|
|
MultiProcessor Specification 1.4
% Z- o! z3 Z; ]% G# O4 J- B& w* C- \- O9 m8 k5 ` W f4 u
The MultiProcessor Specification, hereafter known as the “MP specification,” defines an
' J9 D4 k/ M& }' N: H6 ?enhancement to the standard to which PC manufacturers design DOS-compatible systems.& l$ l7 H! E6 t! Q4 f" s
MP-capable operating systems will be able to run without special customization on multiprocessor/ U" f3 ~! y- `5 U. L
systems that comply with this specification. End users who purchase a compliant multiprocessor( W m( z" e$ G ~. o& Z
system will be able to run their choice of operating systems.; L; W8 k2 u/ }
The MP specification covers PC/AT-compatible MP platform designs based on Intel processor, P/ S( Y ?) H" p& t, j
architectures and Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller (APIC) architectures. The term9 x3 t& {, |8 ?7 y$ ~
“PC/AT-compatible” here refers to the software-visible components of the PC/AT, not to hardware* c" G' B. [: C) n* A
features, such as the bus implementation, that are not visible to software. An implementation of
5 Q4 m) `& @" e: }5 ithis specification may incorporate one or more industry standard buses, such as ISA, EISA, MCA,
% F2 l2 c' E9 M) D' tPCI, or other OEM-specific buses. |
|