Benefits of 64-Bit Computing

The following information is adapted from the white paper "Advantages of a 64-bit Environment," published November 2005 by Microsoft.

Memory Addressability

For optimum performance, the RAM available on a PortfolioCenter Database server in a 3-tier configuration should be at least 1.2 times the sum of the database size plus the RAM allocated to SQL. The average amount of RAM allocated to SQL is usually half the available RAM. For most firms, that is about 4 GB.

Thus, for the largest PortfolioCenter databases, it is physically impossible to have enough RAM on a standard 32-bit system. For example, let's say your database is 2 GB. You'll need at least 2.4 GB of RAM for the database, plus 4 GB RAM for SQL, which is 6.4 GB RAM. The limit for RAM on a standard 32-bit computer is 4 GB. As you can see, you need a 64-bit computer that can accommodate enough RAM.

A 32-bit system can directly address 232 bytes or 4 GB of RAM. On the other hand, current 64-bit systems can directly address 264 bytes of RAM. In practice, however, the maximum RAM available in a PortfolioCenter system is limited by the hardware limit of the database server. A typical 64-bit server supports a maximum of 32 GB of RAM and is more than enough RAM to achieve optimum performance for even the largest PortfolioCenter databases.

Enhanced Bus Architecture

Improvements in bus architecture enable 64-bit platforms to transfer data faster than ever before. On current 64-bit computers, the bus architecture is faster and wider than 32-bit computers. The faster, wider architecture means more data is passed to the cache and processor. The increased speed is as noticeable as the difference in speed between broadband internet connections and dial-up internet connections.

More Processors

Improvements in parallel processing and bus architecture enable 64-bit platforms to support larger numbers of processors (up to 64) while providing close to linear scalability with each additional processor. With a larger number of processors, SQL Server can support more processes, applications, and uses in a single system. These features allow the fastest available processing and the best performance with loads from multiple users.