I think the MBP already officially supports 64-bit Vista whereas iMac does not. Has anyone installed Vista 64-bit onto an iMac?
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Windows 64 Bit Unsupported??
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I think the MBP already officially supports 64-bit Vista whereas iMac does not. Has anyone installed Vista 64-bit onto an iMac?
The only real difference is that the OS X Restore disc for my machine includes drivers for the 64-bit version of Windows Vista. Same with the Mac Pro's restore discs. So I don't need to search for the necessary drivers once I have installed the base OS.
There are folks who have pulled the drivers off the restore CDs and made them available for download. Others have created lists that show what hardware Apple uses and provided links to the non-Apple-specific hardware manufacturer's web sites (Intel for the chipset, ATI/nVidia for the GPU, Broadcom for the WiFi, etc.).
Thanks for the help, I guess I'll give it my best shot. The first time I installed Windows Vista OEM 64-bit I got to the user set up screen and I couldn't type or click on anything (I don't think the mouse or keyboard drivers are compatible). I'll have to find a way to install these drivers to get past that screen!
The difference is more than what driver came on the install disk. The difference is in the firmware of the machine. The firmware installed on the 2008 MacBook Pro and MacPro is compatible with the EFI bootloader of the Vista 64 SP1 install disk. On other Mac models (including all models prior to 2008) are is not compatible and the Vista 64 SP1 DVD will not boot.
Others have found ways around this, one being to find a Vista 64 version prior to the SP1 integration. Another way is to modify the boot loader of the install DVD and burn a new bootable copy (instructions can be found on the internet). Using these methods it is necessary to find the 64bit drivers for your system. Once this is accomplished you will be able to install and update the drivers via Apple Update Utility for Vista 64.
Others have found ways around this, one being to find a Vista 64 version prior to the SP1 integration. Another way is to modify the boot loader of the install DVD and burn a new bootable copy (instructions can be found on the internet). Using these methods it is necessary to find the 64bit drivers for your system. Once this is accomplished you will be able to install and update the drivers via Apple Update Utility for Vista 64.
So in your opinion do you think it likely that Apple will add the capability to the iMac to boot to Vista 64? I'm trying to decide whether I should just buy an XP OEM for like $90 right now and hope that I can upgrade later on with the copy of Vista 64 I already bought.
I'm surprised no one mentionned this yet, but the CPU (Processor) has to support the x64 instruction set.
i.e. : The CPU has to be a Core2Duo or newer generation.
The CoreDuo does not support a 64 bit OS.
So, while drivers and EFI play a big part, don't forget to make sure your CPU is up to the task.
On a side note, I find it appaling that Microsoft has not gotten its act together and pushed for better/ubiquitous 64bit support yet.
4GB+ of RAM is pretty much becoming commonplace these days and anyone using a 32bit version of Windows cannot make use of the whole 4GB+ (the max useable amount is 3.12GB or something close to that figure with a maximum of 2GB allotable per process).
On the other hand, Mac OS X has supported more than 4GB of RAM for quite some time now and with Leopard, the whole O.S. is 64bit capable.
If you want to use more than 4GB of RAM on the Windows O.S., you need to get a separate version, and while it's less of an issue now, the 64bit versions are often plagued by a lack of drivers, late drivers or buggy drivers.
I really like the fact that with any Mac you buy these days, you get full useage of your RAM and 64bit across the board (future-proof) and you don't have to worry about choosing the correct O.S. version from 7-8 different options. You get the whole deal the first time.
Also, I live in Canada, more precisely in the bilingual (french/english) province of Quebec and finding cheap OEM versions of Windows in french from reputable dealers like NCIX is hard. They often only carry the english versions.
The Mac O.S., on the other hand, includes 20+ languages right from the start, and I can even set my girlfriend's account to french and mine to english (even on the fly) whereas with Windows, you need to buy a completely new licence to be able to change languages and even then, It's either french or english, you can't have both in the same install.
The only way to go to have both is with Vista Ultimate's MUI packs but Ultimate is considerably more expensive than, say, Home or Business.
/rant.
Sorry, back on track now.
i.e. : The CPU has to be a Core2Duo or newer generation.
The CoreDuo does not support a 64 bit OS.
So, while drivers and EFI play a big part, don't forget to make sure your CPU is up to the task.
