CPU Hotswapping and how to disable processors | Linux Today

CPU Hotswapping and how to disable processors

Written By
Web Webster
Web Webster
Nov 19, 2009

“I stumbled over it in the 2.6.32 menuconfig and couldn’t wonder
if it actually works. So I had a look and found this gem:

# cat /proc/interrupts | grep CPU
CPU0 CPU1 CPU2 CPU3

“Very boring, 4 processors.

echo 0 > /sys/devices/system/cpu/cpu3/online

“And we just knocked out one!”


Complete Story

Web Webster

Web Webster

Web Webster has more than 20 years of writing and editorial experience in the tech sector. He’s written and edited news, demand generation, user-focused, and thought leadership content for business software solutions, consumer tech, and Linux Today, he edits and writes for a portfolio of tech industry news and analysis websites including webopedia.com, and DatabaseJournal.com.

Linux Today Logo

LinuxToday is a trusted, contributor-driven news resource supporting all types of Linux users. Our thriving international community engages with us through social media and frequent content contributions aimed at solving problems ranging from personal computing to enterprise-level IT operations. LinuxToday serves as a home for a community that struggles to find comparable information elsewhere on the web.

Property of TechnologyAdvice. © 2026 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.