Patent ID: 7979699

Claim:
A method comprising: using a processor package comprising at least one active processing element and at least one inactive processing element; receiving a request for additional processing capacity; based on the request, updating authorization information relating to which of processing elements on the processor package is authorized to become active and storing said updated authorization information in a register in a memory unit; wherein said authorization information is stored as a set of bits, each bit corresponding to a processing element and indicating an authorization status for the corresponding processing element; checking the authorization information to determine whether the at least one inactive reserve processing element is authorized to become active; and if the at least one inactive processing element is authorized to become active, causing it to become active, and if the at least one inactive processing element is not authorized to become active, causing it to remain inactive; if a respective one of the other processing elements is authorized to become active, causing it to become active; and if a respective one of the other processing elements is not authorized to become active, causing it to re-enter the inactive state.