This is the fourth part of a mini-series on Windows x64, focusing on behind the scene changes in the operating system. In the last article I wrote about the changes to the x86 processor architecture that make x64 possible. But there is of course more to a new platform than just updated hardware. Continue reading ‘Windows x64 – All the Same Yet Very Different, Part 4: Code Trees, Drivers’
Monthly Archive for February, 2008
This is the third part of a mini-series on Windows x64, focusing on behind the scene changes in the operating system. In the first two articles (here and here) I explained key concepts and limitations of the x86 platform: every 32-bit process can use 2 GB of address space, which is by far enough for most applications. However, the kernel is also limited to 2 GB of RAM, which can lead to bottlenecks on systems that need to keep track of large amounts of resources, which is typically the case on terminal servers. Continue reading ‘Windows x64 – All the Same Yet Very Different, Part 3: CPUs, AMD64, Intel 64, EM64T, Itanium’
