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How do i disable Hyper-Threading on my Dell PC?

Posted By : Ryan of Chandler-Gilbert Community College on March 29, 2007

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System siginificantly reduced processing power. In Task Manager and under Computer Management Device Manager, the system thinks there are 8 processors. I have a hunch that Hyper-Threading or Parallelism was turned on somehow, but dont know how. I've tried entering the BIOS setup on boot up to check, but cannot acess BIOS using the "Del" or "F1" keys. I don't know of another way to check if this stuff is on or not.

How can I check to see if Hyper-Threading/Parallelism is on?

How do I acces the system BIOS?

How can I turn off Hyper-Threading/Parallelism?

This question was answered on March 29, 2007. Much of the information contained herein may have changed since posting.


Hyper-Threading is an Intel technology that can enhance overall performance by allowing one physical microprocessor to function as two logical microprocessors, capable of performing certain tasks simultaneously It is recommended that you use the Microsoft Windows XP operating system because Windows XP is optimized to take advantage of Hyper-Threading technology While many programs can benefit from Hyper-Threading technology, some programs have not been optimized for Hyper-Threading and may require an update from the software manufacturer Contact the software manufacturer for updates and information on using your software with Hyper-Threading.

To determine if your computer is using Hyper-Threading technology:

Click the Start button, right-click My Computer, and then click Properties.

Click Hardware and click Device Manager.

In the Device Manager window, click the plus ( ) sign next to the processor type If Hyper-Threading is enabled, the processor is listed twice.

To enable or disable Hyper-Threading:

Shut down and restart the computer

When the DELL logo appears, press <F2> immediately to enter the system setup program

If you wait too long and the Microsoft Windows logo appears, continue to wait until you see the Windows desktop Then shut down your computer through the Start menu and try again

When the system setup program screen appears, highlight CPU Information and press <Enter>

When the CPU information screen appears, highlight Hyper-Threading and press the spacebar on the keyboard to select Enable or Disable

Press <ESC> to save the setting and exit the CPU Information screen

Press <ESC> to Save and Exit

When you see the message Save changes and exit now, press <Enter>

Your computer will restart

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Posted by Ryan of Chandler-Gilbert Community College on March 29, 2007

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