Do I need to be running in the 64 Bit Kernel to utilize my new MBP's 8GB of Ram?

[Xystence]

Hello everyone,

I ordered a MacBook Pro, my first Mac on the day the new line came out and I have been using it since. My question is simple, I am just unsure of the answer. I know in Windows if I ran the 32bit version of windows it would not even recognize the full 4gb of ram my pc had, let alone 8. Does this same rule apply to the mac? I know the mac shows me with 8gb of ram just fine. Apple recommends I leave the kernel the way it is, whats everyones opinion on this? Should I do that code change to make my mac always run in 64bit or just leave it alone?

I simply wanna make sure what I paid for is being utilized completely

Thank you for your time!

 

[MrCheeto]

No, Mac OS X is hybrid. Though the kernel is usually running in 32bit on most machines, it has always been able to access more ram than the 32bit limit.

 

[Eddyisgreat]

No, Mac OS X is hybrid. Though the kernel is usually running in 32bit on most machines, it has always been able to access more ram than the 32bit limit.

//thread