Differences between 32 & 64 bit versions of Power BI Desktop

[elz]

Hello,

I plan to install this software in the next week or so. I have a few questions that I'm hoping someone can answer for me.

Q1) I looked but could not find anything that describes the differences between the versions in terms of functionality. I'm hoping that someone can point me to a page that describes the differences.

Q2) I want to use Access 32 bit databases, does that mean that I have to use the 32 bit version of BI Desktop?

Q3) Can I install BI Desktop on my laptop, even with Office 2016 pro plus 32 bit being installed?

Thank you and Happy New Year!
Tracy

[Harambe]

Q:  PowerBI requires MS Access DB engine (for our application).   Per mandated  32bit MS Office suite we can install 64bit PowerBI, but cannot get 64bit DB engine to install; because the 32bit mandated Office Suite?  Any suggestions to install 64bit DB engine and 64bit power BI to work with a 32bit MS Office suite?

[elz]

The problem I have with trying to install the 64 bit version, was that the laptop had excel and access in 32 bit. I don't remember the exact wording of the problem, but I couldn't install the 64 bot version on the laptop with the 32 bit version of office. Hopefully, this post will help others.
Tracy

[Mairos_B]

Hello,

you should be able to install Power BI 64 bits in a desktop/laptop with the 32 bits office. I have that situation in my laptop and i work with Power BI every day.

Best Regards,

Bruno Mairos

[mifo123]

I was running Power Bi Desktop on a system with Windows 10 (32bit), core i5 processor (64bit), 4GB memory and it kept continously crashing.

I finally upgraded Windows 10 to a 64 bit version, with a significant improvement in stability. Power BI has actually yet to crash. So I definitely recommend upgrading to 64bit if stability is an issue. 

[MattAllington]

Q1. The application is the same but the processing performance is superior in 64 bit. At some point with large data models (eg in the millions of rows), 32 bit will most likely stop responding. If you have a choice, use 64 bit

Q2.  Maybe not. Take a look at this blog post. It is not the same as your situation but I expect it will work in reverse. I would love to hear if you get it to work or not. http://exceleratorbi.com.au/problems-importing-access-excel-2010-sql-server-2012/

Q3. Yes

[kcantor]

According to  Rob Collie, the 64bit is much more stable even with smaller datasets. So improved functionality with large datasets and improved stability overall.  It is the same engine as powerpivot so if you use 32bit powerpivot you would probably be fine with 32 bit BI. I have no actual experience with 32 bit so I am simply sharing what I learned at training.