Is there anything that can let me run 64bit binary executable files?

Question

Is there anything in ubuntu 32 bit 14.04LTS something light, that will let me execute 64 bit binary executable files?

Architecture:          i686
CPU op-mode(s):        32-bit, 64-bit
Byte Order:            Little Endian
CPU(s):                4
On-line CPU(s) list:   0-3
Thread(s) per core:    2
Core(s) per socket:    2
Socket(s):             1
Vendor ID:             GenuineIntel
CPU family:            6
Model:                 42
Stepping:              7
CPU MHz:               800.000
BogoMIPS:              4988.76
Virtualisation:        VT-x
L1d cache:             32K
L1i cache:             32K
L2 cache:              256K
L3 cache:              3072K

Answer 1

There's no way to run a 64-bit program in a 32-bit OS. Try a Live CD or USB with a 64-bit version of the OS (assuming your hardware is 64-bit capable, but it most likely is unless it's old or a low-end netbook).

Answer 2

If and only if your CPU is capable of hardware virtualization (VT-x/AMD-V) you can execute a 64-bit application in a virtual 64-bit OS running in a virtual machine such as Virtual Box. Of course this may not be the lightweight solution you need.

Answer 3

It depends on your CPU architecture. If you have a 32 bit CPU, no piece of software is going to allow you to run 64 bit applications because the CPU itself is incapable of running the software.

If you have a 64 bit CPU you are able to run 32 & 64 bit Ubuntu - but only 64 bit Ubuntu can run 64 bit software (AFAIK - I'll keep looking around a bit more). You can also run 32 bit software within 64 bit Ubuntu - it'll just require some of the 32 bit libraries.

One way you can tell if you've got a 32 bit or 64 bit CPU is by running grep --color=always -iw lm /proc/cpuinfo in Terminal (Ctrl+Alt+T). If it returns lm (Long Mode) as one of the flags, you've got a 64 bit CPU. _{cc Community Wiki.}

You can see in this screenshot of my terminal on my laptop with a 32 bit CPU that nothing is returned for that command:

For a more in depth explanation of the difference between 32 and 64 bit software and Ubuntu, read this Ubuntu Community Help Wiki page.