Intel Core 2 Duos WITHOUT Virtualization Technology
Although I have a Core 2 Duo notebook and Dual-Dual Core (4 processors) Xeon and Opteron servers at work, I don’t have any dual core Windows PCs at home. So, I found the HP Pavilion a6120n with Core 2 Duo pretty interesting at $400. However, I noticed it used an unfamiliar processor model: E4400. So, I headed over to the Intel Processor Number summary web page to check out the specs for various Core 2 Duo chips. I learned there that the entire 4000 model family does NOT have the Intel Virtualization Technology (VT) feature. I also learned that with the exception of the T5600, the entire 5000 Core 2 Duo model line also lacks VT. Since I run Microsoft Virtual PC and VMware Workstation at home, it is pretty important to have a VT enabled processor. The lesson here is that if virtualization is something you use, check the processor model before buying a new PC or notebook. I know I’m glad that I did before clicking the buy button.