Can you run 32 bit apps on a 64 OS?

[Henry Stock]

I think the answer is yes, but I am not sure if there are special things
that must be done. I am looking at purchasing a new laptop and I have a
choice of a 64 bit OS or the 32 bit OS. I am concerned about backward
compatibility because I don't want to purchase all new applications.

 

[Guest]

Yes it runs both.

 

[Waz Medano]

I think the answer is yes, but I am not sure if there are special things
that must be done. I am looking at purchasing a new laptop and I have a
choice of a 64 bit OS or the 32 bit OS. I am concerned about backward
compatibility because I don't want to purchase all new applications.

Yes, it's 16bit apps that won't run on 64bit OS.

*----------------------------------------------------------------------*
"A good neighbor is one who stays on their side of the ****ING fence."
*----------------------------------------------------------------------*

 

[Richard G. Harper]

In general the answer is yes. There are some 32-bit apps that won't work on
a 64-bit OS but generally speaking most apps will work fine.

 

[Ken Blake, MVP]

I think the answer is yes,

The answer is usually yes. But there is an occasional 32-bit program
(most often a utility program) that won't run.

but I am not sure if there are special things
that must be done.

No.


I am looking at purchasing a new laptop and I have a
choice of a 64 bit OS or the 32 bit OS. I am concerned about backward
compatibility because I don't want to purchase all new applications.

Worst case, you *might* have to acquire a few new utilities, but
probably not.

However bear in mind that if you have peripherals like printers or
scanners that you want to use with this laptop, there might not be
drivers available for them to be used under 64-bit Vista (especially
if they are older peripherals). You should check the driver
availability first to make sure you don't have to buy new peripherals.

 

[Dave]

and no 16 bit programs will run...