32-bit computing: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 12:53, 11 March 2006

Revision as of 01:43, 22 June 2006

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'''32-bit''' is also a term given to a generation of computers in which 32-bit processors were the norm.

The range of [[integer]] values that can be stored in 32 bits is [[0 (number)|0]] through 42949672954,294,967,295, or −2147483648−2,147,483,648 through 21474836472,147,483,647 using [[two's complement]] encoding. Hence, a processor with 32-bit [[memory address]]es can directly access 4 [[GB]] of [[byte-addressable]] memory.

The external address and data buses are often wider than 32 bits but both of these are stored and manipulated internally in the processor as 32-bit quantities. For example, the [[Pentium Pro]] processor is a 32-bit machine, but the external address bus is 36 bits wide, and the external data bus is 64 bits wide.