Can I run both a 32bit and 64 bit window 7 at the same time?

[rbico]

I want to jump to 64 bit OS, but I have a 16 bit program that is one of my primary tools. I know there is a way to run and emulator, or whatever it's called, inside of a 64 bit OS - but it looks stupidly complicated for as much as I use the 16 bit program.

I am interested in 64 bit mainly for extra oomph for Photoshop and video editing which I do only second to the 16 bit program.

Any advice appreciated!

 

[Megahertz07]

Please edit your profile and add all your hardware specs.
You can install win 7 64 on another disk or partition and choose witch one to boot on, but you cant run it at same time.

Most programs can "run as" in compatible mode. The 16 bits program is XP, Win 95 / 95 or Win 3.1 ?


This is what I would do.
Put a blank HDD on your computer, detach all other HDD and do a Win 7 64 SP1 clean install.
One done, install all drivers till device manager doesn't show any alerts.
Install the 16 bits program. Right click on the program link - properties - Compatibility tab - and choose the Win version to run on.
If it runs well, then you can decide what to do.

 

[mitchell65]

What version of Windows 7 is installed on your PC?

 

[rbico]

Please edit your profile and add all your hardware specs.
You can install win 7 64 on another disk or partition and choose witch one to boot on, but you cant run it at same time.

Most programs can "run as" in compatible mode. The 16 bits program is XP, Win 95 / 95 or Win 3.1 ?


This is what I would do.
Put a blank HDD on your computer, detach all other HDD and do a Win 7 64 SP1 clean install.
One done, install all drivers till device manager doesn't show any alerts.
Install the 16 bits program. Right click on the program link - properties - Compatibility tab - and choose the Win version to run on.
If it runs well, then you can decide what to do.

Thanks. That is a great idea. I read that 16 bits just flat out will not run on 64 bot, but I never thought of just trying it.

 

[AddRAM]

I`m sure you mean can you have a 32 bit install and a 64 bit install, of course you can

 

[rbico]

What version of Windows 7 is installed on your PC?

service pack 1 32 bit.

 

[rbico]

I`m sure you mean can you have a 32 bit install and a 64 bit install, of course you can

I want to have both running at the same time so I can jump to 64 bit to work on Photoshop then bounce to 32 bit to work on the stupid 16 bit program.

 

[AddRAM]

Then no.

You`ll need 2 computers.

Next

 

[LMiller7]

I`m sure you mean can you have a 32 bit install and a 64 bit install, of course you can

I want to have both running at the same time so I can jump to 64 bit to work on Photoshop then bounce to 32 bit to work on the stupid 16 bit program.

That is not possible. There is no way more than one operating system can run on the same hardware at the same time. I cannot conceive, even in principle, how such an operating system could be possible.

There is no way a 64 bit version of Windows can run 16 bit software outside of a virtual machine. There are no conceivable compatibility settings that will make this possible. 32 bit versions of Windows have a 16 bit subsystem that allows running 16 bit software. 64 bit systems do not have such a subsystem because it could not run.

The only way to run 16 bit software on a 64 bit version of Windows is under a virtual machine.

 

[rbico]

Thanks LMiller. That's what I thought I might just set up a tester PC to see how tricky the virtual things is to deal with.

 

[lehnerus2000]

VMware

You could run both at the same time if you use a VM for one of the installs.

You can download VMware Player for free.
Since it's impossible to work out how to get it from the VMware site, you can get it from places like FileHippo.

If you choose to use a VM you should:

• Install W7 64 bit on your physical hardware
• Install VMware Player
• Create a W7 32 bit VM

 

[dg1261]

Is the 16-bit program a DOS program? If so, maybe DosBox will fit your needs. If it might, there's no harm trying the portable version (doesn't require an install) just to see what it does and tinker around with it.

Of course, it's no good if your 16-bit program needs network access or access to your physical hardware (printers, COM ports, etc.), but if all you need is to manipulate files on your hard drive that you can later access from Windows, DosBox may be enough.

DosBox is kind of a lightweight virtual machine, so could be useful if you only have one application needing it and for which a full blown virtualization environment (VMware, VirtualBox, VirtualPC) would be overkill.