SCCM Query Collections: Creating x86 & x64 Machine Collections

Splitting your device collections by processor architecture is a common requirement — useful for scoping architecture-specific application deployments or driver packages. These two WQL queries handle it.

x86 (32-bit) Machines

select distinct SMS_R_System.ResourceId, SMS_R_System.ResourceType, SMS_R_System.Name, SMS_R_System.SMSUniqueIdentifier, SMS_R_System.ResourceDomainORWorkgroup, SMS_R_System.Client
from SMS_R_System
inner join SMS_G_System_COMPUTER_SYSTEM on SMS_G_System_COMPUTER_SYSTEM.ResourceID = SMS_R_System.ResourceId
where SMS_G_System_COMPUTER_SYSTEM.SystemType = "x86-based PC"

x64 Machines

select distinct SMS_R_System.ResourceId, SMS_R_System.ResourceType, SMS_R_System.Name, SMS_R_System.SMSUniqueIdentifier, SMS_R_System.ResourceDomainORWorkgroup, SMS_R_System.Client
from SMS_R_System
inner join SMS_G_System_COMPUTER_SYSTEM on SMS_G_System_COMPUTER_SYSTEM.ResourceID = SMS_R_System.ResourceId
where SMS_G_System_COMPUTER_SYSTEM.SystemType = "x64-based PC"

Worth noting: with 32-bit Windows now rare outside of a handful of legacy embedded or kiosk deployments, most modern estates are effectively all x64 — these queries are most useful today for confirming that assumption (i.e. running the x86 query and expecting zero or near-zero results) rather than for actively managing a mixed-architecture fleet.

Why This Still Matters Even in an All-x64 Estate

Even once you’ve confirmed an estate is entirely x64, the x86 query is worth keeping around as a standing “canary” collection rather than deleting it — set it to a weekly refresh and a result count of zero becomes a quick health-check confirming nothing unexpected (a legacy VM template, a misconfigured kiosk image, an old machine that slipped back into scope) has crept back into inventory as x86. A collection that unexpectedly jumps from zero to a non-zero count is a useful early signal worth investigating rather than something to just ignore.

Also Worth Checking: ARM64

Neither query above accounts for ARM64 devices (Windows on Arm laptops), which report a third distinct SystemType value rather than falling into either the x86 or x64 bucket. If your estate includes any ARM-based Windows devices — increasingly common on newer ultra-portable laptops — add a third collection using SystemType = "ARM64-based PC" so those machines aren’t silently excluded from both of the collections above; a machine that doesn’t match either query isn’t necessarily x86 by elimination.

Resources

• Configuration Manager
• Query
• our Configuration Manager query collection