On a side note, I find it appaling that Microsoft has not gotten its act together and pushed for better/ubiquitous 64bit support yet.
4GB+ of RAM is pretty much becoming commonplace these days and anyone using a 32bit version of Windows cannot make use of the whole 4GB+ (the max useable amount is 3.12GB or something close to that figure with a maximum of 2GB allotable per process).
On the other hand, Mac OS X has supported more than 4GB of RAM for quite some time now and with Leopard, the whole O.S. is 64bit capable.
If you want to use more than 4GB of RAM on the Windows O.S., you need to get a separate version, and while it's less of an issue now, the 64bit versions are often plagued by a lack of drivers, late drivers or buggy drivers.
I really like the fact that with any Mac you buy these days, you get full useage of your RAM and 64bit across the board (future-proof) and you don't have to worry about choosing the correct O.S. version from 7-8 different options. You get the whole deal the first time.
Also, I live in Canada, more precisely in the bilingual (french/english) province of Quebec and finding cheap OEM versions of Windows in french from reputable dealers like NCIX is hard. They often only carry the english versions.
The Mac O.S., on the other hand, includes 20+ languages right from the start, and I can even set my girlfriend's account to french and mine to english (even on the fly) whereas with Windows, you need to buy a completely new licence to be able to change languages and even then, It's either french or english, you can't have both in the same install.
The only way to go to have both is with Vista Ultimate's MUI packs but Ultimate is considerably more expensive than, say, Home or Business.
/rant.
Sorry, back on track now.
"If you want to use more than 4GB of RAM on the Windows O.S., you need to get a separate version, and while it's less of an issue now, the 64bit versions are often plagued by a lack of drivers, late drivers or buggy drivers. "
Please note that Vista64 bit Ultimate is both stable and fast. It does not have the driver problems that plagued XP64. In fact you will find very good driver support for Vista 64.
I did not even attempt to install the 32bit version of Vista because of it's memory hungry interface and limited ram support. I waited until SP1 was released to buy and install Vista on both my 2008 MacBook Pro and 2007 MacPro.
Please note that Vista64 bit Ultimate is both stable and fast. It does not have the driver problems that plagued XP64. In fact you will find very good driver support for Vista 64.
I did not even attempt to install the 32bit version of Vista because of it's memory hungry interface and limited ram support. I waited until SP1 was released to buy and install Vista on both my 2008 MacBook Pro and 2007 MacPro.
No one knows what Apple will do. It is your decision on what operating system to install. Please not that Vista 64 bit requires a total install, you can't upgrade a previous version of Windows with it.
Since you already own the software, why not research methods to install it. I was able to find the procedure on the net and successfully install it on my 2007 MacPro that was not supported.
First, check your disk 1 before you start asking people. Some people might have it, some won't.
It'll be in:
D:\BootCamp\Drivers\Apple\BootCamp64.msi
If you have that, you have 64 bit drivers. if you don't, you don't have 64 bit drivers. Quick and simple.
It'll be in:
D:\BootCamp\Drivers\Apple\BootCamp64.msi
If you have that, you have 64 bit drivers. if you don't, you don't have 64 bit drivers. Quick and simple.
Here's a nice update to my saga:
I re-partitioned windows after my first installation and then installed Windows Vista 64 again. Unlike the first installation, I got a strange Boot Manager message that "Windows Failed to Start. A recent hardware or software change might be the cause."
I'm just about ready to give up on Windows altogether. If they want to make it difficult for me to run Windows, it's their loss.
The first time I installed Windows I did not have a USB keyboard and so after windows installed I couldn't type into the User Setup screen. This time I went out and bought a cheap keyboard and plugged it in and it seemed to work fine. Now I'm getting a different error message. What gives?!
I re-partitioned windows after my first installation and then installed Windows Vista 64 again. Unlike the first installation, I got a strange Boot Manager message that "Windows Failed to Start. A recent hardware or software change might be the cause."
I'm just about ready to give up on Windows altogether. If they want to make it difficult for me to run Windows, it's their loss.
The first time I installed Windows I did not have a USB keyboard and so after windows installed I couldn't type into the User Setup screen. This time I went out and bought a cheap keyboard and plugged it in and it seemed to work fine. Now I'm getting a different error message. What gives?!