i386 or AMD64 for intel i7?

Hi People.

I have an HP Pavillion dv6 with an i7 quad core processor. When I downloaded Ubuntu Mate 14.04, I was unsure about what architecture to get, i386 or AMD64. It said 'if unsure, get i386, so I did.

I am now concerned that I will not be able to take advantage of my 64 bit computer using i386 packages… I plan to use my computer for a bit of virtualization, etc…

Are my concerns warranted?

Thanks in advance and hope to hear form you soon. Cheers!

Regards

Sorry, here is more info on my processor…

justin@justin-HP-laptop:~$ cat /proc/cpuinfo
processor : 0
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 58
model name : Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM CPU @ 2.30GHz
stepping : 9
microcode : 0x15
cpu MHz : 2301.000
cache size : 6144 KB
physical id : 0
siblings : 8
core id : 0
cpu cores : 4
apicid : 0
initial apicid : 0
fdiv_bug : no
f00f_bug : no
coma_bug : no
fpu : yes
fpu_exception : yes
cpuid level : 13
wp : yes
flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx rdtscp lm constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts xtopology nonstop_tsc aperfmperf eagerfpu pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm ida arat epb xsaveopt pln pts dtherm tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid fsgsbase smep erms
bogomips : 4589.25
clflush size : 64
cache_alignment : 64
address sizes : 36 bits physical, 48 bits virtual
power management:

processor : 1
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 58
model name : Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM CPU @ 2.30GHz
stepping : 9
microcode : 0x15
cpu MHz : 2301.000
cache size : 6144 KB
physical id : 0
siblings : 8
core id : 0
cpu cores : 4
apicid : 1
initial apicid : 1
fdiv_bug : no
f00f_bug : no
coma_bug : no
fpu : yes
fpu_exception : yes
cpuid level : 13
wp : yes
flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx rdtscp lm constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts xtopology nonstop_tsc aperfmperf eagerfpu pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm ida arat epb xsaveopt pln pts dtherm tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid fsgsbase smep erms
bogomips : 4589.25
clflush size : 64
cache_alignment : 64
address sizes : 36 bits physical, 48 bits virtual
power management:

processor : 2
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 58
model name : Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM CPU @ 2.30GHz
stepping : 9
microcode : 0x15
cpu MHz : 2301.000
cache size : 6144 KB
physical id : 0
siblings : 8
core id : 1
cpu cores : 4
apicid : 2
initial apicid : 2
fdiv_bug : no
f00f_bug : no
coma_bug : no
fpu : yes
fpu_exception : yes
cpuid level : 13
wp : yes
flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx rdtscp lm constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts xtopology nonstop_tsc aperfmperf eagerfpu pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm ida arat epb xsaveopt pln pts dtherm tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid fsgsbase smep erms
bogomips : 4589.25
clflush size : 64
cache_alignment : 64
address sizes : 36 bits physical, 48 bits virtual
power management:

processor : 3
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 58
model name : Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM CPU @ 2.30GHz
stepping : 9
microcode : 0x15
cpu MHz : 2301.000
cache size : 6144 KB
physical id : 0
siblings : 8
core id : 1
cpu cores : 4
apicid : 3
initial apicid : 3
fdiv_bug : no
f00f_bug : no
coma_bug : no
fpu : yes
fpu_exception : yes
cpuid level : 13
wp : yes
flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx rdtscp lm constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts xtopology nonstop_tsc aperfmperf eagerfpu pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm ida arat epb xsaveopt pln pts dtherm tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid fsgsbase smep erms
bogomips : 4589.25
clflush size : 64
cache_alignment : 64
address sizes : 36 bits physical, 48 bits virtual
power management:

processor : 4
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 58
model name : Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM CPU @ 2.30GHz
stepping : 9
microcode : 0x15
cpu MHz : 2301.000
cache size : 6144 KB
physical id : 0
siblings : 8
core id : 2
cpu cores : 4
apicid : 4
initial apicid : 4
fdiv_bug : no
f00f_bug : no
coma_bug : no
fpu : yes
fpu_exception : yes
cpuid level : 13
wp : yes
flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx rdtscp lm constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts xtopology nonstop_tsc aperfmperf eagerfpu pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm ida arat epb xsaveopt pln pts dtherm tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid fsgsbase smep erms
bogomips : 4589.25
clflush size : 64
cache_alignment : 64
address sizes : 36 bits physical, 48 bits virtual
power management:

processor : 5
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 58
model name : Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM CPU @ 2.30GHz
stepping : 9
microcode : 0x15
cpu MHz : 2301.000
cache size : 6144 KB
physical id : 0
siblings : 8
core id : 2
cpu cores : 4
apicid : 5
initial apicid : 5
fdiv_bug : no
f00f_bug : no
coma_bug : no
fpu : yes
fpu_exception : yes
cpuid level : 13
wp : yes
flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx rdtscp lm constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts xtopology nonstop_tsc aperfmperf eagerfpu pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm ida arat epb xsaveopt pln pts dtherm tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid fsgsbase smep erms
bogomips : 4589.25
clflush size : 64
cache_alignment : 64
address sizes : 36 bits physical, 48 bits virtual
power management:

