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From: Percival P. Cassidy on 26 Feb 2010 22:57
I was just reading the XP Home EULA and noticed that it said it was
permitted to be used on a single CPU. Since a multi-core processor is
technically a collection of CPUs -- even if in a single package -- and
is recognized as such by the OS, has Microsoft ever claimed that it is
illegal to use XP Home on such a machine?

And I think I read that even XP Pro is licensed for use only on two CPUs.

Perce
From: duke on 26 Feb 2010 23:31
On Feb 26, 8:57 pm, "Percival P. Cassidy" <Nob...(a)NotMyISP.net> wrote:
> I was just reading the XP Home EULA and noticed that it said it was
> permitted to be used on a single CPU. Since a multi-core processor is
> technically a collection of CPUs -- even if in a single package -- and
> is recognized as such by the OS, has Microsoft ever claimed that it is
> illegal to use XP Home on such a machine?
>
> And I think I read that even XP Pro is licensed for use only on two CPUs.
>
> Perce

Who are you ? Some kind of a sleeze bag lawyer?
From: VanguardLH on 26 Feb 2010 23:58
Percival P. Cassidy wrote:

> I was just reading the XP Home EULA and noticed that it said it was
> permitted to be used on a single CPU.

That is NOT what it says. Read it again. It defines "computer" and then
says you may run one (1) copy on the "computer".

> Since a multi-core processor is
> technically a collection of CPUs -- even if in a single package --

Nope. Cores are not full processors. Besides, if you read the EULA again,
it says you can run the license on up to two (2) *processors*. However,
Microsoft does not define what is a "processor".

The term is "multi-core processor" does not equate to "multiple cores across
multiple processors". A processor can have 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, or more cores.
A core by itself is not sufficient to operate alone as a processor. Unlike
your claim, a core is NOT a processor. You could have two (2) processors,
each one a quad-core, and still be complying with the EULA to which you
agreed *if* you were using Windows XP Professional. I don't have the EULA
for Windows XP Home to see what it says (Home may be limited to one physical
processor but that is not a restriction on the number of cores within it).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Multi-core

You are not required to following any stipulations that do not exist in the
contract. Don't read more into the EULA than is actually stated. It says
you can use it on one computer that has up to two physical processors. It
does not define what is contained within those processors.

Going to dual- or quad-core may not increase the performance of your host.
In fact, because Windows XP was not tuned properly for multiple cores, your
apps may run slower. There were tweaks and patches that you could apply
after SP-2 for Windows XP to assist with the tuning, as mentioned at:

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/909944
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showpost.php?p=1435577&postcount=1

If the patches became part of SP-3, you shouldn't have to do the tweaking.
I don't know if you still need to adjust the PerfEnablePackageIdle registry
setting. Overclocker groups might now more about this.

Back to your question, Windows XP (both Home and Professional editions) will
support both dual- and quad-core processors as long as they are on the same
processors (i.e., physical processors are counted, not how many cores are on
them). There are no additional licensing fees based on a core count. While
XP Pro supports two physical processors, I don't have a EULA for XP Home to
see if it was limited to 1 physical processor. Not many consumer-grade
hosts have 2 physical processors anymore. They go with 1 physical processor
with 1, 2, or 4 cores. The following is a statment made by Microsoft:

Microsoft Windows XP Professional and Microsoft Windows XP Home are not
affected by this policy as they are licensed per installation and not per
processor. Windows XP Professional can support up to two processors
regardless of the number of cores on the processor. Microsoft Windows XP
Home supports one processor.

Microsoft has this site that discusses the multi-core per physical processor
issue:

http://www.microsoft.com/licensing/about-licensing/multicore-processor-licensing.aspx

While it addresses server versions of Windows, I doubt it is different for
workstation versions of Windows. However, unlike their EULA, this page does
give a definition in Microsoft's terms as to what is a "processor". So,
again, don't read more into the EULA than it actually states.
From: John John - MVP on 27 Feb 2010 09:25
Percival P. Cassidy wrote:
> I was just reading the XP Home EULA and noticed that it said it was
> permitted to be used on a single CPU. Since a multi-core processor is
> technically a collection of CPUs -- even if in a single package -- and
> is recognized as such by the OS, has Microsoft ever claimed that it is
> illegal to use XP Home on such a machine?
>
> And I think I read that even XP Pro is licensed for use only on two CPUs.

http://www.microsoft.com/licensing/about-licensing/multicore-processor-licensing.aspx
Microsoft Volume Licensing - Multicore Processor Licensing

http://download.microsoft.com/download/f/1/e/f1ecd771-cf97-4d98-9a1b-b86e3f24e08f/multicore_hyperthread_brief.doc
Multicore and Hyperthreaded Processor Licensing (Word .doc document)

John
From: Anteaus on 27 Feb 2010 09:48
This point has been covered at length by Microsoft. A multi-core processor is
a single unit as far as licensing goes. Separate physical chips constitute
multiple processors.

"Percival P. Cassidy" wrote:

> I was just reading the XP Home EULA and noticed that it said it was
> permitted to be used on a single CPU. Since a multi-core processor is
> technically a collection of CPUs -- even if in a single package -- and
> is recognized as such by the OS, has Microsoft ever claimed that it is
> illegal to use XP Home on such a machine?
>
> And I think I read that even XP Pro is licensed for use only on two CPUs.
>
> Perce
> .
>
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