One of human’s most complex and important inventions is the computer. It has a long and complicated history. In today’s world, there are computers that can fit in your pocket. But there are also large and demanding machines to perform complex functions. One of the most important parts of your computer is the central processing unit or CPU. In just 50 years, technology has evolved so much that now even a cheap smartphone can do what the largest mainframe used to struggle to do. Every year the major manufacturers introduce more and more new models of CPUs. From Intel 4004 in 1971 to today’s Intel 10th Series Processors. One of the features of these processors that all manufacturers talk about is the number of cores in the processor. There are now processors with 4 cores, 8 cores, 16 cores, or even 32 cores. But what are they for?
What are processors cores
A processor core is a separate processing unit on a processor chip. Each core has its own computing hardware and cache and is connected to the rest of the processor via shared memory and the system bus. In essence, a multi-core processor is several processors which are put together and made to work in tandem. It is often more profitable and faster to split the processes into several different calculating machines, so that they do not all run in parallel, this is what the multi-core processor is for.
You need to consider that not all programs and operating systems are able to use your multi-core CPU. For instance, older programs and operating systems do not have multi-core capability, and therefore do not benefit from a multi-core processor. Almost all modern programs and operating systems can take advantage of multiple cores, so they run faster and can perform more complex tasks.
Should you enable all cores in Windows 10
Experts cannot agree on whether or not to use all of their cores. There are two very important factors that influence their decision. These are power consumption and the lifetime of laptops using all cores. Let’s take a closer look at these arguments :
- Increased power consumption : Many people say that if you use all the cores it will lead to more electricity consumption and consequently more costs. But everyone knows that even the most demanding computers do not consume that much power. For example the Core i7 is now the most power-consuming computer in the world. It only consumes 130 watts. For comparison a fridge consumes 250 watts, an air conditioner can consume from 1400 to 3500 watts. So if you want to reduce the power consumption it is more logical to turn off the air conditioner and leave the computer running.
- There is also the argument that using all cores reduces the battery life of your laptop. It makes sense as it consumes more power which means you will have to recharge it more often and it will fail sooner. If you want your laptop to live as long as possible it makes sense to disable some of the cores
How to enable CPU Cores In Windows
The fact is that newer versions of Windows support multi-core automatically. You can go into the settings to reduce the number of cores running, but the truth is they are all running at full capacity on newer systems anyway. On older versions of Windows such as Windows XP you may need to go into the BIOS to get the multi-core functions working. But how do you get into the Core settings on your PC?
How to open core settings In Windows 10
If you use Windows 10 all your cores will work automatically by default. But sometimes you may have a situation where you need to limit their operation due to compatibility with certain programs. To do that, you need to :
- Type “msconfig” into a Windows search box and hit Enter
- Select the Boot tab and then Advanced options
- Check the line beside “Number of processors” and select the number of cores you would like to use
- Select OK and then Apply
How to open core settings In Windows Vista, 7 and 8
The multi-core settings here are opened in the same way as on Windows 10, with the function “msconfig”, as well as with the Task Manager of these systems you can set a specific particular core that will work for a particular program.
