alt.hn

2/15/2026 at 6:30:23 PM

Linux kernel 7.0 abandons the 28-year-old Intel 440BX chipset

 https://www.tomshardware.com/software/linux/linux-kernel-7-0-finally-abandons-intel-440bx-edac-driver-removal-marks-another-goodbye-to-the-legendary-motherboard-chipset

by teleforce

2/15/2026 at 8:13:00 PM

This whole article is incorrect rubbish.

The driver for the 440BX's separate i82443bxgx EDAC chip is being removed as it hasn't actually worked for 19 years. This is the driver for things like ECC memory fault detection and correction.

The 440BX chipset itself is still supported and works fine. Removing support for that hardware would break billions of active virtual systems and I doubt the Linux kernel would allow such a disruptive change.

Yet another instance of a mainstream tech journalist not understanding what they're reporting. I expect better from a site like Tom's Hardware. Very disappointing.

by suprjami

2/15/2026 at 7:31:26 PM

Don't VMs emulate this chipset, specifically because it's been supported everywhere for so long?

by badc0ffee

2/15/2026 at 7:34:59 PM

It says that in the article, yes

by powerbook5300CS

2/15/2026 at 7:41:07 PM

I guess I missed the last paragraph,

> The importance of the chipset can't be understated. As proof, to this very day, VMware virtualization software always uses the Intel 440BX as the default chipset, even with Windows 11 as both the host and guest.

It raises the obvious question of whether that will need to change, or already has.

by badc0ffee

2/15/2026 at 8:59:21 PM

In the recent versions is using the Intel Q35, but you can still use the 440BX for legacy compatibility

by polliog

2/15/2026 at 8:12:01 PM

Doesn't it make many programs unsupported as they expect a better CPU?

by worldsavior