SMP - Symmetric Multiprocessor System

Multiprocessor system with centralized Shared-Memory called Main Memory (MM) operating under a single OS (Operating System) with two or more homogeneous processors.[1][2]

More precisely a SMP is a tightly coupled multiprocessor system with a pool of homogeneous processors running independently, each processor executing different programs and working on different data and with capability of sharing common resources (memory, I/O device, interrupt system, etc) and connected using a system bus or a crossbar.

Usually each processor has an associated private high-speed memory known as cache memory (or cache) to speed-up the MM data access and to reduce the system bus traffic.

Sometimes the term Symmetric Multiprocessor is confused with the term Symmetric Multiprocessing.

While Multiprocessing is a type of "processing" in which two or more processors work together to "process more than one program simultaneously", the term Multiprocessor is referred to the hardware architecture that allows multiprocessing.[3][4]

References

  1. ^ http://publib.boulder.ibm.com/infocenter/pseries/v5r3/index.jsp?topic=/com.ibm.aix.prftungd/doc/prftungd/smp_concepts_arch.htm
  2. ^ http://www.cs.berkeley.edu/~culler/machines/smp.html
  3. ^ http://www.yourdictionary.com/multiprocessor
  4. ^ http://www.blurtit.com/q307018.html