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It is probably not difficult to create a new x86 version that is user mode compatible with most modern programs but lacks things like segmentation and real mode
by yuhong 10y ago
It is probably not difficult to create a new x86 version that is user mode compatible with most modern programs but lacks things like segmentation and real mode. New OS versions would be required, but most modern user mode programs would work with few if any modifications.
- vidarh 10y agoThings like Linux should work fine with a CPU that strips 16 bit mode entirely (32 bit too, possibly? not sure) as long as you have a BIOS / boot loader that can handle it and - as of when I last looked at the Linux kernel initialisation code over a decade ago - change / strip out a handful of lines that took care of changing the mode. It'd be interesting, but I don't think it'd save all that much unless you strip 32 bit compatibility as well, and even then it might be less than you think or they probably would have tried to see if the market would want it...
- yuhong 10y agoA lot of microcode is about things like segmentation and TSS.