What Is CPU Socket Configuration?

A computer processor has to have quick access to the data it needs to process so that a computer can operate efficiently. To accomplish this, processors connect to computers through a high-speed connector known as a socket. There are numerous sockets for numerous processors, but they all share some common traits.


History
1. The first processor socket was created for the Intel 8086 but the design, known as Dual In-Line Package, was not exclusive to processors and had been used with different electronic components since 1965. The first processor exclusive socket was Intel's Socket 1, which was released in 1989. The Socket 1 uses a Pin Grid Array, a series of pins which lined up with conductive pads on a computer's motherboard.

Purpose
2. The CPU socket fills two roles at once. The first is that it provides power to the processor which has been inserted. Processors are very sensitive to power fluctuations and the power requirements for processors tends to be different between models, which is why most processors are made for only one specific socket. The socket also serves as a means of communication between the processor and the rest of the computer.

Configuration
3. While Pin Grid Array (PGA) was the original CPU socket configuration, and most early sockets were based on it, today's sockets tend to use a different configuration known as Land Grid Array (LGA). The LGA socket configuration, which is being adapted in different ways by both Intel and Advanced Micro Devices, has the same concept as PGA but places the pins on the motherboard rather than the processor.

Multiple Sockets
4. Most computers have a CPU socket configuration which features a single socket, but that isn't always the case. There are some motherboards, usually meant for use in servers or supercomputers, which can accept more than a single processor. In fact, some server boards can accept four or more processors. These motherboards always use four identical CPU socket configurations, however. Motherboards with multiple different
sockets do not exist.

Compatibility
5. Every processor manufacturer has its own socket configurations which are proprietary and do not work with the processors of other companies. Manufacturers also frequently come out with new sockets which are necessary to power and communicate with newer, more powerful processors. In most cases, a processor will not even fit into a socket it was not made for, and if it does, it won't allow the computer to boot.