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Linux dumps 386 support

Posted by tracyanne on · 3 comments
The Register; By Simon Sharwood 		Mail this story
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Linus Torvalds has announced the Linux kernel no longer supports Intel's 80386 processors. Reg readers will doubtless recall that the 386 debuted way back in 1985 and made something of a splash when the chip found its way into PCs made by Compaq before an IBM PC bearing the processor reached the market.

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Comments (3)

caitlyn ·
Yep, Linux dumped 27 year old technology. It's amazing that Linux supported it this long. Does anyone still use 386 processors anywhere? I hope not.
set ·
Age is irrelevant; the reason for the removal was that it complicated things in core parts of the code for things like SMP. The kernel can still run eg. ancient 8bit contolers for MFM hard disks found in the likes of the original IBM PC. Support for old hardware can hang around forever, as long as it doesnt hurt anything. The kernel is also modular enough that it doesnt even have to impose any overhead for those who dont care. 386's may still exist in embedded applications, but if anyone cares, the old kernels continue to exist (and even will continue to be maintained by some for awhile :)
mbaehrlxer ·
1985? instead of looking at the year when the 386 came out, rather look at when the last machine with that cpu was sold. sometime in the 90s i guess.

greetings, eMBee.

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