Intel Releases Linux Patch for Alder Lake Thread Director

The Performance and Efficiency cores within Intel's Adler Lake CPUs have received patches to dramatically increase performance with the Linux operating system.

Soon after Microsoft released Windows 11, it became clear that the Linux operating system lagged behind the competition in performance. The reason for this was because Linux lacked adequate support for Intel's Thread Directory technology (created from the Enhanced Hardware Feedback Interface), which grants proper access to the high-performance Golden Cove cores and the energy-efficient Gracemont cores.

The current firmware for Linux relies on an algorithm to plan which P/E cores are utilized by the ITMT/Turbo Boost Max 3.0 driver. That method is not nearly as efficient as Intel's new patch. The company explains the patch by saying:

"The Intel Hardware Feedback Interface (HIFI) provides information about the performance and energy efficiency of each CPU in the system. It uses a table that is shared between hardware and the operating system. The contents of the table may be updated as a result of changes in the operating conditions of the system (e.e., reaching a thermal limit) or the action of external factors (e.g., changes in the thermal design power)." 

The HFI calculates the power efficiency and performance of the CPU, gives the core a numerical value, and communicates that information to the operating system. 

This new set of patches is still in the revision stage and there has yet to be an announcement as to when they will be made available to the kernel (or if they'll make it into version 5.17). Read more about this update on kernel.org.