View original (French)

Can you replace a 32-bit CPU with a 64-bit one?

florent48 Posted messages 8 Status Member -  
florent48 Posted messages 8 Status Member -
Hello, I have a few PCs that I've salvaged and I want to update them for office work and internet so I can give them away to people around me. I'm used to installing Ubuntu either in 32 or 64 bits depending on the configuration. But I just found out that the 32-bit version is going to be discontinued in 2021, there are surely others that would work, but 32-bit is obsolete, so I would like to know if it’s possible, and if the motherboards allow it, to replace the 32-bit processors with 64-bit ones, and thus be able to install the latest version of Ubuntu in 64 bits and add a bit of memory as needed. For around €3 on average for Intel Core 2, for example, it’s really nothing and it will make some people happy.
But actually, I don’t know if it’s just a matter of changing the processor to switch from 32 to 64 bits; it seems a bit too simple to me, doesn’t it? (I’m not talking about compatibility issues with the motherboards of course, as that seems less simple to me!) And it’s the same with AMD processors.
Thank you in advance for confirming whether this modification is possible.

Configuration: Windows / Firefox 45.0

2 answers

  1.
    epango Posted messages 37195 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   Ambassadeur 4 270
     
    You do not specify which CPU this PC has. To find a PC with a CPU that is only 32 bits, you have to go back quite a long way.

    --
    Misnaming things adds to the misery of the world (Albert Camus)
    1
    1. florent48 Posted messages 8 Status Member
       
      It depends, I have several, Pentium 4, AMD, etc., quite old that's for sure! The most recent ones in 64 bits, I installed the appropriate version of Linux and it's all good. It's just on the principle that I have a doubt, regarding replacing a 32 with a 64 bits, provided that the motherboard compatibility is ensured.
      0
      1. epango Posted messages 37195 Registration date   Status Member Last intervention   4 270 > florent48 Posted messages 8 Status Member
         
        To know this, we need to know the exact model of the CPU in question. While 64-bit systems can run both software designed for 64-bit as well as that designed for 32-bit, the reverse is not true. If it's a 32-bit only CPU, it must be on a 32-bit motherboard. Therefore, you will not be able to install a 64-bit CPU in it.
        0
  2. florent48 Posted messages 8 Status Member
     
    Yes, it's exactly what I was afraid of! So I will start by finding the CM references to learn more, and I will give you the exact configuration of the PC being upgraded as I go along! I will come back here as soon as I look into all of this again. Thank you in any case.
    0