Install Media

Included in every Windows 7 retail box are 32-bit and 64-bit media for two versions of Windows 7. The most common version used is still the 32-bit variant that has been around for ages, but recently the 64-bit version is becoming more popular for a number of reasons I'll get to shortly.

32-Bit or 64-Bit?

Making its debut in April 2005, the first version of 64-bit Windows was released as Windows XP Professional x64 Edition. Although the 64-bit edition was a true 64-bit OS, it was plagued by spotty driver support that limited its adoption. This was caused by the fact that the new 64-bit kernel required 64-bit drivers for all hardware devices. This vastly cut down on the number of compatible hardware devices. Hardware manufacturers had little incentive to rewrite drivers for the niche operating system. That all started to change with the release of Windows Vista that was the first Microsoft Windows release to come out in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions at the same time. Hardware manufacturers responded and 64-bit drivers are now available for almost all modern mainstream hardware. The 64-bit Windows has started to mature and the number of Windows 7 64-bit installations will begin to grow much faster. What is the real difference between 32-bit and 64-bit Windows 7?

Aside from the obvious fact that you need a 64-bit CPU to run Windows 7 64-bit (which just about any new CPU you buy today supports), there are other differences, such as the ability to use more RAM, additional processing power, and extra security features.

The primary advantage of a 64-bit operating system is the ability to utilize the larger 64-bit registers that are a feature of the 64-bit CPU. This allows larger calculations to be performed with one cycle and also addresses and accesses significantly more RAM. With 32-bit Windows 7 the maximum number of memory addresses available is 232, which equals 4GB of RAM that can be used. 64-bit Windows 7 can use up to 192GB of RAM with the Professional, Enterprise, and Ultimate editions.

There are also features that are only included in the 64-bit version of Windows 7, such as PatchGuard. This is a helpful piece of technology that attempts to protect the kernel of the operating system from being patched by malicious and legitimate software. In my opinion, anything that tampers with the kernel is bad, because it can affect the stability of your system. Microsoft is trying to put a stop to this by implementing the PatchGuard feature and creating a new API for legitimate software to interact with the kernel in a safer way. Some mathematic intensive applications such as rendering a 3D scene will also perform better on 64-bit Windows 7 when used with a 64-bit version of the rendering application. Encryption programs also seem to run faster on 64-bit Windows.

Now that you know the benefits of the 64-bit version of Windows 7, it is important to decide which is better for your hardware. For me, RAM and driver support are the main decision factors. I tend to use 32-bit Windows 7 on my older hardware for which no 64-bit drivers are available. I use 64-bit Windows 7 on my newer hardware, so I can take advantage of more than 4GB of RAM.

Alternative Install Media

The Windows 7 retail versions include installation software on a DVD. That works fine for the majority of users, but it is a big problem for those who own Netbooks or other computers without optical drives. If you don't have an optical drive on your computer, then you will need to take some extra steps to install Windows 7.

There are a few solutions to this problem, such as network booting to a Windows Deployment Server (feature of Windows Server 2008). However, the most popular and easiest to configure is a bootable USB flash drive. This is my personal preference as well, and is how I installed all the beta builds of Windows 7, so I could avoid wasting my DVD-R media. In fact, installing Windows 7 from a USB flash drive is actually much faster than installing from a DVD.