Running Net Logger on a 64 bit operating system computer.
by K7CWA

The popular Net Logger program is a very useful tool but it has one serious shortcoming in that it only runs in a 32 bit operating system, and this excludes all of the newer computers that run Windows 7 with the 64 bit operating system. In dealing with the author of Net Logger, it would appear that there will be no 64 bit version in the foreseeable future. The reason is he does not have the 64 bit tools to compile in that mode and he is unwilling to purchase the necessary programs.

There is a way around this problem for most of us with the 64 bit systems, and that is to download and install the FREE Microsoft Virtual Computer software. The virtual computer is an amazing thing in that you can open up a virtual machine and it will run a 32 bit virtual machine on the 64 bit computer. The regular machine is still available and both run at the same time, with the virtual machine in a window by itself. On my computer I have the XP virtual computer and within that window, it is really XP in every sense of the word, it even downloads monthly updates and such. It acts like a totally separate piece of hardware complete with its own hard drive. The two systems do not communicate with each other, in fact files and programs installed on either machine are not even visable on the other.

There are so many variations that I will not attempt to give step-by-step directions but I will guide you to the Microsoft web site for details. A good starting point is: <http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/>.

You may wonder why at the top of this I said it will work on “most” systems. There are a couple of hurdles, the first being that before you can download it Microsoft will vitrify that you have a registered/legal version of Windows, and secondly it must be the Professional version or above. Most new systems come with the “Home Premium” version (is there a non-premium, or regular version?) of Windows so to proceed one must upgrade to the Premium version, which can be done on-line with a downloaded upgrade, however there is a cost involved, it is around $80 or a bit less. The last hurdle one must pass is that the hardware must support a feature called “Virtualization”. this is a hardware function built into the Microprocessor. Not all computers support this little known feature. I have two 64 bit Windows computers, one a tower, quad core, AMD processor, and it works great. I also have a Dell Notebook computer and it does not support Virtualization. In searching on the topic in the Internet I found a program that will test your computer to see if you have the virtualization, and if it turns out you have one of the processors that will not support the function, you cannot run a virtual PC and you might as well stop, as there is no work-around.

If you get past all of the mentioned hurdles, download the virtual software and install it. Once installed you will find you can run one or more virtual computers. If you bring up a 32 bit version, such as XP when the window opens you are in fact in the XP 32 bit operating system and while in there you can install Net Logger as normal and it should run just fine.

The virtual-PC concept is very interesting as one can even run a virtual server on the network or Internet. I do not know how I can clearly communicate the fact that the virtual-PC is not a program that acts like a different computer, it is for all intent and purposes, a real separate computer. Someone in a virtual computer has absolutely no access to the real machine, and the reverse is true. The virtual-PC does not just imitate another operating system, it is a separate, isolated computer that just happens to live on the 64 bit machine.

Any 32 bit program should run just fine on the 32 bit virtual-PC, so it is not just Net Logger that benefits.