Symmetric multiprocessing (
SMP) involves a
symmetric multiprocessor system hardware and software architecture where two or more identical processors connect to a single, shared
main memory, have full access to all I/O devices, and are controlled by a single operating system instance that treats all processors equally, reserving none for special purposes. Most multiprocessor systems today use an SMP architecture. In the case of
multi-core processors, the SMP architecture applies to the cores, treating them as separate processors.