is it possible for one driver to be for both 32bit and 64bit OS?

  • Thread starter Thread starter James
  • Start date Start date
J

James

Is it possible for one driver to be intended for both 32bit and 64bit
version of a Windows operating system? or are there *always* seperate 32 and
64bit versions?
 
Yes, it's possible - depending on how the driver writer actually designed
it. the biggest difference between 64-bit and 32-bit drivers (apart from the
actual bit-length) is that 64-bit drivers MUST be signed (with a
certificate) - this can be accommodated within a download quite easily.

--
Noel Paton (MVP 2002-2006)
(CrashFixPC)

Nil Carborundum Illegitemi
http://www.crashfixpc.co.uk
 
One driver? No. One driver package? Certainly. The manufacturer can (and
in some cases, does) include both 32-bit and 64-bit drivers in one package.
Windows selects the part(s) it needs from the total package.
 
thanks for the input, I appreciate it.

Noel Paton said:
Yes, it's possible - depending on how the driver writer actually designed
it. the biggest difference between 64-bit and 32-bit drivers (apart from
the actual bit-length) is that 64-bit drivers MUST be signed (with a
certificate) - this can be accommodated within a download quite easily.

--
Noel Paton (MVP 2002-2006)
(CrashFixPC)

Nil Carborundum Illegitemi
http://www.crashfixpc.co.uk
Click to expand...
 
thanks for the input, I appreciate it.

Richard G. Harper said:
One driver? No. One driver package? Certainly. The manufacturer can
(and in some cases, does) include both 32-bit and 64-bit drivers in one
package. Windows selects the part(s) it needs from the total package.
Click to expand...
 
If you have an unsigned Vista 64 bit driver you can select "load unsigned
driver" from the F8 boot menu so you can load it.
 
All you are doing when you select to load an unsigned driver from a major
vendor such as Nvidia or ATI is speed up the time the time to get the
driver son your system since there is a delay waiting for MS to test the
driver which the supplier has to pay MS to do to insure that it does no
violate any Vista 64 driver restrictions.
 
That's the point of the driver-signing process - to ENSURE that installed
drivers don't bring the whole system to it's knees!
There are very few (I hesitate to say 'no') cases where a set of signed
drivers need an unsigned update.
Driver-signing also ensures that the driver you are installing really is the
driver you think it is - without some interesting add-on that a
Russian/Chinese/US bot-master would like you to install.

--
Noel Paton (MVP 2002-2006)
(CrashFixPC)

Nil Carborundum Illegitemi
http://www.crashfixpc.co.uk
 
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