Intel Celeron 900A socket: Socket 370

What the Celeron 900A is

The Intel Celeron 900A is a 900 MHz single-core value processor from January 2002. It runs one P6 Tualatin core at 900 MHz with no Hyper-Threading, so 1 core gives 1 thread. Cache is 256 KB of L2 on a 130 nm process. Power is rated at 27 W in a Socket 370 FC-PGA2 package with a 100 MHz front side bus and a 9x multiplier.

A suffix separates Tualatin 900A parts with 256 KB from Coppermine 900 parts with 128 KB at the same 900 MHz rating. The doubled cache with a die shrink lifts office performance at the same clocks. Intel placed the 900A as the entry Tualatin Celeron in January 2002. The chip supports MMX and SSE.

Entry clocks with minimal power suit fanless-adjacent office towers. The 27 W envelope runs cool with a small Socket 370 heatsink and normal airflow. That is why the 900A suited quiet value builds with integrated graphics.

Socket and motherboard compatibility

The Celeron 900A fits Socket 370 blue Tualatin boards with a 100 MHz bus. It needs FC-PGA2 support. The Socket vs chipset: what decides whether a CPU works guide covers pairing rules.

Budget SDRAM towers are the natural match. Boards listing Tualatin 900A accept the chip with a 27 W cooler.

Memory, PCIe and cooling

Memory is SDRAM through the board chipset. The board sets speed and capacity.

A 100 MHz bus ties the CPU to the chipset, while AGP and PCI hang off the chipset. No PCIe lanes originate on the die. Cooling uses the Socket 370 lug with a 27 W heatsink.

Upgrade paths

On Socket 370 the steps are Celeron 1000A and 1100A Tualatin parts. Pentium III parts offer larger cache. Beyond Socket 370 a move to Socket 478 needs a new board. The 900A lifts with the lever, so swaps need no solder work.