In a white paper, Intel explores the end of the x86 architecture and the development of a new 64-bit-only architecture: the x86S architecture.
This is a paradigm shift that could change a lot of things. Intel has released its work on a new X86-S architecture which differs from the x86 architecture the brand has used since 1978.
The x86 architecture represents the basis of Windows computing used by the overwhelming majority of PCs in the world. This is the instruction set understandable by AMD and Intel processors. It is used by all computer programs available on the Windows platform, but also by games on Sony and Microsoft consoles or by other devices incorporating chips from the two giants.
64-bit architecture only
For 20 years, Intel has offered an extended version of its architecture with the Intel 64 instruction set. This is called the 64-bit architecture, or x64, AMD64 or even x86_64. Gradually all the programs were developed with 64 bits in mind. Today, Windows 11 is only released as 64-bit and Intel only supports 64-bit UEFI on motherboards anymore.
The 32-bit instruction set is still present on AMD and Intel processors to ensure backward compatibility with older software. Intel now sees a future where 32 bits will be definitively abandoned, like 16 bits before it.
Intel therefore imagines an X86-S architecture, where the S stands for simplification. This is a new version of the x86 architecture that only supports 64-bit instruction sets.
For the brand, the interest lies in a simplification of the design of processors and an economy of transistors now dedicated to making software that is less and less used compatible. Intel will be able to reuse this budget to develop more efficient 64-bit processors.
It’s a transition that the ARM architecture has already made over the past few years, first through Apple in 2017 and then with Android.
A danger for retrogaming
With this new architecture, it will be necessary to go through virtualization to run 32-bit software. Backward compatibility with the architecture will no longer be possible natively. This change shouldn’t be a problem for the vast majority of individuals on the software side. Companies using 32-bit software will need to get up to speed.
On the other hand, it is on the video game side that the change could be felt among individuals. Indeed, there is an entire section of PC video game history that runs on a 32-bit x86 architecture. In addition, virtualization has its limits when it comes to real-time 3D rendering like video games. So let’s hope this change doesn’t bury one of the PC’s strengths.
For the moment, Intel has not specified a timetable for this transition. The publication of this white paper is however a very strong indicator of the brand to move forward on this subject.
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