Next Release of OneCare Won't Support Vista x64

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Peter GalliWhen Microsoft announced that it was ready to roll out Windows Live OneCare version 1.5 to coincide with the general release of Windows Vista, it omitted one important fact: the product will not support Vista x64 or XP x64. I received an email this morning from a reader telling me that the OneCare v1.5 beta would not install on his Vista test machine as it was just for 32-bit systems. "It would be nice, now that 64-bit Vista is set to go, to specify if the software will run properly in 64-bit," he said. "Has this changed in the final release? It would be nice to know as I have OneCare on all three home PCs, and plan on upgrading all of them to 64-bit Vista," he said.

So I asked Microsoft, which confirmed that, indeed, OneCare v1.5 would not run on Vista x64 or Windows XP x64 for that matter, "although it will support 32-bit Windows on x64 hardware," a Microsoft spokesperson told me. The spokesperson was also pretty non-committal about the possibility of x64 support going forward, saying "we continually evolve OneCare to meet customer demand, though we have no further specifics to share at this time around potential support for x64 in the future." My colleague Joe Wilcox spoke to Gina Narkunas, the lead product manager for Windows Live OneCare, this evening from London. She told him that "it wasn't a business priority to support 64-bit," because there is "no consumer demand" for a 64-bit right now.

View: The full story

News source: WS-Watch

(5 replies) #1 Darrian on 24 Jan 2007 - 13:57

This is crap. They want to push x64 with Vista but still won't update OneCare for x64? That alone isn't so bad, but to not give any information as to whether or not they're even working on it? We've been getting that non-answer for over a year. It's about time the OneCare team got off their asses and started working on it.

#1.1 Slimy on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:02

If anyone is on an x64 system right now, tell us if this is true: http://iorigin.onecare.live.com/cli/latest/SetupOneCare.exe

Based on the story from yesterday I could have sworn that it would work but there weren't actual x64 versions, that was coming in 2.0. I don't understand why they won't install at all though :/

Last edited by Slimy on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:38

#1.2 sphbecker on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:10

Who is pushing 64-bit? Everything I have read encourages users with less than 3GB of memory to run the 32-bit version. Clearly 64-bit is the way of the future, but I really don't understand early adaptors who install it just for the sake of running a 64-bit OS, even if they don't have enough memory to justify it.

#1.3 Darrian on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:18

It's been stated in several articles that Vista will be released in both 32-bit and 64-bit in one package as a way to encourage people to run x64. It's also been rumored that the next version of Windows will be 64-bit only, and there is at least one version of Server 2007 that will be x64-only. Whether or not it's necessary is an entirely separate debate.

Additionally, x64 is more or less established with Vista. Early adopters were the people who ran XP x64. It's been out for a while now. I'm running x64 Vista and I have had zero driver issues or any other kind of issue. It runs just as well as 32-bit, at least for me.

#1.4 adversedeviant on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:51

i was wondering why i couldnt install it yesterday. i run vista x64

#1.5 Slimy on 24 Jan 2007 - 19:52

Quote - (adversedeviant said @ #1.4)

*sigh* Just got home, "Unsupported operating system". Pathetic MS, seriously pathetic. I await v2.0.

(1 reply) #2 Hurmoth on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:02

Good ole Microsoft. "64-Bit, 64-Bit, 64-Bit. You must develop for 64-Bit. But we're not going too though."

#2.1 Jugalator on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:44

Heh, it reminds me a bit of this: Exchange 2007 facing integration issues with other Microsoft software.

And it's not just about any software, from TFA:

Quote -

In a nutshell, Exchange 2007 can’t run on Microsoft’s most current virtualization software, Exchange’s management tools won’t run on the just released Vista desktop operating system and the 64-bit messaging server is not compatible with Microsoft’s forthcoming 64-bit server operating system called Longhorn.

What can one call that anyway? A software incompatibility hat trick?

#3 ZombieFly on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:03

lol... lol, WTF & lol again.

great start for Vista x64, If Microsoft wont entertain it, do they seriously expect other developers to code for it? You'd think they'd set the ball rolling......

#4 Neobond on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:06

What everyone else said :/

#5 ranasrule on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:07

u gotta be kiddin me....what a bunch of SOBs

#6 Aq3e on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:21

Dont make x64 OS's if your not willing to put out the software for it, you failed with XP x64, now your killing your new x64 OS already. Good one Microsoft.

#7 +Lexcyn on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:37

Nice. 64-bit won't be the future if even Microsoft won't be developing software for it.

#8 TruckWEB on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:38

And where is Office 2007 x64? Most of MS software is not ready for x64. But, most devices from MS do have x64 drivers.

#9 Jugalator on 24 Jan 2007 - 14:39

"although it will support 32-bit Windows on x64 hardware,"

Haha, well duh

I think MS is in a pretty big software crowd that can do *that*...

#10 paesan on 24 Jan 2007 - 16:03

Same ole BS. They also put out new fingerprint reader software for Vista but guess what, it is only for 32 bit systems. What a joke. I am currently running Vista 64 bit but am wondering why. What benefits am I getting? Seems like running 64bit Vista has many drawbacks. If things don't change soon, I will reformat and go to 32bits.

(1 reply) #11 simsie on 24 Jan 2007 - 17:18

I don't get this decision....x64 antivirus support is thin and firewall is even thinner. Push this and they will have a huge upper hand.

#11.1 RAID 0 on 24 Jan 2007 - 17:50

That brings up a good point. To me, this is a dumb move. Is it MS being lazy? Or, can't they do it? I really wanted to go x64, but why do it now? Come on MS!!! WORK WITH US!

#12 Aero Ultimate on 24 Jan 2007 - 18:11

If they actually want to sell their OneCare crap and compete with serious programs, they'd better do an x64 version for it.
It's highly unprofessional that they don't support their own OS there

#13 pixels on 24 Jan 2007 - 23:06

Well this sucks... I got a free year of OneCare and I was going to use it when I got Vista... But I was planning on installing x64.

#14 Raa on 24 Jan 2007 - 23:26

because there is "no consumer demand" for a 64-bit right now

It's so true too.

#15 xpablo on 24 Jan 2007 - 23:57

because there is "no consumer demand" for a 64-bit right now.

What a bunch of BS, the only issue with x64 is drivers and some software, it is clearly the start of an excuse by MS to tone down the use of x64, as for the next version of windows after Vista being x64 only I doubt that very much, just more hype from MS with all the features Vista (Longhorn) was supposed to have and what it ended up being is a glorified version of XP re-written so XP drivers don't work on Vista.

But who cares ? I won't be using Live Care anyhow, I use Avast for anti-virus and it's Free the other features of live care I don't want.

Vista x64 user.

#16 Oogle on 25 Jan 2007 - 01:39

I have a pretty good guess why OneCare won't support 64-bit: PatchGuard.

Well, at least they're eating their own medicine and not trying to circumvent their own kernel with backdoor hacks.

#17 hamesh on 16 Feb 2007 - 19:45

This fact is omitted entirely from the Retail box. Anyone know how to get a refund from Microsoft?

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