bit operating system can make more efficient use of random access memory (RAM), and it can address memory above 4 gigabytes (GB). This is unlike all 32-bit operating systems, including all 32-bit editions of Windows 8, which are limited to 4 GB of addressable memory.
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Improved device support. Although 64-bit processors have been available for some time, in the past it was difficult to obtain third-party drivers for commonly used devices, such as printers, scanners, and other common office equipment.
Since the release of the 64-bit versions of Windows Vista® and Windows 7, the availability of drivers for these devices has improved greatly. Because Windows 8 is built on the same kernel as Windows 7, most of the drivers that work with Windows 7 also work with Windows 8.
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Improved security. The architecture of 64-bit processors enables a more secure operating system environment through Kernel Patch Protection (KPP), mandatory kernel-mode driver signing, and Data Execution Prevention (DEP).
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Support for the Client Hyper-V feature. This feature is only supported in the 64-bit versions of Windows 8. Hyper-V requires 64-bit processor architecture that supports second level address translation.
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