Dual Processor question: Will any chip do for the second one?

[dalokster]

Hello everyone, I look to you for advice. I have a ABIT BP6 dual processor mobo with one Intel Celeron 433 (retail & 10 months old). Can I just go out today and buy another Celeron 433 chip and install it with no problems? Someone told me that you can't because they have to have the same stepping or be of the same series or something of a sort. Is this true? Any gives? TIA.

 

[paulip88]

Ideally they would be the same stepping, however, it is not absolutely necessary. Its sort of a gamble. Better to check the steppings and see if they work OK with each other.

 

[RoadRuner]

well
you need to understand that in each stepping level, the microcode is changed. (almost 99% of the time).

Then you understand each motherboard, has in its bioses, patches to the microcode which are uploaded to the cpu during boot, to fix problems in each stepping level that have them (intel, just about every chip has bugs).

Will the motherboard upload two different stepping adjustments to two different chips? or assume they are the same stepping and upload one microcode patch to the same chips?

You can see the possible problems.

 

[IaPuP]

I have run a dual CPU setup with 2 different chips (Celeron and PII) just to try it out and it worked fine.

For ultimate stability, steppings should be the same. But its not necessary.

AFAIK, microcode is loaded at the factory by Intel. Microcode updates are difficult to administer. That's why Intel releases new steppings.

Eric

 

[2nice4you]

It should work just fine.

 

[Gunslinger]

It all depends on the MB and BIOS. It is not recommended and if you get one to work it would be the exception rather than the norm.

I have a Tyan Tiger 100 with dual PIII 500's, same stepping.

 

[AndyHui]

Only 1 stepping exists for the Celeron 433....0665. There should be no problems about going out to get any Celeron 433, as they will be all the same stepping.