E.T.A On P.T 9 64bit?

[half drag]

Originally Posted by Dism

If you aren't having problems... I really wouldn't be concerned about it.

Honestly, I think there is a little too much debate about 32bit vs. 64bit EFI on a 64bit OS, since most people don't even know what it even does.

Basically, it comes down to this:

If you install some 32bit software and it ain't working properly, you can try booting the OS in 32bit kernel by holding down 3 and 2 during bootup. However, it is my understanding that only the latest Mac Pros actually default to 64bit kernel on bootup.

So it's most likely the other way around for you. Meaning, to boot into 64bit kernel on a Macbook, hold down 6 and 4 during bootup.

I just ordered my MBP and it arrives tomorrow. I've never booted it. I only have 4GB RAM so I want to make sure I'm operating the optimal way *before* seeing if I'll have problems (or to avoid unknowingly eating too much memory).

Hrmmm, hold 3 and 2 on boot-up. Thanks. I'll confirm with Apple and see if they would recommend booting up like that.

Thanks again,
hd

[Park Seward]

Yes. Hold down 3&2 or 6&4 while booting. Apple says so.

[half drag]

Originally Posted by Park Seward

Yes. Hold down 3&2 or 6&4 while booting. Apple says so.

Right - I just have to confirm which is the default on my machine. Is there a way to confirm by watching initial boot, or checking a settings on the computer after initial boot?

[half drag]

Also - what's a good test I can run to compare? I.e., what's a reasonable task in PT, maybe a supplied sample session activity, where I can can run in 32-bit and then 64-bit, and check the CPU/memory usage %'s?

How would I check that metric while running a session? I've seen things like this posted. Thx.

[Dism]

Originally Posted by half drag

Also - what's a good test I can run to compare? I.e., what's a reasonable task in PT, maybe a supplied sample session activity, where I can can run in 32-bit and then 64-bit, and check the CPU/memory usage %'s?

How would I check that metric while running a session? I've seen things like this posted. Thx.

It's not really going to matter if you don't have more than 4GB installed.

The whole idea behind using pure 64bit is that it takes advantage of systems with a lot of RAM installed, like 8GB+.

[half drag]

Originally Posted by Dism

It's not really going to matter if you don't have more than 4GB installed.

The whole idea behind using pure 64bit is that it takes advantage of systems with a lot of RAM installed, like 8GB+.

OK. I was just reacting to what Darryl said upthread about running in 32-bit kernel "will likely result in less memory consumed by the kernel" which met with some agreeance.

EDIT: In any case I suppose it's best to run in the default for the machine, esp. if that be 64-bit kernel as that's forward leaning rather than backwards.

[Darryl Ramm]

Why bother? Most people here are not going to get any advantage from a 64 bit kernel. Has anybody pushed ProTools and VE to the point they need > 32 GB on one box? And still have enough horsepower on that box to run?

Darryl

[Darryl Ramm]

To be clearer -- you do not need to mess with your MBP since it boots a 32 bit kernel by default. Only recent Mac Pro boot 64 bit kernels by default (not MBP). If I had one of those as a ProTools workstation I would change it to boot a 32 bit kernel for the forseable future. It would be a very rare case that wanted >32 GB memory where a 64 bit kernel became interesting.

Don't worry about trying to measure the kernel usage, unless you are a unix internals geek it's not interesting, just run it 32 bit. You are also much less likely to run into driver and other issues.

A nice summary of info is available at

http://macperformanceguide.com/SnowLeopard-64bit.html

Darryl