<Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (January 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> </Table> <Tr> <Td> </Td> <Td> This article needs additional citations for verification . Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources . Unsourced material may be challenged and removed . (January 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) </Td> </Tr> <P> A northbridge or host bridge is one of the two chips in the core logic chipset architecture on a PC motherboard, the other being the southbridge . Unlike the southbridge, northbridge is connected directly to the CPU via the front - side bus (FSB) and is thus responsible for tasks that require the highest performance . The northbridge is usually paired with a southbridge, also known as I / O controller hub . In systems where they are included, these two chips manage communications between the CPU and other parts of the motherboard, and constitute the core logic chipset of the PC motherboard . </P> <P> On older Intel based PCs, the northbridge was also named external memory controller hub (MCH) or graphics and memory controller hub (GMCH) if equipped with integrated graphics . Increasingly these functions became integrated into the CPU chip itself, beginning with memory and graphics controllers . For Intel Sandy Bridge and AMD Accelerated Processing Unit processors introduced in 2011, all of the functions of the northbridge reside on the CPU, while AMD FX CPUs still require external northbridge and southbridge chips . </P>

The set of northbridge and the southbridge are collectively known as the