Upgrading an AMD64 Turion Laptop to Windows XP x64 Edition
Published: November 7, 2005
I am an amateur photographer with a couple of high end digital SLR cameras. I spend a lot of time photo editing in Adobe Photoshop CS. Since I had experienced delays in applying various effects when using my older IBM ThinkPad for on the road photo editing, I knew it was time for a more powerful laptop. For about a year, I had been watching for a new laptop that would offer more processing power and offer a path for future operating system upgrades. I needed a notebook computer that was fairly light for travel and I really wanted a wide screen format. I'd been following the availability of AMD Turion 64 chips and had hoped that a laptop would quickly emerge that met my requirements. When Acer announced the Ferrari 4000, I read the specifications and instantly knew that I had found the right notebook.
From reading the posts in the Microsoft Windows 64 Bit Edition newsgroup on a regular basis, I learned what I needed to know to be prepared for an upgrade to 64 bit Windows. Obtaining 64 bit drivers appeared to be the biggest challenge. After checking various Acer web sites, it became evident that if I ordered this laptop at time of release, it would ship with the 32 bit version of Windows XP Professional and that I would need to come up with a plan on my own to install Windows XP Pro x64 edition.
In this column, I'll explain the plan I formulated based on available options to install the 64 bit version of Windows XP Pro. I'll highlight some of the resources I found on the web that provided assistance, share the results of the upgrade experience and explain why I still occasionally need 32 bit Windows XP.
Decide what installation method to use
When my Ferrari 4000 arrived in late June, Windows XP Professional Service Pack 2 (32 bit edition) was pre-installed as I had expected. I was encouraged that it bore the Designed for Microsoft Windows XP, Windows XP x64 Edition label. Disappointingly, the Acer US support site offered only drivers for 32 bit Windows XP at that time; no 64 bit drivers were posted for the new computer I had purchased. I knew from reading the newsgroup that 64-bit drivers might be available from other sources.
The Ferrari 4000 ships with a 100 gigabyte hard drive, partitioned and formatted into two equal logical drives of around 45 gigabytes each and a small hidden "factory restore" partition. The factory installed applications were all on Drive C and I installed additional applications on Drive C as well. Drive D was still empty. Two options were available to me to install Windows XP Pro x64:
1. | I could format Drive C and clean install x64. |
2. | I could set up a dual boot and have both 32 bit and 64 bit Windows XP on the same machine on different partitions. |
A dual boot option seemed like the safest option, given the lack of vendor supplied 64 bit drivers at that time. I also was not certain if all my 32-bit applications would run on 64 bit windows. I knew that with a dual boot system, I'd be able to use the pre-installed 32-bit Windows XP Pro operating system if I failed to find needed drivers or had application issues.
Assemble the operating system software and drivers prior to installing
My first step was to download the trial version of Windows XP Professional x64 and burn the supplied ISO image to a CD. The trial version is a 120 day test drive with full functionality and can be upgraded to a fully licensed version.
Tip: If you purchase a computer with a 64 bit processor (not an Itanium), you can obtain an OEM System Builder Copy of XP Pro x64 from vendors such as New Egg, with a qualifying hardware purchase. This hardware must be a non peripheral item that becomes an integral part of the system in question. Ordering additional/replacement RAM for your system and installing it fulfills the requirement. Additionally, the original license for the 32 bit version of Windows XP Pro is still valid if you obtain a copy of x64 in this manner, enabling you to keep a dual boot as long as you want or need to.
The second step was to assemble as many potential 64 bit drivers for the Ferrari as I could find. First I made a list of all the important components in Device Manager under Windows XP Pro which might require drivers. This included:
| • | Video card (ATI Mobility Radeon X700) |
| • | Network cards (Broadcom 802.11g Network Adapter and Broadcom Netlink™ Gigabit Ethernet) |
| • | Sound card (Realtek AC'97 Audio) |
From reading the Microsoft Windows 64 Bit Edition newsgroup, I knew that if vendor web sites did not offer appropriate driver downloads, a good alternate source for 64 bit drivers was Planet AMD64. Planet AMD64 not only has drivers available for download supplied by other registered members, but allows comments and user feedback on each driver. This allowed me to see how well a particular driver was working for other people running XP Pro.
