Is a CPU immortal? (few questions regarding CPU's)

[Tech_Dreamer]

Try  to answer these to the best of your abilities, most are Just curious questions,  so bear with me.

 

Alright, reason to ask this question , is that i know quite a few CPU die quite short time, But i've never heard of CPU being replaced because it died in 10-12 years, usually replacement happens if the CPU's outdated or performance is low..So are they immortal regardless it's age if kept in a safe space.

 

1: Would a CPU regardless of the brand die if left unused for a very longtime(5-8 years)?

2: can an intel CPU be handled roughly? (since there are no moving parts or pins to get damaged)

3: does the CPU need offline time (not powered up & removed from mobo) for longevity?

4: is it possible to have more than one cpu (unlike xeons, i'm talking about regular cpu) or  motherboards to interconnected(daisy chained) to be able to perform as a multi-core workstation?

 

 

Those are my questions, Also thanks for taking your time to read through a post "like this" ..

[Bogica]

1. No, it won't.

2. Well define rough? It's still has a fairly breakable PCB and the contact surface on the bottom should be kept clean and scratch free. So I guess the answer is NO.

3. Not really. Quite a few people run their PC's for days, weeks, even months with no shutdowns. Should you ever remove it from the board? No. Unless you are upgrading the motherboard they should stay in their socket.

4. Yes, there are boards that allow that, you can run Xeons or i7's etc. But no real use for gaming or anything similar. As you said, only for workstations/large servers.

 

CPU's rarely die, unless pushed too hard on high voltage with poor cooling. Same can be said for GPU's, they can live quite long if properly cooled and taken care of, but in grand total, your GPU is more likely to die than your CPU due to the amount of stress it takes during gaming and many other operations.

 

Hope this helps.

[Xquisite]

1: Not likely. But there's always a chance. 

2: Yes, you can throw it across the room and it won't die. But be sure not to get any liquid onto it, of any kind. 

3: Not sure what you mean by that.

4: Nope, not at this time, or that I'm aware of. 

[ZetZet]

1: If the conditions are good it should be fine.

2: Yes, you can still break it and the contacts are very thin so scratches are a problem.

3: Server cpu's don't. Probably consumer ones do, but not really. 100% load could mess it up over long periods though.

4: Only server type stuff.

[Xquisite]

4. Yes, there are boards that allow that, you can run Xeons or i7's etc. But no real use for gaming or anything similar. As you said, only for workstations/large servers.

You didn't read his question dude..

[Ssoele]

1. CPU's can degrade over time, but if they are kept in a clean environment it shouldn't be much of a problem.

They are fragile, grease on the pads can degrade the connectivity and thus reduce stability.

A CPU in use will degrade faster than one that is not is use, but there is no "need" for it.

No, you need server/workstation grade motherboards and CPU's for that.

[Bogica]

You didn't read his question dude..

Woah, totally skipped the "interconnect" motherboards part. Nope, can't do that. But a single board with 2 CPU slots is available, but it's server grade stuff.

[harrynowl]

1: Would a CPU regardless of the brand die if left unused for a very longtime(5-8 years)?

2: can an intel CPU be handled roughly? (since there are no moving parts or pins to get damaged)

3: does the CPU need offline time (not powered up & removed from mobo) for longevity?

4: is it possible to have more than one cpu (unlike xeons, i'm talking about regular cpu) or  motherboards to interconnected(daisy chained) to be able to perform as a multi-core workstation?

 

 

Those are my questions, Also thanks for taking your time to read through a post "like this" ..

1) My Pentium MMX 133 still posts and that thing hasn't been used for like 15 years. So I guess not.

 

2) I've dropped a Xeon, little bit of PCB damage but it works. I don't suggest it though. Don't intentionally handle it roughly but it's not the end of the world if you knock it slightly

 

3) CPUs degrade in use, but within their useful lifecycle you don't need to 'rest' it.

 

4) Yes, 2p, 4p and 8p workstations are possible on certain sockets and chipsets. But not on mainstream ones (so we won't see LGA1150 quad socket boards).

[Akolyte]

Try  to answer these to the best of your abilities, most are Just curious questions,  so bear with me.

 

Alright, reason to ask this question , is that i know quite a few CPU die quite short time, But i've never heard of CPU being replaced because it died in 10-12 years, usually replacement happens if the CPU's outdated or performance is low..So are they immortal regardless it's age if kept in a safe space.

 

1: Would a CPU regardless of the brand die if left unused for a very longtime(5-8 years)?

2: can an intel CPU be handled roughly? (since there are no moving parts or pins to get damaged)

3: does the CPU need offline time (not powered up & removed from mobo) for longevity?

4: is it possible to have more than one cpu (unlike xeons, i'm talking about regular cpu) or  motherboards to interconnected(daisy chained) to be able to perform as a multi-core workstation?

 

 

Those are my questions, Also thanks for taking your time to read through a post "like this" ..

1. I wouldn't think so.  As long as you keep dust off of the cpu itself. 

 

2. I think so as long as your fingers or anything don't touch the golden pins or holes on the bottom of the cpu the top heatsink can be scratched, just make sure not to put finger oils on it.  But all in all, you can't touch the cpu other than the sides where its safe to hold, but if you scratch the heatsink a few times it wont matter (thats what thermal compound is for)

 

3. Not really, I always shut down my PC at night anyways, but as long as your CPU isn't at full load all the time or overclocked into hell you should be fine. 

 

4. If the cpu and chipset support it.  Most consumer Intel CPU's no.  I'm saying most because I'm not an expert on this and might be wrong.  But, probably.  No.  

 

And I'm no expert on this, I just learn't this from months of research through Youtube Videos, articles etc.  

[Crazy Wozza]

1. To the best of my knowledge (that is to say using some common sense) I'd say no, a boxed up cpu stored away for 5-8 years wouldn't degrade and die. Wether or not the socket is still in use in 8 years time is, I suppose a different matter.

2.They are not as fragile as you think but I still get shaky handling one, the general advice is to avoid any contact with the pads underneath as oils/slight scratches can cause damage

3. No I don't believe giving a CPU some downtime will have any beneficial effects interns of longevity, theres a lot of cpus, (workstations/servers) that run for prolonged periods of time, with very little downtime

4. Yes, there are multi socket boards available, but it's hella expensive and is really designed for workstations/servers.

[Rheinwasser]

-snip-

4. Yes, there are boards that allow that, you can run Xeons or i7's etc. But no real use for gaming or anything similar. As you said, only for workstations/large servers.

-snip-

you can't run two i7's on one motherboard.