vcore

Vcore, short for core voltage, is a term used in computing to denote the electrical voltage supplied to a processor’s core. It is a critical parameter that influences stability, performance, and power consumption. Many modern CPUs regulate Vcore dynamically, and motherboard BIOS/UEFI settings may let users set an offset or fixed voltage. Manufacturers publish safe operating ranges, and operating outside these ranges can cause instability, data errors, or hardware damage.

In practice, higher Vcore can enable higher clock speeds, but at the cost of increased heat and energy use. Lowering Vcore (undervolting) can reduce temperatures and improve efficiency, but too low a voltage may cause crashes or degraded performance. Dynamic voltage and frequency scaling often adjusts Vcore in response to workload, balancing power and performance.

In virtualization and hosting contexts, some platforms use the term vcore or vcore to describe the number of virtual cores allocated to a virtual machine. The meaning of vcore varies by platform and is not standardized; it typically relates to virtual CPUs or threads presented to the guest operating system rather than a device’s physical voltage.

Beyond CPUs, Vcore can refer to the supply voltage for the core of other integrated circuits, including GPUs, microcontrollers, or ASICs. In these cases, the term denotes the voltage used by the primary processing block and is specific to the device’s design and specifications.

See also CPU voltage, undervolting, DVFS, vCPU, virtual machine.