I found video drivers for ATI cards, and Realtek sound drivers for the Realtek AC'97 sound chips on Planet AMD64. I was unsure if the Broadcom 802.11 b/g mini-pci card in the Ferrari 4000 would be natively supported. I found no downloadable driver support for Broadcom 802.11g wireless cards anywhere.
I created a folder on my existing C:\ partition named Drivers64 and then created sub-folders for video, sound, and network. I extracted or placed the drivers I found in the appropriate directory so that I could easily install and test them if it turned out there was no built in support in the 64 bit version of Windows XP Professional for these devices.
Organize application CDs and shareware/downloadable programs prior to installing x64
The next step was to insure that I had all the original installation media for critical applications such as Office 2003, and the latest version of the shareware programs I have registered or obtained licenses for. One of my primary concerns was ensuring that I had appropriate anti-virus software to install on x64. Once again the Microsoft newsgroup and the discussion forums on Planet AMD64 provided me with a couple of options. After reading the information supplied by other x64 early adopters, I also decided to download and be prepared to install the 64 bit trial version of Computer Associates eTrust 7.1 as the first step after installing XP x64.
Installing Windows XP Pro x64 as a dual boot
Dual booting two different Windows Operating Systems requires either a separate hard drive or a separate partition. Dual booting lets you run multiple versions of Windows Operating Systems on a single computer. Windows XP x64 automatically recognizes the existence of previously released Windows versions and sets up a boot menu.
You cannot install XP Pro x64 on the same partition as an existing 32 bit version of Windows XP. The Microsoft Knowledge Base has detailed information on this in article 896455. My new Acer Ferrari 4000 with two separate 50 gigabyte partitions was nearly perfect out of the box for setting up a dual boot configuration. Acer does not configure this laptop with the NTFS file system for some reason. Before proceeding to install XP Pro x64, I converted both drives to NTFS. See Microsoft KB article 307881 for the details of how to use the command line convert.exe to do this.
Installing XP Pro x64 as a dual boot option was then very easy as I was fully prepared with a separate and clean partition already formatted as NTFS. I booted from the CD and selected the D:\ partition. Windows Setup proceeded and I was careful to use the same computer name and settings as I was using on the existing 32 bit version. The newest OS, XP Pro x64 is placed first in the list and a timer function will automatically start the first (default) version of Windows even if you do not make a selection.
I can selectively boot into either 64 or4 32 bit Windows each time I boot my laptop.
After the XP Pro x64 desktop appeared, I verified and changed settings as needed so that I had the same username and workgroup name as the 32 bit version on the same computer. While I had made every effort to obtain drivers, my initial results were somewhat uneven.
| • | I was unable to get the ATI x64 drivers posted on Planet AMD64 to provide the same special widescreen resolution (1680 x 1050) as the 32 bit Acers supplied driver under 32 bit XP Pro. I was able to use a lesser 1024 x 720 resolution. |
| • | There was no included built in support for the Broadcom wireless. |
| • | I was able to get audio functionality using the Realtek AC 97 driver I found on Planet AMD64. |
I rebooted and booted into Windows XP Professional 32 bit so that I could wirelessly connect to my network and perform an in-depth web search for 64 bit support for my Ferrari 4000. I made my way to a European Acer FTP support site. I was excited when I saw the winxp64bit folder and even more excited when I realized that not only was there a driver for every hardware component but that there were Acer customization utilities as well. There was no link to this from any Acer web site and the US support site had no equivalent downloads. I downloaded all the drivers and booted back into XP Pro x64. Everything installed perfectly and every driver was WHQL'd by Microsoft. Everything worked. I had the proper video resolution, wired and wireless connectivity, full support for the Synaptics touchpad and even an Acer customization application that allowed me to specify some preferences, such as Bluetooth on or off at boot. The only letdown was that Wireless Zero Configuration under XP x64 does not support WPA2.
I now understood why the laptop shipped with the Designed for Windows XP x64 Edition logo. I'd been following a blog "mostly about 64 bit Windows" maintained by Volker Will detailing his experiences with the Ferrari 4000 and emailed him the good news which he immediately posted. Acer has subsequently made the 64 bit drivers available (you'll need to specify your system and download the drivers one at a time) on their US support site.
