Intel Idle CPU Power-Saving Driver (Nehalem and Later)
Controls how Intel x86 processors enter hardware sleep states (C-states) when a CPU core is idle, trading wake-up latency for power savings. It is the default idle handler for essentially every Intel client and server CPU from Nehalem through current Xeon 6 and Core parts, using hardware-specific knowledge of each microarchitecture instead of generic ACPI tables.
recommendation
It should stay in the kernel because it is the default low-power idle handler for every Intel desktop, laptop, and server CPU from Nehalem (2008) onward, including the Xeon 6 server chips Intel was still launching in 2025. Active upstream development continued into early 2026 with new C-state validation, command-line tuning, and sysfs controls, and the generic acpi_idle path exists only as a fallback rather than a replacement.
repository signals
sources
- kernel.org
Official kernel documentation says `intel_idle` is the default CPU idle driver for Nehalem and later Intel processors and describes `acpi_idle`/ACPI table interaction.
- cateee.net
LKDDb shows CONFIG_INTEL_IDLE remains present through current kernel series and describes it as the cpuidle driver for Intel processors.
- intel.com
Intel's Xeon 6 product brief shows Intel server CPUs covered by this driver family were still being sold and launched in 2025.
- spinics.net
A linux-next 2025 merge-conflict notice references fresh `drivers/idle/intel_idle.c` work, showing ongoing upstream integration rather than removal.
codex reasoning notes (technical)
`drivers/idle/intel_idle.c` is a real cpuidle hardware driver for Intel CPUs, not a helper library. I inspected the file locally via shell (`rg`/`sed`), which identifies it as the native idle loop for modern Intel processors and says it operates in lieu of legacy ACPI idle handling. Local `git log` via shell shows substantive maintenance through 2026-01-07 (`intel_idle: Add C-states validation`, `Add cmdline option to adjust C-states table`, `Add C1 demotion on/off sysfs knob`, etc.), and I found a public linux-next URL via web search corroborating active upstream traffic with no removal discussion. Kernel docs and LKDDb were obtained by web search; the Intel Xeon 6 product brief was obtained by web search and supports that covered hardware is current, widely deployed, and still sold new in 2025. Because the driver serves current Intel CPUs and is actively maintained, the correct disposition is keep; `acpi_idle` is only a fallback/alternative, not a reason to deprecate.