randycolby
New Member
- Joined
- Jan 26, 2013
- Location
- Indianapolis, IN
32 vs 64 bit programs on secondary drives or partitions?
I recently built a new PC and made a major jump from WinXP to Windows 8. I have been so used to organizing things my own way on my system by partitioning two different hard drives, with each partition used for different types of programs (C was always for OS and nothing more, G drive for Games, P drive for pagefile, S drive for Music Software, etc). I have set up my new system in this same way but have since learned about the whole Program files vs Program Files (x86) sorting. Most of my programs are running just fine where I put them anyway, but I am having a couple of my most used programs crash a lot. I am not sure whether it's because they were not designed for Windows 8 usage, or if it's because I didn't put them in C:\Program Files (x86). I am now attempting to slowly reconfigure my system and just accept that I cannot organize things the way I'd like.
My question before I go any further is this...
Will Windows 8 read my programs files the same way if I still use a secondary drive or partition?
Can I put my games into G:\Program Files (x86)\ or even G:\Games\Program Files (x86) instead of C:\Program Files (x86)\ ?
I don't need anyone to tell me that there is no need for me to use partitions or multiple drives. I understand that. It's just how I am used to keep things organized and easy to find. I just want to understand the protocol so I can properly reconfigure my system. If I have to put all my programs on C for Windows 8 to be able to properly call up system files without getting confused between 32 bit and 64 bit dll's, then I will do that, and then just use my second hard drive for files and backup data. If Windows can properly sort 32 and 64 bit programs on various drive letters if I just sort them into Program Files and Program Files (x86) per each drive letter, I would prefer to do it that way.
I recently built a new PC and made a major jump from WinXP to Windows 8. I have been so used to organizing things my own way on my system by partitioning two different hard drives, with each partition used for different types of programs (C was always for OS and nothing more, G drive for Games, P drive for pagefile, S drive for Music Software, etc). I have set up my new system in this same way but have since learned about the whole Program files vs Program Files (x86) sorting. Most of my programs are running just fine where I put them anyway, but I am having a couple of my most used programs crash a lot. I am not sure whether it's because they were not designed for Windows 8 usage, or if it's because I didn't put them in C:\Program Files (x86). I am now attempting to slowly reconfigure my system and just accept that I cannot organize things the way I'd like.
My question before I go any further is this...
Will Windows 8 read my programs files the same way if I still use a secondary drive or partition?
Can I put my games into G:\Program Files (x86)\ or even G:\Games\Program Files (x86) instead of C:\Program Files (x86)\ ?
I don't need anyone to tell me that there is no need for me to use partitions or multiple drives. I understand that. It's just how I am used to keep things organized and easy to find. I just want to understand the protocol so I can properly reconfigure my system. If I have to put all my programs on C for Windows 8 to be able to properly call up system files without getting confused between 32 bit and 64 bit dll's, then I will do that, and then just use my second hard drive for files and backup data. If Windows can properly sort 32 and 64 bit programs on various drive letters if I just sort them into Program Files and Program Files (x86) per each drive letter, I would prefer to do it that way.