Matt Dittbenner wrote: > > 1. If I plan on getting 8GB of RAM, will I need (or really want) to > install 64-bit linux? Are there gains by going 64-bit or is it > better to enable high ram support in the kernel, compile as 32 and > call it done? You can use 8GB of ram in 32bit mode, single applications will still be limited though. Any gains from 64bit mode will depend on the applications you run. > 2. Will I be able to use the same binaries from the old server on the > new one if I install 64-bit? I'd really prefer to copy as much of > the data from the old server to the new one as I can. I am aware > that a 64-bit chip can run 32-bit software, but I don't know the > details. Do I need a 64-bit kernel? How about libraries? Yes. You can run 32bit binaries just fine under 64bit kernels as long as you have enabled 32bit emulation (CONFIG_IA32_EMULATION). All distributions enable this, as far as I know. > How much work is it to transition a machine from 32-bit to 64? Depends on the distribution, I would recommend reinstalling the 64bit branch of whatever distribution you run.