Installing LabVIEW on 64-bit Operating Systems

Issue Details

I would like to install LabVIEW on my 64-bit Windows Vista or later computer. How do I install LabVIEW 32-bit or any other 32-bit NI software on my computer?

Solution

No additional steps are needed to install a 32-bit application on a 64-bit Windows Vista or later computer. Microsoft has included backwards compatibility into these operating systems in order to support applications that have not been recompiled to use 64-bit address spaces.

It is important to note that LabVIEW 8.2.1 is the first version of LabVIEW that is supported on Windows Vista 64-bit.
Starting with LabVIEW 2009, NI introduced a 64-bit version of LabVIEW alongside the 32-bit version that can run natively with 64-bit operating systems. This allows LabVIEW users to take full advantages of 64-bit operating systems, most notably access to more memory. It is important to note that not all NI drivers and toolkits support LabVIEW 64-bit. 

Additional Information

Windows On Windows 64 (WOW64) is an emulation layer that encapsulates and runs 32-bit applications on Windows Vista or later operating systems.  Under WOW64, a 32-bit application sends and receives 32-bit commands which are translated by WOW64 before communicating with the operating system. You do not need to take any steps to enable the WOW64 emulation layer as the operating system automatically detects 32-bit applications and runs then using WOW64.