processor : 6
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 58
model name : Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM CPU @ 2.30GHz
stepping : 9
microcode : 0x15
cpu MHz : 2301.000
cache size : 6144 KB
physical id : 0
siblings : 8
core id : 3
cpu cores : 4
apicid : 6
initial apicid : 6
fdiv_bug : no
f00f_bug : no
coma_bug : no
fpu : yes
fpu_exception : yes
cpuid level : 13
wp : yes
flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx rdtscp lm constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts xtopology nonstop_tsc aperfmperf eagerfpu pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm ida arat epb xsaveopt pln pts dtherm tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid fsgsbase smep erms
bogomips : 4589.25
clflush size : 64
cache_alignment : 64
address sizes : 36 bits physical, 48 bits virtual
power management:

processor : 7
vendor_id : GenuineIntel
cpu family : 6
model : 58
model name : Intel® Core™ i7-3610QM CPU @ 2.30GHz
stepping : 9
microcode : 0x15
cpu MHz : 2301.000
cache size : 6144 KB
physical id : 0
siblings : 8
core id : 3
cpu cores : 4
apicid : 7
initial apicid : 7
fdiv_bug : no
f00f_bug : no
coma_bug : no
fpu : yes
fpu_exception : yes
cpuid level : 13
wp : yes
flags : fpu vme de pse tsc msr pae mce cx8 apic sep mtrr pge mca cmov pat pse36 clflush dts acpi mmx fxsr sse sse2 ss ht tm pbe nx rdtscp lm constant_tsc arch_perfmon pebs bts xtopology nonstop_tsc aperfmperf eagerfpu pni pclmulqdq dtes64 monitor ds_cpl vmx est tm2 ssse3 cx16 xtpr pdcm pcid sse4_1 sse4_2 x2apic popcnt tsc_deadline_timer aes xsave avx f16c rdrand lahf_lm ida arat epb xsaveopt pln pts dtherm tpr_shadow vnmi flexpriority ept vpid fsgsbase smep erms
bogomips : 4589.25
clflush size : 64
cache_alignment : 64
address sizes : 36 bits physical, 48 bits virtual
power management:

justin@justin-HP-laptop:~$

Don’t worry. The 32 bit i386 desktop version can still use all of your processors and can still see any and all RAM over 4 GB. The only difference, as far as I understand it, is that it will be unable to allocate more than 4GB of RAM to any singe application at any given time. Of course, however, you may have several programs open at once, all of which may be requiring up to 4 GB or RAM and they will all be served (assuming you have the RAM on board to serve them), Thus, unless you are doing big video editing/compiling, or very RAM hungry 3d gaming, you have nothing to be concerned about at all.

1 Like

OK stevecook172001. Thanks for that.

Regards
Justin

Actually, can you confirm whether or not I can run the 64 bit version on my hardware? I would appreciate it. Cheers.

All Intel Core 2 (including Core 2 Duo, but not Core Duo) and Core i3/i5/i7 are 64-bit.

1 Like

Look that . You changed my world . My PC have Core Duo and I was believed that I could use i386 and AMD64 . I liked to know that .

Sorry abrowne, can you confirm whether the AMD64 Ubuntu Mate image is likely to work on my intel core i7 laptop? Cheers.

please look back at his last post. He indicates that you can use 64 bit on that architecture.

I’m sorry stevecook172001, but I did not get a clear answer from that post. I wasn’t sure whether he was referring to the CPU being 64 bit or if my processor would support a 64 bit Mate image…

Hi Justin,

when one talks about the bits of the CPU it refers to what type of code it can run. In your case it’s 64 bit, so the AMD64 image will be fine.

You could also check the version of Windows that your laptop came with as an indicator. If it was 64 bit you’re good to go without worry. If it was indeed Windows 32 bit you are wise to double-check, which you have done.

I think the blanket statement of “if in doubt use i386” is from the days when 64 bit was new, and many CPUs were not able to run it. In computing terms this was a long time ago and pretty much anything bought in the last five years should be able to run 64 bit code (OS, programs), but it’s always better to check.

Cheers,

Tim

Thanks for the clarification guys. Much appreciated.

If you try to boot an amd64 iso image and it is not compatible with your processor, there will be a message displayed saying it is the wrong architecture. I use amd64 on an old ThinkPad with 2gb of memory. I have a newer netbook that only takes i386 iso images, so I torrent both. If you can deal with the extra bandwidth, try the amd64 and see if it loads.

PS - I have noticed the splash screen will not display after installing the amd64 but the i386 installs and displays the splash screen (tested both on ThinkPad). It’s not isolated to this distribution, though. Just took out splash in GRUB, as a workaround. :blush:

Intel i7 processors are generally 64-bit processors, which means that they support both the i386 (32-bit) and AMD64 (64-bit) architectures. However, if you have an Intel i7 processor, it is generally recommended to use the AMD64 (also known as x64) architecture, as it is optimized for 64-bit processors and can handle larger amounts of memory more efficiently than the i386 architecture.

Additionally, many modern operating systems and applications are designed to take advantage of the 64-bit architecture, which can lead to improved performance and stability. Therefore, if you have a 64-bit capable system, it is recommended to use a 64-bit operating system and software whenever possible.

In summary, while your Intel i7 processor can support both i386 and AMD64 architectures, it is recommended to use the AMD64 architecture for improved performance and compatibility with modern software.

1 Like

Welcome @Stella_Gomez to the community!