Alibre and 64bit

[MarcusWolschon]

I can only find that "Alibre is compatible with 64bit Windows" but I only see 1 installer and 1 binary.
Is it a 32bit-software that just also just on 64bit Windows like any other or can it use more then
4GB of Ram per process?
(I´m deciding wether to buy a larger workstation before installing my purchased Alibre license
as that will be bound to that one Windows on that one PC.)

 

[DavidJ]

Yes currently Alibre is only 32bit software - it will run on 64bit Windows, but only as 32 bit application.

 

[tgarson]

Will (32 bit) Alibre 12 run in 64 bit Windows XP?
If so, how much memory can it access (Is it still limited to a 2GB space)?

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

Yes Alibre v12 currently runs on my 64 bit Windows XP at home.

If you don't plan to buy for a while I wouldn't worry about it much. You can install on more than one PC and can have old PC's removed from the license when you do get a new one.

If you want to buy now I would recommend going 64 bit anyway. When I recently asked Alibre support for recommendations for a future PC hardware they said:

We are possibly going to have a 64-bit build for V13, but it's not guaranteed at this point. On the multi-core issue, we currently are not planning to extend multi-core functionality. So for processors, I would recommend getting a 64-bit processor, mainly because most good processors you can get will already be 64-bit compatible, but I would recommend sticking with 1-2 cores instead of getting a quad core. At least in terms of Alibre Design, the benefit of quad core processors will not be realized.

For the video card, just get a Directx 9.0c compatible card, we do not use OpenGL so getting a Quaddro or FireGL is unnecessary and I would just recommend purchasing a Nvidia Geforce or ATi Radeon Card.

 

[MarcusWolschon]

Quite a shame considering we have 64bit on procumer computers since 1992 and it´s mainstream for years now
and that the first 12core x 4way SMP are out.
(My aged home.server already has 2x2 Operon cores sitting in the hifi.rack and that´s outdated hardware.)

I guess some company must have been sleeping here while the world kept turning.

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

Software always is behind hardware. There is no point for a software company to make changes whenever new hardware is available until a significant percent of their userbase have it. To do otherwise is a waste of money.

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

Also 64 bit didn't get to consumer level PCs until about 2003. It was however in servers and also the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation 2 before that.

 

[MarcusWolschon]

Also 64 bit didn't get to consumer level PCs until about 2003. It was however in servers and also the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation 2 before that.

That´s Consumer, not low-end CAD-Workstation and 2003 is 7 years ago.
What version-number die Alibre have 5 years ago?
People with consumer-level PCs seldomly buy software for 1000-4400eur.

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

I highly doubt that if you needed that much processing power memory for your cad designs that Alibre is what you would be looking at anyway. It also should be noted that Alibre has improved performance speed and memory usage over the last few releases. Something more beneficial to their user base who the majority of are probably still on 32 bit.

Here are some stats for you to help back that up. In the March 2010 hardware survey on Steam only about 1/3 of all users that took the survey are on a 64 bit os. At any time of the day there are usually between 1 to 3 million users on Steam so it seems likely that it was a pretty good sample of gamers. If the average gamer is still on 32 bit then the average Alibre user probably is too.

 

[MarcusWolschon]

. If the average gamer is still on 32 bit then the average Alibre user probably is too.

So you are saying the average user of a 1000-4400eur CAD/CAM-system is a gamer doing this as a hobby on a consumer level PC and even care about gaming consoles?
I don´t think the 97eur special has been around for THAT long.
(And yes, I personally need some processing power and memory if I don´t want Skeinforge to take more
then a quarter of an hour every time to generate the gcode for the production of a part designed in Alibre
while designing the next one. Or to process some 3D scan. Or to...)

That it´s a hobby for you and me doesn´t mean the target audience of such a system is hobbyists.

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

(And yes, I personally need some processing power and memory if I don´t want Skeinforge to take more
then a quarter of an hour every time to generate the gcode for the production of a part designed in Alibre
while designing the next one. Or to process some 3D scan. Or to...)

Those are not Alibre Design. Those are specifically data processing problems. Please do not blame Alibre Design for problem you have with performance originating with your other programs.

 

[MarcusWolschon]

(And yes, I personally need some processing power and memory if I don´t want Skeinforge to take more
then a quarter of an hour every time to generate the gcode for the production of a part designed in Alibre
while designing the next one. Or to process some 3D scan. Or to...)

Those are not Alibre Design. Those are specifically data processing problems. Please do not blame Alibre Design for problem you have with performance originating with your other programs.

If you read my posts you´ll notive that I have not done so at all.

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

Ok then. Back to the original topic...

I can only find that "Alibre is compatible with 64bit Windows" but I only see 1 installer and 1 binary.
Is it a 32bit-software that just also just on 64bit Windows like any other or can it use more then
4GB of Ram per process?
(I´m deciding wether to buy a larger workstation before installing my purchased Alibre license
as that will be bound to that one Windows on that one PC.)

Alibre v12 is a 32 bit version that can run on a 64 bit OS. I am not sure on the RAM usage issue but I believe this page could explain it. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa366778(VS.85).aspx

As I mentioned: If and/or when you decide to upgrade you can have Alibre on more than one machine. Or have support remove a machine to use it on another.

 

[MarcusWolschon]

Ok then. Back to the original topic...
I believe this page could explain it. http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa366778(VS.85).aspx

Well, we do not know if Alibre uses PAE to access memory beyond 2GB as a 32bit-process.
A lot of the 3d and 2d graphics software does. As does every mature database.
(That´s what you did before everyone switched to native 64bit and it is something you can do
on a 32bit operating system with 2-4GB ram.)


Bwt: If I have multiple parts and one assembly open in different Alibre windows, are these separate processes using IPC
(COM/pipes/shared memory/... does not matter) with 2GB each or are they threads of the same process?

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

That depends on how you start each one. Normally they are all one process when created from the same Home window but you can start more than one process of Alibre thereby having more than one Home window. I haven't experienced any problems this way but I've only done it a few times.

 

[MarcusWolschon]

That depends on how you start each one. Normally they are all one process when created from the same Home window but you can start more than one process of Alibre thereby having more than one Home window. I haven't experienced any problems this way but I've only done it a few times.

Thanks.
Any experience with updating one part that is used in another process? Do they have IPC or do I need to manually reload the changes from disk?

 

[NateLiquidGravity]

Manually loaded from the disk after saving. With the exception of things being edited from inside assembly - these are automatically updated to the assembly as changes are made since they are on one "thread".

 

[Anonymous]

Yes currently Alibre is only 32bit software - it will run on 64bit Windows, but only as 32 bit application.

We are working on a 64 bit version for Alibre Design 2011.

 

[swertel]

We are working on a 64 bit version for Alibre Design 2011.

You mean AD v13, or v14? I get confused when companies switch between year releases and versions.

 

[MarcusWolschon]

We are working on a 64 bit version for Alibre Design 2011.

You mean AD v13, or v14? I get confused when companies switch between year releases and versions.

Well.... v2011.0 will be quite a while away.