PCI Express (PCIe) x8 refers to a type of PCIe slot or connector that supports eight lanes of data transmission. PCIe is a high-speed interface standard used to connect various components, such as graphics cards, network cards, storage controllers, and more, to a computer's motherboard.
The "x8" designation indicates the number of data lanes available for data communication between the PCIe device (like a graphics card) and the motherboard. Each lane can carry data in both directions simultaneously, which means that an x8 slot can transmit and receive data on eight separate data paths.
An x8 slot provides more bandwidth compared to an x4 slot, but less than an x16 slot. The available bandwidth is crucial for determining how much data can be transferred between the device and the motherboard, which directly affects the device's performance.
PCIe slots are usually backwards compatible, meaning that a PCIe x8 device can be installed in an x16 slot (though it will only use eight lanes of the available sixteen). However, installing a device that requires more lanes (e.g., x16 graphics card) in an x8 slot would limit the device's performance due to reduced available bandwidth.
PCIe x8 slots are commonly found on motherboards and are used for a variety of devices, ranging from network adapters to RAID controllers to certain types of graphics cards. The specific use of an x8 slot depends on the requirements and capabilities of the device being connected and the motherboard itself.
