Hi all, But can you use a 64bit kernel on a 32bit processor? I was assuming you couldn't however I'm happy to be corrected.
Ben -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of Glen Turner Sent: Thursday, 26 July 2007 5:16 PM To: slug Subject: RE: [SLUG] reported memory and actual memory On Wed, 2007-07-25 at 16:06 +0800, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: > 32 bit machines can't use more than 4G. Bigmem kernels fiddle and go > partway but to use more than 4G use 64 bit! More specifically, the bigmem 32-bit kernel uses PAE to use RAM greater than 4GB. The bad news is that this doesn't increase the size of lowmem (a complicated topic, but basically the memory that can be used for disk I/O and networking). For some workloads this can be a problem because of the kernel's tendency to fragment lowmem (eg, backup servers are prone to this). That's the reason why it is better to use a 64-bit kernel. Of course, that has flow-on effects if you use bespoke or binary applications since you will need to recompile. Also, it can have an effect on your capacity planning -- 64bit applications usually need 25% more RAM. Of course, with as much RAM as you have you might be amply provisioned with RAM anyway. -- Glen Turner -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html IMPORTANT NOTICE TO RECIPIENT Computer viruses - It is your responsibility to scan this email and any attachments for viruses and defects and rely on those scans as Communications Design & Management Pty Limited (CDM) does not accept any liability for loss or damage arising from receipt or use of this email or any attachments. Confidentiality - This email and any attachments are intended for the named recipient only and may contain personal information, be it confidential or subject to privilege, none of which are lost or waived because this email may have been sent to you in error. If you are not the named addressee please let CDM know by return email, permanently delete it from your system and destroy all copies and do not use or disclose the contents. Copyright - This email is subject to copyright and no part of it maybe reproduced in any manner without the written permission of the copyright owner. Privacy - Within the jurisdiction of Australian law, personal information in this email must be dealt with in compliance with the Australian Federal Privacy Act 1988. -- SLUG - Sydney Linux User's Group Mailing List - http://slug.org.au/ Subscription info and FAQs: http://slug.org.au/faq/mailinglists.html
