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I'm about to install Riak on a server. When I log into the server, Ubuntu gives me a greeting string that says, among other things, "x86_64", which I take to mean an x86 chip and a 64-bit architecture.

When I look at my choices for Debian packages here, I see:

  • A 64-bit version called riak_1.0.2-1_amd64.deb
  • A 32-bit version called riak_1.0.2-1_i386.deb

This makes me think:

  • I can't use the first package because it's for AMD chips.
  • I don't see a 64-bit version for x86 chips, so I guess I have to use 32-bit?

However, my colleague tells me that the first package will work fine. He says he's seen this before, doesn't know why it's named like that.

Is this conventional? If so, why is "AMD" in the name if it isn't specifying the chip type?

Nathan Long
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3 Answers3

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x86_64 [...] which I take to mean an x86 chip and a 64-bit architecture.

More accurately, it means an instruction set, a synonym for which is also AMD64.

why is "AMD" in the name if it isn't specifying the chip type?

AMD, the company, is free to baptize the instruction sets it invents the way it likes, but as indicated on the Wikipedia page, other companies may also give different names to very similar instructions sets to avoid referring to the company.

Pascal Cuoq
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  • From the Wikipedia article (English version): "The original specification was created by AMD, and has been implemented by AMD, Intel, VIA, and others... After launching the architecture under the "x86-64" name, AMD renamed it AMD64 in 2003... x86-64 is still used by many in the industry as a vendor-neutral term" – Nathan Long Dec 15 '11 at 21:24
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amd64 is AMD's (and Microsoft's original) name for x86_64 or Intel 64 or x64.

All of those are the same architecture, namely the 64 bit extensions to x86.

Andrew J. Brehm
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As described on the Debian - AMD64 Ports Page:

The port consists of a kernel for all AMD 64bit CPUs with AMD64 extension and all Intel CPUs with EM64T extension, and a common 64bit userspace.

Joe Stefanelli
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