What is Hyper-Threading

Let's learn about Hyper Threading!

Reference: Intel Docs

This article explains the difference between single-threaded and multithreaded applications, what Hyper-Threading is, and how it differs from multithreading

What Is Multithreading?

• Multithreading is a form of parallel or divided tasks for concurrent processing

• Instead of providing a large workload to a single core, a thread program divides the work into multiple software threads

• These threads are processed in parallel by different CPU cores to save time

What Is Hyper-Threading?

• A simultaneous multithreading technology created by Intel that assigns two virtual execution units to a single physical execution unit to improve performance

• Since two threads are added per core, the operating system recognizes the number of cores as physical cores * 2

  • In other words, this means that a single physical core acts like two logical cores capable of processing different software threads

• Two logical cores can perform tasks more efficiently than a traditional single-threaded core

  • Intel's Hyper-Threading technology improves CPU throughput by utilizing idle time when a core is waiting for a previous task to complete

What Benefits Will I See from Hyper-Threading?

• With CPU Hyper-Threading, a PC can process more information in less time and run more background tasks without interruption

• In the right environment, this technology allows a CPU core to effectively perform two tasks at once

See if Mac OS has enabled Hyper-Threading

You can check the difference between the number of physical processors and logical processors using the sysctl command

sysctl hw.physicalcpu hw.logicalcpu

I am using a MacBook with an Intel Core i7 processor, so I can confirm that Hyper-Threading is enabled as shown below

Done!