Factor 2: Number of Cores

Factor 2: Number of Cores

What It Is:

Modern CPUs have multiple processing units (cores) on a single chip. Each core can execute its own set of instructions independently.

Common Configurations:

• Dual-core: 2 cores (can run 2 tasks simultaneously)
• Quad-core: 4 cores (can run 4 tasks simultaneously)
• Hexa-core: 6 cores
• Octa-core: 8 cores
• High-end: 16, 32, or even 64 cores for servers!

How It Affects Performance:

• Parallel processing: Multiple tasks can run at the exact same time
• Better multitasking: Browse web, listen to music, run antivirus simultaneously without slowdown
• Each core has its own: ALU, registers, L1 cache (but shares L3 cache)
• Example: 4-core CPU can run 4 programs at once, or split 1 program across 4 cores

Important Limitation:

Not all programs can use multiple cores! A program must be specifically written to split work across cores (called "multi-threading"). A single-threaded program on a 4-core CPU will only use 1 core, wasting the others. This is why some old programs run slowly on modern CPUs.