When will FrameMaker be available as an ARM64 application?

[Chris Christner]

Has Adobe committed to making FM ARM compatible?

[Stefan Gentz]

Hi Chris,

rest assured, that Adobe absolutely does have ARM64 on the radar. PhotoShop has already been ported to the ARM platform, and other apps will follow.

However, please understand that cannot make any official statement here.

Thanks for your understanding!

[Dan Phillips @Korg]

The reply above is now more than two years old. Is there any progress on this issue?

[frameexpert]

Is ARM the new Macintosh chip?

[Chris Christner]

It is, but FM won't run on it. However, Parallels Desktop has just released a new version that will run Windows 10 on a Mac. But it's the Windows for ARM-based systems like the Surface, so you have to run an old 32-bit version of FM or wait for an ARM version.

[Stefan Gentz]

Not exactly, Chris. MS is working on it … Check the x64 emulation in preview for Windows 10 on ARM PCs to the Windows Insider Program. I had no time yet to check if it also runs FrameMaker 2020 64-bit, but chances are good 🙂

[Stefan Gentz]

Yes and no. ARM is just an architecture – and not even a new one (more info on Wikipedia).

Apple (and others) have invested in the ARM platform for many years. E.g., all iPhones and iPads are based on ARM.

With the latest MacBooks and iMacs Apple has moved away from Intel and the x86 (32 bit) / x64 (64-bit) platforms. At the center of interest is the "M1" processor – a highly integrated processor (SOC) based on ARM, also referred to as "Apple Silicon."

The bottom side is, that 32-bit apps don't run anymore, not even on Windows on ARM. Only 64-bit apps like FM 2019/2020 do and only through a "translator" which affects performance a little bit. Almost not noticeable on macOS, but – at least on the Microsoft "translator" beta – still noticeable – "issues" included.

[Bob_Niland]

FM has been natively ported to a surprisingly large number of Instruction Set Architectures and operating system pairings over time, even though it is now reduced to x86-64 Windows (and comprehensive sims thereof). My first use of FM was on MC68K/HP-UX.

I would have guessed that being offered as a cloud app would be the top priority for any Adobe app pondering a migration. And for FM, it's been done. I seem to recall running nearly-full FM as an Adobe demo in a Window over the internet in the 1990s.

But sure, ARM looms. It is now arguably the top ISA on the planet, due to being dominant in mobiles, and looking promising for both desktop and server.

Of course, an ARM implementation of any Adobe app raises the question of what OS? Just macOS, or also Android? Does Android even have the API support required?

No real answers expected at this time.

[Dan Phillips @Korg]

This is of concern to me, as well. I first worked on FrameMaker on Sun workstations, then on the Mac natively, and for the last decade or more in a VMWare Windows virtual machine running under MacOS. Since that solution looks like it's going away (a beta OS running "translated" code which itself runs in a VM does not seem like a recipe for success), I'm currently planning to convert to InDesign. But, if Adobe has actual plans for a wider deployment of FrameMaker, that might change the equation.

[Stefan Gentz]

We have already discussed this internally 🙂

We will definitively look into support for Windows on ARM, not only because of Apple but also because of Microsoft Surface and other tables and new laptops running Windows on ARM.

Maybe @Vivek Kumar can leak a little bit more about a possible timeline …

[pdeitel]

Has there been any progress on this? Really this should have been done by now. 

[elli_3952]

I am trying to run Adobe FM on an M3 Macbook through Parallels on Windows 11. However, Windows has an ARM based processor, so I am not able to. I have looked for an ARM --> x64 emulator, but all I can find is Microsoft's Prism, which looks like it is not available to the public. Are there any updates on this? Is there a work-around? I would rather not install an app like RoboHelp to reuse content, as FrameMaker would fit my needs. This is a frustrating process that needs fixing. 

[Test Screen Name]

You really need to make it clear whether you are talking about ARM64 on Mac or ARM64 on Windows.... not that it changes the fact that nobody who knows, can say.

On the Mac, ARM64 is the only future, but right now almost all Intel64 apps continue to run.

On the Windows, ARM64 might yet turn out to be a minor diversion, so many companies are doing nothing until the numbers are there. Meanwhile, don't buy an ARM64 Windows computer without checking all your apps come in either ARM64 or Intel 32 bit versions.

[Chris Christner]

I didn't mention ARM64 on Mac because I'm not an incurable optimist. My assumption is that Adobe may port FM to Windows ARM, in which case it may run on a Mac using a virtual machine app such as Parallels Desktop. In the meantime I'm looking at alternatives to FM (mainly LaTex and possibly Affinity Publisher).

[pdeitel]

Are there any updates on this? ARM architectures have been out there for a couple of years now. At the moment, I am stuck with running FrameMaker in a Windows CloudPC which is an expensive way to keep using an already expensive product. When can we expect a FrameMaker ARM version?