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MultiProcessor Specification 1.4: F% k* E4 X% {6 v2 x' F
3 z7 x+ X6 G) j% k w6 }3 iThe MultiProcessor Specification, hereafter known as the “MP specification,” defines an
5 Z# c" Y' X/ E5 Yenhancement to the standard to which PC manufacturers design DOS-compatible systems.$ u# W. L, R8 @
MP-capable operating systems will be able to run without special customization on multiprocessor
6 ^9 ~7 @. S8 O% a5 `3 Jsystems that comply with this specification. End users who purchase a compliant multiprocessor. `9 b+ Q* O2 @& x3 M, {+ U4 F! y: B
system will be able to run their choice of operating systems.
4 _- ], T9 E1 \, x sThe MP specification covers PC/AT-compatible MP platform designs based on Intel processor& u: a+ M. ]7 l7 {9 i2 Z4 _
architectures and Advanced Programmable Interrupt Controller (APIC) architectures. The term
7 H! T$ y& h2 g' V" s“PC/AT-compatible” here refers to the software-visible components of the PC/AT, not to hardware
5 f. O A3 a4 Z# i0 _features, such as the bus implementation, that are not visible to software. An implementation of
& k/ M# i3 @; v- J; ^) n5 B9 |this specification may incorporate one or more industry standard buses, such as ISA, EISA, MCA,# ]$ }" `7 f" Z6 j3 C K+ v
PCI, or other OEM-specific buses. |
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