The Linux kernel is set to make Time Stamp Counter (TSC) support a hard requirement for all x86 processors. TSC, which has existed since the Intel Pentium era, was previously optional because the kernel supported older CPUs like the i486 that lacked it. With the recent removal of i486, AMD K5, and AMD Elan CPU support, the kernel can now safely assume TSC is always present. A patch in the tip/tip.git x86/cpu branch makes TSC unconditional, and separate patches will strip out non-TSC code paths. This change is expected to land in the Linux 7.2 merge window as part of broader code cleanup following the removal of vintage CPU support.
315 Impressions