Install and test applications
The next step was to install my applications and see if they worked and had full functionality under
Windows XP Pro x64. From reading the Microsoft x64 newsgroup, I knew that Office 2003 would install and work properly. I installed Adobe PhotoShop CS next. I'm pleased to report that Photoshop works extremely well under Windows XP x64. The newly released Quicken 2006 Home and Business also installs and runs without any issues.
I was not so lucky with Roxio's DVD/CD Creator program as it refused to install and reported "wrong Windows version". Fortunately, similar applications that are part of Nero Burning ROM install and run nicely. Nero offers a free downloadable trial version that can be upgraded to the commercial version.
Licensed shareware applications are part of my every day computing environment. Windows XP Pro x64 Edition ships with both a 32 and 64 bit version of Internet Explorer. The 32 bit version is the default as there aren't any ActiveX controls for the 64 bit browser. I'd been using a program called Ad Shield on 32 bit Windows XP to squelch annoying animate GIFs in banner ads. When I tried to install Ad Shield, was blocked from installing because the installation program uses an old 16 bit installer. The error displayed is shown in the image below.
An old 16 bit installer blocks program installation on 64 bit Windows.
I tried contacting All Star Software about the installation issue. After a second contact, it appeared that no update would be available. I found good recommendations for alternatives in a Microsoft newsgroup. I downloaded a similar program, reasonably priced program called Ad Muncher which installs and runs on the 32 bit version of Internet Explorer in XP x64. I contacted the author who promptly responded that development was continuing and that he hoped to have a native 64 bit version in the future.
I've become dependent on a couple of small applications from Robomagic that run in the notification area. Both Wetsock (a weather application) and Socketwatch (synchronizes the computer clock) failed to install because of an incompatible installer. The author responded the next morning with new, updated installers that worked properly on Windows XP Pro x64. Currently, there are some issues with actually running Socketwatch, but the author is actively working on a solution.
Why I'm dual booting with 32 bit Windows XP Professional
It took me about a week to become fully comfortable in Windows XP Pro x64 Edition. I'm happy with the way everything is performing and even though I've had to switch to some new applications, I consider the upgrade a resounding success.
I still need to use Windows XP Professional to print the highest photo quality on premium photo paper. My HP Photosmart 7550 printer handles normal quality in XP Professions x64, but can't produce photo quality prints. There is no 64 bit printer driver so I'm using a work around that requires specifying HP 990c 64 bit drivers. I’m hoping that HP will release fully compatible 64 bit drivers and support my printer model.
I also have several programs that use USB connections to devices to upload/download information and data. Only 32 bit drivers are currently available for them. The list includes the phonebook utility I use to update my Verizon Motorola cell phone, a similar utility that exchanges data with my Uniden 5.8 GHz cordless phones, and the software that works with my Philips Pronto which controls my home theater components. I've contacted tech support for all of these companies to ask for a 64 bit driver. I hope it isn't too long a wait. More and more vendors should be offering drivers and support for 64 bit Windows operating systems over time.
Until I can obtain these drivers, I'll be dual booting both operating systems. I've got plenty of hard drive space available, and I'll be using Windows XP Pro x64 for most of my computing needs.
Decide if Windows XP Pro x64 is right for your needs and find more help
I'm really happy with the way Windows XP Pro x64 Edition is performing on my 15.4 inch widescreen Ferrari 4000. I think I've found the best combination of hardware and operating system software available.
This image shows my widescreen desktop with multiple applications running including Word 2003, Photoshop CS, Eudora, MSN Messenger 7.0, and RSS Bandit.
If you're thinking of buying a desktop or laptop with a 64 bit processor and want recommendations before you purchase, or if you already own a computer with a 64 bit processor and are thinking of upgrading or dual booting Windows XP Pro x64 Edition, you'll find the answers you need in the Microsoft Windows 64 Bit Edition newsgroup. See you there!
 | Barb Bowman enjoys sharing her own experiences and insights into today's leading edge technologies. She is a product development manager for Comcast High-Speed Internet, but her views here are strictly personal.
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