can I use only one core?

Hi guys, since i use my thinkpad only for web, word, and some movies can anyone tell me if i can use only 1 core out of the two cores in the processor?

i don't need the full power of my T7300 processor all the time, so i am thinking of using only 1 core. and when i need the extra boost of power i can switch back to 2 cores.this way i may save some processor heat and gain some battery life.

Is it possible, is it safe?

Thank you

 

yes,it is possible
but, i haven't try it my self
need like 2 more weeks
to conduct some experiments
with that

 

isn't there any software that can do that?

 

You wont gain much life or lower the heat too much either. The Core 2 duos are extremely efficient CPUs battery and heat wise.

 

You can save quite a bit of power actually. Use RMClock to undervolt. You can also lower the speed by capping the multiplier and voltage, saving even more power. I think you can also disable a core. You can easily get 30+ more minutes of battery life.

 

You can theoretically disable a core using MSConfig although I've never tried.

1. Open a run dialog (Win+R)
2. Type "msconfig.exe"
3. Switch to the "Boot" tab
4. Click "Advanced Options"
5. Specify the number of Processors as '1'

This is part of the Windows boot script and should allow you to disable a core. However, if you want that core back you will need to disable this option and reboot.

Give it a try and see how many logical CPUs you have in task manager (Ctrl+Shift+Esc [Performance Tab]).

 

I don’t recommend doing this—as the processors are already very power efficient. If you want to get a bit more battery life you can use the existing power management facilities to reduce your maximum CPU speeds.

 

30 minutes does not seem any where near worth losing a core and clock speed. But then again thats just me. Now undervolting and downclocking are fine, but the performance loss of both a core AND clocks is a bit much.

 

The OP doesn't use the other core nor taxes the CPU, hence he won't even notice a difference. I saved 30 min and didn't lose any speed or a core, hence why I was conservative and said at least 30 min. I'm sure by lowering the multiplier and voltage, and disabling a core, he could save 45 min to and hour. And it's not permanent, so if he ever needs it, it's still accessible.

 

Well I hope he knows that just because he only does light work, that a second core helps with background processes. Cutting that core doesn't just effect simple low resource applications it also slows down overall systems performance since you can only handle one thread at a time. Think about how well vista would run on a Pentium M and youll have an idea of how slow it would get.

 

There's also an option in BIOS to enable or disable "Core Multi-Processing"

I disabled it and Device Manager showed only one core, and when I re-enabled it, two showed up.