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Should I downgrade from Vistax64 to XPx64?


pdesopo

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Hi all,

dunno if somebody else already posted something about this matter.

I'm working on a Dell Precision laptop M90, with the following configuration:

Processor Intel® Core2 CPU T7200 @ 2.00GHz, 2000 Mhz, 2 Core(s), 2 Logical Processor(s)

Installed Physical Memory (RAM) 4.00 GB

Name NVIDIA Quadro FX 1500M

I mainly use my laptop for graphics works, therefore main application I do usually use are:

Adobe After Effects

Adobe Photoshop

Adobe Illustrator

Maxon Cinema4D

Blender 3D

Nextlimit Realflow

PFTrack

and some other small apps.

Said that, I'm pretty satisfied about Vistax64, but due to some trouble with the openGl drivers, I've to keep the DWM service running and there's no way to turn off Aero. This means that a lot of resources are taken by Aero and in certain situation the laptop is not such as responsive as expected (and in certain situations some weird video glitches happens, but all work fine)

Now, since there should be some Nvidia driver for my Quadro and since the CS4 suite should run fine on XPx64, I'm just wondering if somebody else is in a similar situation and could confirm that would be better (or not?) to downgrade from Vista to a light weighted OS like XPx64.

Any help or suggestion would be really appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Best,

Piero

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Well, DWM doesn't actually take up a lot of resources itself, but the driver may (and nVidia has a history of making less than stellar Vista drivers). If you don't need any of the Vista features for your work, and don't mind running an OS that is going to go into extended (no bug fix) support soon, XP x64 should also work fine assuming the nVidia drivers provide the OpenGL support under XP x64 that you need.

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Thank you for your reply cluberti.

So, about future bug fixes it seems I cannot expect much....

The thing is I've tried to make my Vista as light weighted as possible stopping services I don't need, and keeping it always clean with scheduled defrag, registry optimization and junk files removal. But I'm thinking that my laptop configuration isn't enough to run Vista and all those apps smoothly at 100%.

Now the doubt is if XPx64 would run really smooth or not, since as for every thing with the technology stuff, one have to try it out...

Thank you again for your help.

Best,

Piero

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Guest noonehere

XP x64 is NOT going into extended support as XP, because it is a desktop version of Server 2003, and uses the same fixes and kernel. That means, as long as Server 2003 has support, XP x64 will have too.

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Be careful when downgrading too ... I downgraded a laptop from Vista to X64 and none of the important hardware works like my soundcard and wifi ... and finding drivers for those has resulted in a paperweight. The laptop never came with a Vista disc so I can't go back, and until I find the right drivers my laptop is useless.

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XP x64 is NOT going into extended support as XP, because it is a desktop version of Server 2003, and uses the same fixes and kernel. That means, as long as Server 2003 has support, XP x64 will have too.

Really? Are you sure that the dates for XP x86 and XP x64 aren't identical? The mainstream and extended support dates look the same to me.

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Windows Server 2003 Standard x64 Edition

As long as microsoft releases updates for 2003 SP2 x64, any XP x64 user will be able to apply them...

That doesn't change the supportability matrix. Microsoft *will* release security updates until extended support ends in 2014, but there are no more bug fixes outside of mainstream support unless you have a premier contract, custom support agreement, and extended hotfix support agreement with Microsoft for a product past mainstream support (and that's not a guarantee that a bug will get fixed, either, just a guarantee that they'll look into it).

When mainstream support ends, you also lose the ability to create free support cases (unless the problem is caused by an update released after mainstream support ends, and you can prove that said update caused the problem you open the case for).

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@cluberti:

Be honest, did you EVER call Microsoft support? The people who need their 'direct' and 'personal' support generally aren't on this forum.. ;-)

All the time. It's why you pay for premier support, and perhaps third tier. If you use your support wisely, it's worth every penny.

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Pdesopo,

Why don't you try 64-bit Windows Server 2008?

It's the server equivalent of Vista but has all the desktop stuff turned off, including Aero so it's lean and mean. You can also optimize it for running as a workstation rather than a server. See www.win2008workstation.com .

Most Vista 64 drivers have no problem running under Server 2008 x64.

Moreover, you can download Server 2008 effectively as an 8 month trial from Microsoft.

hope this helps

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Pdesopo,

Why don't you try 64-bit Windows Server 2008?

It's the server equivalent of Vista but has all the desktop stuff turned off, including Aero so it's lean and mean. You can also optimize it for running as a workstation rather than a server. See www.win2008workstation.com .

Most Vista 64 drivers have no problem running under Server 2008 x64.

Moreover, you can download Server 2008 effectively as an 8 month trial from Microsoft.

hope this helps

I didn't know there was a trial of windows server.

It could be another interesting option.

Thanks a lot for the hint!

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  • 3 weeks later...
Be careful when downgrading too ... I downgraded a laptop from Vista to X64 and none of the important hardware works like my soundcard and wifi ... and finding drivers for those has resulted in a paperweight. The laptop never came with a Vista disc so I can't go back, and until I find the right drivers my laptop is useless.

Did you ever try to use the Vista x64 drivers for your XP64, by installing/loading them manually. I now have sound on it as well, which was the hardest and last of the drivers.

Practically ALL drivers for XP x64 were simply being offered by Intel and Nvidia and the likes, you just need to search their websites.

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