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I want to replace my Lenovo laptop 3000 N500 CPU to one of these:
Is this possible?
I need one of these processors to support virtualization under VMWare.
This question came from our site for system and network administrators.
You can upgrade up to an Intel Core2 Duo Processor T7600 and get the virtualization support you are looking for.
Depends on the socket type. Sockets are not cross manufacturer compatible. You cannot put an AMD cpu in an Intel motherboard and reverse. You need to find the type of CPU socket that you laptop is using by doing a simple search. I found the following link (which is a PDF) http://www.lenovo.com/partners/us/en/pdfs/Lenovo%20N500%20Datasheet.pdf. The datasheet will not tell you the type of socket. You need to discover which processor you have. Then look up specs on the processor, this will tell you the socket type. Look up other CPUs that fit that socket, and find one that supports VT hardware virtualization.
Good Luck in your search -
Be aware that, as David said, you need to match the sockets...but even then JUST BECAUSE THE SOCKET IS THE SAME DOESN'T MEAN THE MOTHERBOARD WILL SUPPORT IT. Also be aware that you have to be able to enable virtualization in the BIOS...I forget if this machine supports that and I couldn't find any ready documentation, sadly.
Checking the Hardware Maintenance Manual for these machines, it looks like there are plenty of higher end Core2Duos that support these machines. (You can browse Intel's site, as linked by Keith, to find this spec on processors.) Actually finding one might be more difficult.
My suggestion? Upgrade to a Thinkpad. :)
Is the processor soldered to the motherboard, make sure to check before you upgrade
