# What is SMBus driver



## forumposter32 (May 15, 2005)

Should I install that? What does it do?


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## crazijoe (Oct 19, 2004)

Here's something I dug up
And yes you should install it

SMBus - System Management Bus

The System Management Bus (SMBus) is a two-wire interface through which simple system and power management related chips can communicate with the rest of the system. It is based on the principals of operation of I²C.
SMBus provides a control bus for system and power management related tasks. 
A system using SMBus passes messages to and from devices instead of tripping individual control lines. Removing the individual control lines reduces pin count. Accepting messages ensures future expandability. With System Management Bus, a device can provide manufacturer information, tell the system what its model/part number is, save its state for a suspend event, report different types of errors, accept control parameters, and return its status. The System Management Bus may share the same host device and physical bus with I²C components provided that the electrical and timing specifications of this document are adhered to.
Intel conceived the System Management Bus originally, as the communication bus to accommodate Smart Batteries and other system and power management components. In 1994 SMBus became part of the Onboard ACCESS.bus specifications. In January 1995 Philips announced in New York the royalty free status of ACCESS.bus devices including On-board ACCESS.bus compliant devices. In 1996 the Smart Battery System specifications were handed by Intel and Duracell to a group of 10 companies that formed the core group of the SBS. In 1997 the SBS Implementers Forum was formed and SMBus became part of the specifications handled by this group. The same year SMBus was incorporated into the ACPI specifications as the bus to communicate with the Smart Battery System and other system components, such as temperature sensors, etc. ACPI specifications also defined the SMBus host interface to the OS.


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