XP and new processors

[Paulo Roberto]

Hi, can XP use full potentitial of the new processors like two, quad core,
etc? When a processor company release a new processor, must MS throw away
new versions of hot-fixes/SPs/roll-ups, etc? Is it just a processor feature?
or both?

Thanks in advance

 

[philo]

Hi, can XP use full potentitial of the new processors like two, quad core,
etc? When a processor company release a new processor, must MS throw away
new versions of hot-fixes/SPs/roll-ups, etc? Is it just a processor feature?
or both?

Thanks in advance

http://www.lockergnome.com/blade/20...core-processors-will-windows-xp-support-both/

 

[DL]

Generally it depends whether your motherboard supports them, and whether any
apps you have can make use of the multiple cores, no winxp updates are
usually required

 

[Dustin Harper]

Windows XP Home can only take advantage of one physical processor (and 4
virtual, I believe). XP Pro can use multiple with no issues. No new hot
fixes are needed to take advantage of it. It is called scaling, and XP is
great at it.

 

[Colin Barnhorst]

Think sockets, not processors.

XP Home can use one socket. The physical processor in that socket can have
many cores. In Task Manager on the Performance Tab you would see a dualcore
processor as one physical and two logical processors and a quadcore
processor as one physical [processor and four logical processors.

XP Pro can use two sockets. The physical processors in those sockets can
have many cores. In TM you would see a pair of quadcore processors as two
physical processors and eight logical processors.

If you replace a single core cpu with a multicore cpu you may have to do a
repair install because of the hal.dll file but no worse than that.