System requirements for Windows x64

[YKhan]

Funny how much of a disparity there is between minimal & recommended
system requirements between Intel and AMD processors on the same
operating system is.

"Windows Server 2003 x64 Editions require server hardware that is based
on the x64 platform. These servers feature AMD Opteron or Intel Xeon
with EM64T or Intel Pentium 4 6xx series microprocessors. On the AMD
side, Microsoft requires a 1.4 GHz or faster processor, while Intel
users will need a 2.8 GHz Xeon or 3.2 GHz Pentium 4 with
Hyper-Threading technology, or faster processor. However, Microsoft
recommends faster Intel processors for the best experience: a 3.6 GHz
Xeon or Pentium 4."
http://www.winsupersite.com/reviews/win2003x64_preview.asp

Yousuf Khan

 

[David Schwartz]

Funny how much of a disparity there is between minimal & recommended
system requirements between Intel and AMD processors on the same
operating system is.

"Windows Server 2003 x64 Editions require server hardware that is based
on the x64 platform. These servers feature AMD Opteron or Intel Xeon
with EM64T or Intel Pentium 4 6xx series microprocessors. On the AMD
side, Microsoft requires a 1.4 GHz or faster processor, while Intel
users will need a 2.8 GHz Xeon or 3.2 GHz Pentium 4 with
Hyper-Threading technology, or faster processor. However, Microsoft
recommends faster Intel processors for the best experience: a 3.6 GHz
Xeon or Pentium 4."
http://www.winsupersite.com/reviews/win2003x64_preview.asp

Huh? These are comparable processors, aren't they?

DS

 

[Gilles Vollant]

The requirement is simple : a processor with 64 bits x64 instruction set

This mean:
Amd Athlon 64
Amd Opteron
Intel Pentium 4 with "EM64T" (this include pentium 630 to 660)
Intel Xeon nocona with 800 mhz fsb

 

[Johannes]

Funny how much of a disparity there is between minimal & recommended
system requirements between Intel and AMD processors on the same
operating system is.

"Windows Server 2003 x64 Editions require server hardware that is based
on the x64 platform. These servers feature AMD Opteron or Intel Xeon
with EM64T or Intel Pentium 4 6xx series microprocessors. On the AMD
side, Microsoft requires a 1.4 GHz or faster processor, while Intel
users will need a 2.8 GHz Xeon or 3.2 GHz Pentium 4 with
Hyper-Threading technology, or faster processor. However, Microsoft
recommends faster Intel processors for the best experience: a 3.6 GHz
Xeon or Pentium 4."
http://www.winsupersite.com/reviews/win2003x64_preview.asp

Why this CPU speed? Will Windows x64 run slower than Windows x32?

 

[Yousuf Khan]

Why this CPU speed? Will Windows x64 run slower than Windows x32?

The way Microsoft works it, every new operating system generation
requires a faster processor and more memory than the previous gneation.
So yes, this would be just keeping with tradition.

Yousuf Khan

 

[Rob Stow]

Why this CPU speed? Will Windows x64 run slower than Windows x32?

I've seen the last x86-64 XP beta running on a P4 that was
underclocked to something like 1.6 or 1.8 GHz. That machine was
a dual booter with the x86-32 version of XP as the other OS - and
speedwise their didn't seem to be much difference between the
x86-64 and x86-32 versions of XP.

I've found similar results with the 32 and 64 bit versions of XP
on AMD64 systems: you need a stopwatch to tell them apart.
Speed differences that are noticeable without a stopwatch only
happen with some of the 64 bit apps - and there are not a lot of
those out there yet.

However, the 64 bit version is more RAM hungry than the 32 bit
version. Migrating from the 32 bit XP to the 64 bit XP on an
Athlon64 3000+ system is not pleasant if you only have 512 MB of
RAM. Plan on adding a 256 MB DIMM to your system just for the
additional demands made by the new OS.