Linux kernel maintainers are following through on removing Intel 486 support
8 hours ago
- #Hardware Support
- #Linux Kernel
- #Intel 80486
- Linux has broad hardware support, including from 1990s-era PCs to Apple Silicon chips.
- Linux maintainers plan to drop kernel support for Intel 80486 processors in version 7.1, removing related code in subsequent versions.
- The 80486 chip was introduced in 1989, replaced by the Pentium in 1993, and discontinued in 2007.
- Maintaining support for outdated chips requires complex emulation and wastes development time on issues few users encounter.
- Removing 486 support will also affect compatible chips from companies like Cyrix and AMD.
- Similar support removals occurred in 2013 with the Intel 80386 processor family in kernel version 3.8.