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Which version to download

Melonheadjr44
Melonheadjr44 Posts: 2
in Installation

I am about to install Linux Debian on a Dell poweredge 2850 ( 64-bit Intel® Xeon™ processors ).

I am given the option to download these versions.

[alpha][amd64][arm][armel][hppa][i386][ia64][mips][mipsel][powerpc][sparc][s390][source][multi-arch]

Which one should I get ?

Thanks

Comments

  • mfillpot
    mfillpot Posts: 2,177
    Use amd64, which Linux distribution will you be installing?
  • vtel57
    vtel57 Posts: 164
    He's installing Debian, from the looks of it. And yes... the AMD64 is the version he wants. :)
  • Goineasy9
    Goineasy9 Posts: 1,114
    Ah, but Debian has Stable, Squeeze and Sid. So, the question is still valid. :)
  • Melonheadjr44
    Melonheadjr44 Posts: 2
    Yeah Im using the stable version.

    In an other forum I was told to use i386.

    Whats the difference?
  • jabirali
    jabirali Posts: 157
    Both i386 and amd64 would work, but you probably want the amd64-version for performance reasons.

    The i386-version is compiled for 32-bit processors, and should work on most derivatives of the processor Intel 80386 (which was initially released in 1985), including almost all modern processors from Intel and AMD. Some closed-source software for Linux has traditionally only been available for this architecture, but due to the widespread adoption of the amd64-architecture in recent years, this should not be a problem anymore.

    The amd64-version will not only work, it will also enable you to use the full 64-bit capabilities of your processor. Essentially, this means that your computer can work with more data at a time (64-bit registers instead of 32-bit registers) and make use of more memory (32-bit processors can only address a maximum of 4 GB of RAM). Since compatibility with old processors is not required by the amd64-version, I believe this version also comes out-of-the-box with more optimization for other capabilities of modern processors (e.g. SSE-instructions).
  • mfillpot
    mfillpot Posts: 2,177
    In addition to the potential of some software not working, using the wine emulator will not work in a pure 64-bit system and some proprietary hardware drivers do not work properly on 64-bit systems.

    A safe bet is, if a 64-bit version of windows was installed, then a 64-bit version of Linux will not have issues.

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