LabVIEW 32-Bit and 64-Bit Compatibility

Issue Details

• I am looking to download LabVIEW for the first time, or to develop a new application in LabVIEW. Should I use the 32-bit or the 64-bit version?
• I am working with a Module or Toolkit that is only available in a 32-bit version. Can I use this module or toolkit with 64-bit LabVIEW?

Solution

The LabVIEW 32-bit is our first recommendation since it can be installed and used on either 32-bit or 64-bit operating systems, and it has wider compatibility with Modules and Toolkits, as well as greater support for 3rd-party Add-Ons. 32-bit Modules and Toolkits cannot be used with 64-bit LabVIEW.

LabVIEW 64-bit does not provide any speed improvements over LabVIEW 32-bit, but it does allow the program access to more system memory at once. While most of our users find that the 32-bit version provides plenty of resources for their projects, some specialized application areas may require this extra memory. If your program is likely to handle very large arrays or to process images that are particularly high definition, you may find that LabVIEW 64-bit is the better option for you.

In general, we recommend that developers start by working in LabVIEW 32-bit, and only move to LabVIEW 64-bit if they find that they need the additional memory that it provides.

Additional Information

The specifics of which Modules and Toolkits are compatible with which bitness of LabVIEW can vary, depending on which operating system you're using. More information about that is available in the LabVIEW 32-Bit vs. 64-Bit Development Environments FAQ .

Source code developed in one bitness of LabVIEW can be generally opened in the other but will need to be recompiled to run. If the code includes functions not available in the new bitness of LabVIEW, the code will not compile. It will instead have a broken run arrow and will warn you about missing dependencies.