Does 16 bit work yet on a 64 bit windows 10 OS?

Jody Thornton said:

DOS Box DOES (I repeat) DOES run 16 bit Windows applications. I simply set up a DOSBox.conf file/session, installed Windows 3.1 inside it, and even the Calmira desktop, to give it a Win9x look with a Start Menu. I have used this setup ever since I migrated to Windows XP x64 Edition.

My issue is, I wish there was a 32 bit version of the original Jezzball. Then I'd have no need for 16-bit Windows emulation.

Yes, you can install Win 3.1 inside dos box that everyone know that but you need to have a license for that, I actually bought them but through out the w 3.1. floppies. Just installing dos box alone won't let run any windows program. I think that what Lmiller 7 was saying.

What Petey7 is trying to get across is that this is not something that's in Microsoft's control to a great extent.

The Intel and AMD 64 bit processors are physically incapable of natively running 16 bit applications when running 64 bit operating systems. It's impossible, and no amount of hacking or fiddling can make it work. That means, Windows will *NEVER* support 16 bit applications on a 64 bit OS, at least unless Intel changes the architecture of the CPU to support this.. and it's unlikely that will happen.

32 bit Windows (including Windows 10) runs in 32 bit mode, and thus supports running native 16 bit apps (although there are still compatibility issues to deal with from multiple upgrade versions)

Now, note that I did say "natively" up there. It's certainly possible to emulate a 16 bit virtual machine and run 16 bit applications. 64 bit Windows 8, 8.1 and 10 professional and Enterprise all come with Client Hyper-V, and you can run a 32 bit version of Windows, or even a 16 bit version of DOS or Windows in a VM. You can also run other VM software, including DOSBox. DOSBox, I believe is completely emulated (non-virtualized) and is quite slow. But, it works. This is no different from running a Nintendo emulator, or whatever.

Wine on Linux is a totally different beast. Wine stands for "Wine is not an emulator". Wine is a "translator". It translates 16 bit Windows applications into a native 32 or 64 bit Linux application, this is what allows Wine to run 16 bit apps on 64 bit OS's. It's no longer a 16 bit app.

Could Microsoft do something similar for Windows? Sure... if they wanted to... but it's unlikely they will. And yes, it is a lot of effort, and very costly. Wine has been in development for over a decade and is still only about 60% effective.

Mystere said:

What Petey7 is trying to get across is that this is not something that's in Microsoft's control to a great extent.

The Intel and AMD 64 bit processors are physically incapable of natively running 16 bit applications when running 64 bit operating systems. It's impossible, and no amount of hacking or fiddling can make it work. That means, Windows will *NEVER* support 16 bit applications on a 64 bit OS, at least unless Intel changes the architecture of the CPU to support this.. and it's unlikely that will happen.

32 bit Windows (including Windows 10) runs in 32 bit mode, and thus supports running native 16 bit apps (although there are still compatibility issues to deal with from multiple upgrade versions)

Now, note that I did say "natively" up there. It's certainly possible to emulate a 16 bit virtual machine and run 16 bit applications. 64 bit Windows 8, 8.1 and 10 professional and Enterprise all come with Client Hyper-V, and you can run a 32 bit version of Windows, or even a 16 bit version of DOS or Windows in a VM. You can also run other VM software, including DOSBox. DOSBox, I believe is completely emulated (non-virtualized) and is quite slow. But, it works. This is no different from running a Nintendo emulator, or whatever.

Wine on Linux is a totally different beast. Wine stands for "Wine is not an emulator". Wine is a "translator". It translates 16 bit Windows applications into a native 32 or 64 bit Linux application, this is what allows Wine to run 16 bit apps on 64 bit OS's. It's no longer a 16 bit app.

Could Microsoft do something similar for Windows? Sure... if they wanted to... but it's unlikely they will. And yes, it is a lot of effort, and very costly. Wine has been in development for over a decade and is still only about 60% effective.

Can you explain something Mystere in a little more detail. I do know some of the answer or at least I think do. How come you can install a Windows 32 bit operating system on a 64 bit machine and run both 32 bit and 16 bit applications if the processor doesn't support it?

A 64 bit capable computer has a CPU that can as either 32 or 64 bit. When running a 32 bit OS the CPU is in 32 bit mode with all it's attendant capabilities - including the capability to run 16 bit code. When running a 64 bit OS the CPU is in 64 bit mode with all of it's attendant capabilities. The ability to run 16 bit code is not one of them.

LMiller7 said:

A 64 bit capable computer has a CPU that can as either 32 or 64 bit. When running a 32 bit OS the CPU is in 32 bit mode with all it's attendant capabilities - including the capability to run 16 bit code. When running a 64 bit OS the CPU is in 64 bit mode with all of it's attendant capabilities. The ability to run 16 bit code is not one of them.

I understand the above real well surprisingly for me.

I hope this is correct. I am assuming that the emulation done for the Windows 64 bit operating system so it can still support 32 bit applications. SysWow64

I also have been reading about wine. They are working on system called Wine64, it suppose to work with 64 bit, 32 bit and 16 bit applications it is just in the early development stages. This is not just for Linux.

One person had developed a NTVDM64 but I don't know how it works or if it still in development or been abandoned.