Running XP Pro SP2. Skipping over Vista completely.

[Elvis2]

I'll be building an i7 / X58 rig with 6 gig of triple channel GSkill ram. Will XP Pro 32 bit recognize this? I'm forgoing a Vista os and will go with Windows 7 upon it's release.
Ideas or suggestions?

 

[thescreensavers]

32 bit editions of any OS wont read more then 4gigs. You need 64bit edition for it to be able to read all 6gigs. So Windows XP Pro 64bit you would need to get if you want to use XP and use 6gigs of ram

 

[TheKub]

No it will not. Install Vista 64. If you havn't used it yourself do so and form your own opinion there is a lot of negativity out there from ignorant people.

I was dragging my feet and only installed it ~6 months ago and I couldn't imagine going back after making the switch.

 

[Blain]

XP Pro 32-bit will tide you over (while not utilizing all your memory), until Windows 7 is out of beta.
You'll be fine. :thumbsup:😉

 

[soonerproud]

Originally posted by: Elvis2
I'll be building an i7 / X58 rig with 6 gig of triple channel GSkill ram. Will XP Pro 32 bit recognize this? I'm forgoing a Vista os and will go with Windows 7 upon it's release.
Ideas or suggestions?

Simple answer, no.

You need a 64 bit operating system to take advantage of more than 3 gigs of memory (Windows reserves about a gig of your RAM for the system itself) in any 32 bit Microsoft operating system. You will need to upgrade to a 64 bit operating system to make full use of that RAM.

You really should reconsider upgrading to Vista 64 bit on that hardware. XP 64 bit does not have the driver support that 64 bit Vista does, so you are unlikely to find drivers for some of your new hardware if you try to run 64 bit XP.

 

[soonerproud]

Originally posted by: thescreensavers
32 bit editions of any OS wont read more then 4gigs. You need 64bit edition for it to be able to read all 6gigs. So Windows XP Pro 64bit you would need to get if you want to use XP and use 6gigs of ram

You are dead wrong on your recommendation. XP 64 bit is a no starter due to crappy driver support. The op is much better off moving to 64 bit Vista instead. Since SP1, there are no performance issues that should keep the op from running 64 bit Vista.

 

[Crusty]

Originally posted by: thescreensavers
32 bit editions of any OS wont read more then 4gigs. You need 64bit edition for it to be able to read all 6gigs. So Windows XP Pro 64bit you would need to get if you want to use XP and use 6gigs of ram

Wrong, 32-bit MS Consumer OS' can't use more then 4GB due to a gimped PAE implementation to prevent driver crashes when systems have more then 4GB of RAM. Linux, and most of MS 32-bit Server OS' support up to 32GB+ of RAM. The limitation is in Windows, not in the 32-bit architecture.

 

[Chapbass]

Originally posted by: Crusty

Originally posted by: thescreensavers
32 bit editions of any OS wont read more then 4gigs. You need 64bit edition for it to be able to read all 6gigs. So Windows XP Pro 64bit you would need to get if you want to use XP and use 6gigs of ram

Wrong, 32-bit MS Consumer OS' can't use more then 4GB due to a gimped PAE implementation to prevent driver crashes when systems have more then 4GB of RAM. Linux, and most of MS 32-bit Server OS' support up to 32GB+ of RAM. The limitation is in Windows, not in the 32-bit architecture.

Really? I always thought it was a limitation of 32bit OSes...huh. looks like you learn somethin new every day 🙂

EDIT: okay, not to derail this thread, but then what would be the primary difference between x86 and x64 linux distros? performance in 64bit apps?

 

[thescreensavers]

Originally posted by: soonerproud

Originally posted by: thescreensavers
32 bit editions of any OS wont read more then 4gigs. You need 64bit edition for it to be able to read all 6gigs. So Windows XP Pro 64bit you would need to get if you want to use XP and use 6gigs of ram

You are dead wrong on your recommendation. XP 64 bit is a no starter due to crappy driver support. The op is much better off moving to 64 bit Vista instead. Since SP1, there are no performance issues that should keep the op from running 64 bit Vista.

I don't see how I am dead wrong lol, what I stated was basically correct information(I know I read the above post about how I am not 100% correct), if you want to use Windows XP and all that ram you need XP 64bit. In the last line I clearly state .....

Now is Vista 64bit better, Yes.

 

[Bateluer]

Originally posted by: soonerproud

Originally posted by: thescreensavers
32 bit editions of any OS wont read more then 4gigs. You need 64bit edition for it to be able to read all 6gigs. So Windows XP Pro 64bit you would need to get if you want to use XP and use 6gigs of ram

You are dead wrong on your recommendation. XP 64 bit is a no starter due to crappy driver support. The op is much better off moving to 64 bit Vista instead. Since SP1, there are no performance issues that should keep the op from running 64 bit Vista.

Seconded. Windows 7 doesn't have a release date yet. It could be released in late 2009, or it could be late 2010. There's no way to be certain yet.

Unless you've already got a copy of XP, Vista 64(non-Ultimate) will cost the same as a full version of XP Pro.

 

[Elvis2]

Thanks for your input 😉 . While this may be ot
I've decided to go with the following:

Asus P6T
i7 920
3 x 1 gig Corsair Domintor 1600 ram
Silverstone 1000w p/s
2 x eVGA 260's

I'll retain my watercooling setup but get a new Danger Den TDX 1366 wb.
I figure this way I can still run XP Pro until Until "7" comes out and I'll add another 3 gigs of ram at that time.
I wanted the eVGA X/58 board and since I run RAID 0 , that board doesn't have a floppy connector and I didn't want to go thru the hassle of slipstreaming the RAID and SATA drivers from the install cd onto and burn a boot cd.
I also use a 2 port KVM switch and eVGA doesn't support a legacy ps2 mouse connector.

 

[Blain]

Originally posted by: Elvis2
Thanks for your input 😉 . While this may be ot
I've decided to go with the following:

Asus P6T
i7 920
3 x 1 gig Corsair Domintor 1600 ram
Silverstone 1000w p/s
2 x eVGA 260's

That's all fine and dandy, but doesn't tell us what we want to know...
Did you load XP 32-bit or go with Vista 64? :roll:

 

[BD2003]

Since your XP wont recognize all your RAM, and Vista will cost money, I say just go with the windows 7 beta.

 

[Elvis2]

That's all fine and dandy, but doesn't tell us what we want to know...

I haven't built the rig yet but plan on staying with XP Pro Sp2 32 bit until Windows 7 comes out. And yes, XP will recognize 3 gigs of ram which I'll run until upgrading to 6 gig when "7" arrives.

 

[Tempered81]

I'm still on Win XP pro SP3, and my computer came with Windows Vista 32 HP 🙂

 

[Bateluer]

Originally posted by: BD2003
Since your XP wont recognize all your RAM, and Vista will cost money, I say just go with the windows 7 beta.

Going with this might actually be a worthwhile alternative if you don't want to spend the money on Vista 64. The 7 Beta lasts until Aug 2009, if I remember. The Gold version shouldn't be too far past that.

 

[SickBeast]

I say just mess around in 64-bit Linux for the time being.

Heck, install the Windows 7 beta!

As others have said, it's not the end of the world running on "only" 4gb of ram for a bit until 7 comes out.

 

[ultra laser]

XP 64 is solid. Give it a go.